The bowl season gives fans and scouts alike a chance to analyze NFL Draft prospects against solid competition. The bowl season schedule allows all eyes to be on each game. Here are the NFL Draft prospects in the 2018 Franklin Mortgage Music City Bowl.
Purdue Boilermakers Prospects
David Blough, QB
Blough thrived this season under Jeff Brohm and has plenty of experience throughout his Boilermaker career. He has 9,550 passing yards, 69 touchdowns and 41 interceptions on 61% completion in his four seasons at Purdue. This season he has thrown for 3,521 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions on 66.6% completion for his best year yet.
He has below-average size at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, but his progression over his four years makes him intriguing. Not only was his completion percentage the best of his career, but so were his yards per attempt.
Project draft range: Seventh round-undrafted free agent
D.J. Knox, RB
Knox helped make a name for himself in Purdue’s upset win over Ohio State. At Purdue, he has 1,838 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. This season he has accounted for 868 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. He has shown the ability to catch out of the backfield with 507 receiving yards and three touchdowns in his career.
He is short at 5-foot-7, but is well-built at 210 pounds. There will be questions about his durability, as he has eclipsed the 150 carry mark in a season just this year.
Projected draft range: Undrafted free agent
Auburn Tigers Prospects
Derrick Brown, DT
Brown has played well enough to see his name soar up draft boards this season, which is impressive given how deep this draft class is at defensive tackle. For his career, he has 113 total tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, four passes defended, two fumble recoveries and three forced fumbles. This season he has totaled 45 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two passes defended, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble.
The junior has great measurables at 6-foot-5 and 325 pounds. Brown should expect to hear his name called early in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Projected draft range: Top 15 pick
Marlon Davidson, DE
Davidson has been an impact player for three seasons at Auburn. He has 124 total tackles in his career, 16.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, eight passes defended, two fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. In 2018, he has tallied 44 total tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and three passes defended.
At 6-foot-3 and 273 pounds, Davidson isn’t the prototypical size for a defensive end in the NFL, but still has a lot of talent.
Projected draft range: Fourth round-sixth round
Dontavius Russell, DT
Since being paired with Davidson and Brown, Russell has helped make Auburn’s defensive line great. Russell has 151 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss and six sacks in his career. This season he has racked up 34 total tackles, six tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
Russell has great size at 6-foot 3 and 320 pounds. He likely will have to wait until day three to hear his name get called.
Projected draft range: Fourth round-sixth round
Deshaun Davis, LB
Teams looking for a solid linebacker in the later rounds of the draft may want to target Deshaun Davis. He has 253 total tackles, 28.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, six passes defended and two fumble recoveries. This season he has 103 total tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two passes defended.
Davis stands 5-foot-11 and 233 pounds, which is short for a linebacker, but he does have adequate build.
Projected draft range: Fifth round-seventh round
Jarrett Stidham, QB
Stidham has had a wild ride of a college career that had him go from Baylor to Auburn. The quarterback has thrown for a total of 6,844 passing yards, 43 touchdowns and 13 interceptions on 64.1% completion. This season he has thrown for 2,421 yards, 13 touchdowns and five interceptions on 60.1% completion.
At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, Stidham has solid size for a quarterback. His play this season may hold back his draft status, but he should be drafted.
Projected draft range: Fifth round-seventh round
Ryan Davis, WR
Davis is probable for this bowl game after sustaining a head injury in Auburn’s last game. He has 173 receptions, 1,532 receiving yards and six touchdowns in his career. In 2018 he has 64 receptions for 523 yards and no touchdowns.
He is undersized at 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds and could be a candidate to play slot receiver in the pros.
Projected draft range: Sixth round-undrafted free agent
Make sure to check out our college football page for more updates and rankings.
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