WWE NXT Big Board: Updated Prospect Rankings and Analysis for November 5

Eva Marie has the potential to rise up the list of WWE NXT prospects, but not right now. Her latest opportunity left a stench in Full Sail University.

Every bout is a chance to impress or connect, just as it is a chance to stumble. Marie, who has made great strides and is putting in big hours with Brian Kendrick, showed on Wednesday's NXT just how much progress she needs to make before we can take her seriously.  

Bull Dempsey and Angelo Dawkins made similar impressions. Dempsey's gimmick is leaving him looking like a complete joke. Dawkins, meanwhile, can't seem to find his stride.  

He has to be frustrated with being part of the WWE developmental system for so long and to have not made more of a jump up the ladder. Apollo Crews and Asuka, on the other hand, have wasted no time in making emphatic statements in the ring.

Both newcomers are on the cusp of chasing down NXT's top talents.

The following is a look at where Crews, Marie and others stand in terms of being the prospects with the most potential to thrive on the main roster. Charisma, gimmick, size, look, mic work and ring skills all factor into the rankings.

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Finn Balor	5'11'', 190 lbs	Excellent showman, highly marketable, "it" factor aplenty, top-notch athlete.
2.	Samoa Joe	6'2'', 279 lbs	Off-the-charts intensity, versatile in the ring, strong promos, top-notch presence.
3.	Sami Zayn	6'1'', 205 lbs	Superb showman, fun move set, great crowd connection, inconsistent talker.
4.	Apollo Crews	6'1'', 240 lbs	Strong showings in the ring so far, needs to improve selling, fantastic athlete, persona in progress.
5.	James Storm	6'1'', 227 lbs	Looking energized by move to NXT, strong presence, excellent brawler.
6.	Colin Cassady	6'10'', 276 lbs	Good movement for big man, intense, strong connection with crowd.
7.	Baron Corbin	6'8'', 275 lbs	Can't consistently deliver in the ring, good presence, great look-size.
8.	Jason Jordan	6'3'', 245 lbs	High ceiling, great athlete, starting to get overshadowed by Chad Gable.
9.	Hideo Itami	5'9'', 182 lbs	Showing more charisma, making progress as mic worker, electric in the ring.
10.	Solomon Crowe	5'10'', 207 lbs	Excellent striker, good aggression, strong mic work, character in limbo at the moment.
11.	Simon Gotch	6'1'', 221 lbs	Comfortable on the mic, embraces character well, good presence.
12.	Chad Gable	5'8'', 187 lbs	Not coming off as larger than life, great technical skill, fun energy, growing crowd connection.
13.	Scott Dawson	5'10'', 224 lbs	Wooden on the mic, skilled brawler, excellent in-ring psychology.
14.	Tye Dillinger	6'3'', 223 lbs	Excelling with current gimmick, good showmanship, smooth ring work.
15.	Aiden English	6'3'', 215 lbs	Not progressing on promos, solid in the ring, decent charisma.
16.	Enzo Amore	5'11'', 200 lbs	Unimpressive ring work, funny, charismatic, better suited for manager role.
17.	Bull Dempsey	6'2'', 300 lbs	Moving further toward comedy character, showing flashes of great bruiser, surprising athleticism.
18.	Dash Wilder	5'10'', 222 lbs	Getting more natural on promos, Best suited for tag team role, good brawling, strong intensity.
19.	Sawyer Fulton	6'8'', 285 lbs	Aggressive, good size, needs to find right gimmick.
20.	Mojo Rawley	6'4'', 290 lbs	Agile, intense, one-dimensional as character, too limited of a move set.

Prospects just outside the top 20: Blake, Murphy, Steve Cutler.

Angelo Dawkins Destined to Be Left Behind

Sawyer Fulton watched on as his teammate lost to Bull Dempsey. Frustrated with him, Fulton waved his hands and walked away.

Unfortunately, that's symbolic of what the fans did to Dawkins long ago.

He's tried adjusting his gimmick. He's now using LeBron James' chalk toss and James Harden's "stir it up" motion as his own taunts. None of it has worked.

Credit: WWE.com

Dawkins isn't interesting. And he's not good enough to compensate for that.

Against Dempsey, he sold his foe's offense by flailing around like an inflatable man outside a car dealership. He was goofy but not funny. He failed to stand out, something that has been a habit for him.

WWE just welcomed a new class of 19 recruits including Rich Swann and Biff Busick. Chances are, that means Dawkins will be on his way out. Guys like him and Sylvester Lefort have been around too long and made too little progress to justify a spot at NXT.

Bull Dempsey Heading in Wrong Direction

WWE is trying to turn Dempsey into mid-'80s Adrian Adonis—the overweight midcarder who is the constant butt of jokes. 

The announcers again mocked Dempsey's weight. And he's again asked to be a goofball rather than a predator. He spun around in the ring to show Dawkins that both "bull" and "fit" were written on his tights. He slapped his belly with a grin.

Dempsey is being reduced to a series of sight gags.

There were all-too-brief flashes of the old Dempsey, with tight fists and a menacing glare. There has not been nearly enough of that with him of late. Instead, he's a comedy wrestler, a role that's ill-fitting for him.

Why take a talented, big bruiser with enough athleticism to pull off high-flying moves and make him a laughingstock?

Dempsey's potential is limited unless WWE makes a switch with him. There's no way that this jester role gets him anywhere.

Apollo Crews' Apex So Far

Crews had his most high-profile match at NXT yet, and he nailed it.

He and Finn Balor's battle for the NXT Championship was a crowd-pleasing blend of fast offense and eye-catching skill. Crews continues to make leaping off the mat effortless. He continues to look like a star in the making.

Even with as good as this bout was, though, Crews showed he has some things in need of polishing. 

He hit Balor with some tepid clotheslines at one point. In a match with so many hard-hitting moments, he has to deliver more convincing blows in a spot like that.  

And Crews hasn't yet developed a high-level ability to sell his foe's offense. Sami Zayn, Balor and others make fans feel their suffering. They maximize facial expressions and body language to tell the story in the ring.

His selling is not yet dramatic enough. He has hitting great moves down. The more he is able to convey emotion as the recipient of those moves, the more he'll connect with fans.

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Note
1.	Bayley	5'6''	Top-notch in-ring storyteller, strong connection with crowd, potential to be WWE's biggest female star.
2.	Alexa Bliss	5'1''	Thriving as heel, strong presence, much improved in the ring.
3.	Asuka	5'3''	Character moving into goofy territory, strong striker, excellent at submissions.
4.	Dana Brooke	5'3''	Ring work improving, overacts, comes off as fake on the mic, good athlete.
5.	Carmella	5'5''	Charismatic, great energy, raw/inconsistent in the ring.
6.	Nia Jax	6'0''	Intense, powerful, doesn't look comfortable in the ring yet, needs to improve presence.
7.	Billie Kay	5'8''	Good power, intensity needs work, OK presence.
8.	Peyton Royce	5'7''	Underwhelming striker, lack of snap to offense, nondescript persona.
9.	Eva Marie	5'8''	Awkward in the ring, stiff on the mic, clearly working hard (but still needs major work).

Eva Marie is Miles Away

It's easy to feel bad for Marie. She should never have been hot-shotted to Raw in 2013. And she shouldn't be on NXT TV already. She's still in the early stages of her development in the ring.

We're seeing an unfinished product.

Marie went up against Gionna Daddio, who the announcers billed as an unknown "local competitor" and looked terrible. Her showboating felt forced. She was awkward throughout. 

And her finisher looked like garbage.

John Moore of ProWrestling.net summed up the bout quite well, writing, "That match was dreadful!"

That's not Daddio's doing; it's Marie's. She didn't look ready. She had the fans chanting "What was that?"

Marie's ceiling is higher than several of the other women at NXT. She has a star quality about her that Peyton Royce and Billie Kay don't. But for now, she's not a better asset than either one of them.

Those women are competent in the ring. One can't say the same for Marie.

Asuka is Odd and Awesome

Her match against Cameron had no business being as good as it was. Cameron is a sloppy performer who looks just as raw today as she did when she started.

Asuka, though, is a captivating performer who can clearly handle herself in there with just about any opponent.

A hard running knee had the crowd gasp. She grabbed an attempted slap from Cameron and turned it into a surprise armbar, a move that inspired fans to roar in approval.

Asuka's energy is infectious. She makes unsettling expressions at times, however, something one would expect on a mental patient staring out of her room. 

It would be smart to embrace that and push her as more of an unhinged character. Only the somewhat vague nature of her persona right now and her limited English-language skills keep her behind Alexa Bliss.

If she keeps tearing it up in the ring, though, she'll be moving past Bliss and challenging Bayley as queen of the women's division.