Mississippi State vs. Georgia Tech: Top 2014 Orange Bowl NFL Prospects to Watch

Mississippi State and Georgia Tech will conclude 2014 by clashing in New Year's Eve's Orange Bowl.

The nightly matchup pits two 10-win squads that couldn't quite make the College Football Playoff cut, but the prominently ranked clubs still headline Wednesday night's tripleheader. While Mississippi State formerly held the nation's top rank at 9-0, Georgia Tech nearly climbed up the hierarchy in a close call versus Florida State.

In the end, this is just another game thrown together for advertising, but there's still plenty of talent on display Wednesday night. A few players in particular will clamor to impress NFL scouts before capping the college campaign.

For pro fans monitoring potential contributors, keep an eye on these guys. 

Date	Time (ET)	Location	TV
Wednesday, Dec. 31	8 p.m.	Sun Life Stadium, Miami, FL	ESPN

Mississippi State

ILB Benardrick McKinney

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

The Orange Bowl's top prospect, Benardrick McKinney is the only participant harboring first-round hopes. A strong showing would help cement the linebacker's status as a top choice.

According to Yahoo Sports' Rand Getlin, the junior is "considered a lock to enter the 2015 NFL draft" after receiving his grade from NFL draft advisory board. The imposing 22-year-old, who collected 56 tackles in 10 games, must have liked the evaluation.

Fox Sports' Nick Toney delivered his scouting report on McKinney, who helped Mississippi State allow just 19.4 points per game this season.

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The 'Psycho Defense' down in Starkville confounded the SEC and helped Mississippi State to an Orange Bowl berth. McKinney was the heart and soul of that unit who made all the defensive calls and was responsible for any defensive audible. Scouts will come for McKinney’s leadership and stay for his massive frame; at 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds, he can thump with the NFL’s biggest right away.

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Georgia Tech generates 71.2 percent of its yardage on the ground, ranking No. 3 in the FBS with 333.6 rushing yards per contest. Such a run-heavy offense gives McKinney plenty of chances to wreak havoc in the trenches.

Interior linebackers don't tend to fare as well as their outer contemporaries; four outside linebackers went in last year's first round compared to just one middle linebacker (C.J. Mosley). Like Mosley, McKinney can make an immediate impact for a contending NFL franchise.

QB Dak Prescott

Stacy Revere/Getty Images

Remember when Dak Prescott was a leading Heisman candidate?

Through the first five games, the junior registered 337.4 total yards per game and 19 touchdowns and no interceptions. After that, he completed 59.6 percent of his passes with 18 scores and eight picks through seven games.

Per ESPN.com's Alex Scarborough, the quarterback cited the late-season slide as incentive to finish with a victory.

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It’s motivation, no doubt about it. Everything is motivation, just going to the award ceremony, seeing the four teams and the four playoff coaches and hearing all about the playoffs. I want to carry it into the bowl game and into my offseason and give it to the team, feed it to the team how I felt.

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As with many successful college dual-threat quarterbacks, his pro prowess has been dissected under the spotlight. He doesn't project as a prototypical pocket passer, and he's likely to endure some accuracy issues at the higher level.

Since head coach Dan Mullen formerly served as Florida's offensive coordinator, Prescott often gets compared to Tim Tebow. That's a tad harsh for his NFL outlook, but nobody is declaring its franchise saved by drafting Prescott, who could benefit from staying in school for his senior year.

Georgia Tech

Darren Waller, WR, Georgia Tech

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Somebody has to catch a pass or two for the Yellow Jackets. It won't be DeAndre Smelter, who tore his ACL last month. This gives Darren Waller a golden opportunity to turn some heads.

Smelter led Georgia Tech's anemic passing offense in receptions (35), yards (715) and touchdowns (seven) this season. ESPN's Davis Hale tracked the senior's heavy usage rate.

At 6'5", Waller certainly possesses the size to make a dent as the top wideout. With Smelter absent against Florida State, he collected five catches for 73 yards and a touchdown.

That puts him to a paltry 21 catches on the season, a career high for the under-utilized big man. Yet the NFL loves tall pass-catchers, and it wouldn't be the first time a pro team ignored the college stats and invested on a high-upside gamble.

Burning the Bulldogs would cause league talent evaluators to take notice, putting the Georgia native on the map as a mid-to-late-round flier.