College Football Spring Stock Watch: Who Is Rising and Falling?
With spring practice well under way across the country (and even done at some schools) there's no better time than now to take stock of what's going on in the college football world. The offseason is all about assessment and evaluation, anyways.
Numerous developments during the spring have impacted what we may think about certain players, coaches and teams, either positively or negatively. We'll get you caught up on what has happened, what it means and what direction those involved are headed.
Rising: Auburn's Secondary
1 of 9
Auburn was in the middle of the pack, nationally, in passing defense in 2015. They allowed 222.6 yards per game with 13 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Gone from the secondary are two starters, including cornerback Jonathan Jones. The competition to fill his spot has been a spirited one in spring practice.
With sophomore Carlton Davis a virtual lock on one side, it's a trio of untested players vying for the open position: Jamel Dean and Javarius Davis are redshirt freshmen, while John Broussard is a true freshman who enrolled early.
Dean is a transfer from Ohio State who was medically disqualified at his former school because of a pair of knee injuries suffered in high school. Now healthy, he has "quickly risen up the depth chart this spring," according to AL.com's James Crepea. At 6'2” and 205 pounds, he'd be among the biggest corners in the SEC if he started. Alongside the 6'1”, 190-pound Davis, these two would make for an imposing duo.
But don't count out Broussard, who is 6'0” and 170 pounds but "has room to grow," according to Bleacher Report's Justin Ferguson.
Falling: Arizona OT Freddie Tagaloa
2 of 9
A former starter at California who transferred to Arizona before the 2014 season, Freddie Tagaloa was projected to be the Wildcats' blind-side protector last year as a junior. Instead, the 6'8”, 320-pound left tackle was in and out of the lineup because of injuries and ineffective play—one possibly causing the other, according to Michel Lev of the Arizona Daily Star.
This was supposed to be a big spring for the senior to show he could put it all together for his final season. Instead, a minor knee procedure kept him out all of spring ball, which ended for Arizona on Friday.
Tagaloa split time between left guard and left tackle last year when healthy. He could end up at either spot this fall if he's able to practice and show he can stay healthy while being productive.
Rising: Jim McElwain's Checking Account
3 of 9
Florida won 10 games and reached the SEC title game in Jim McElwain's first season—a performance that exceeded most realistic expectations.
The school decided to reward him for this early success with a $750,000 raise, which went into effect Feb. 1 but wasn't announced until last week.
That puts McElwain at $4.25 million per year, which puts him fifth among the SEC conference coaches (according to USA Today's salary database published last fall).
"We recognized early in Coach Mac's tenure that he totally changed the vibe around football for The Gator Nation and in the building," Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said, per FloridaGators.com. "From the moment he set foot on this campus, he has steadily put into place his blueprint for the football program. His efforts have been relentless."
McElwain is under contract through 2020, but now with higher compensation, he can expect to be asked to produce even greater results.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Falling: Mississippi State DT Signee Jeffery Simmons
4 of 9
Mississippi State isn't due to get top prospect Jeffrey Simmons onto campus and on the roster until this summer, though, a violent altercation last week could impact how his college career begins.
The top-rated player from the state of Mississippi, per 247Sports, Simmons was charged Monday by Macon, Mississippi police with disturbing the peace by fighting and assault—both are misdemeanors.
The charges stem from a fight Simmons was allegedly involved in. Video of the incident surfaced over the weekend.
School spokesman Sid Salter told Sarah Fowler of the Clarion-Ledger that MSU was aware of the incident and "as more details become available, we will continue to evaluate the situation."
Simmons, a 6'3”, 277-pound defensive tackle, is ranked 19th overall in the 2016 recruiting class.
Rising: Oklahoma's 2017 Recruiting Class
5 of 9
After signing a relatively lackluster 2016 recruiting class in early February, Oklahoma is well on its way to having a big-time group for next year thanks to the commitment of a pair of 4-star wide receivers on Sunday.
Jalen Reagor and Charleston Rambo, both from Texas, give the Sooners 11 pledges for 2017 and an overall class ranking of second, according to 247Sports. Six of the commitments are from the Lone Star State compared to just three in 2016.
Ten of Oklahoma's commits are rated by 247Sports as four-star high school prospects, who are all among the top 310 in the country. The 11th, 3-star Marcelias Sutton is the top-ranked junior college athlete.
Falling: Uncommitted WR Prospect Demetris Robertson
6 of 9
With only a few days left to choose his school before the signing period comes to an end, 5-star wide receiver Demetris Robertson appears no closer to making a decision. He better hurry because Friday is the deadline to sign a national letter of intent.
According to Bleacher Report's Damon Sayles, Robertson has signed financial aid agreements with California, Georgia and Georgia Tech but is also heavily considering Alabama, Notre Dame and Stanford.
Financial aid agreements mandate a school must provide aid, but it doesn't require Robertson to attend that school, and the agreement doesn't become binding until a national letter of intent is inked.
Robertson has visited Alabama and Georgia since opting not to commit on national signing day. At the time, his brother and legal guardian, Carlos Robertson, told Rivals.com's Notre Dame website, "it will probably be another week or so" before he made a decision. That was almost two months ago.
Rated by 247Sports as the No. 1 wideout, the third-best prospect from Georgia and the No. 14 overall player in the 2016 class, Robertson would be a boom for whichever school gets him. But if he misses the deadline, he might not be able to play at all this year.
Rising: South Carolina QB Brandon McIlwain
7 of 9
Even before senior Perry Orth suffered a broken collarbone during spring practice, true freshman Brandon McIlwain was making a strong push to challenge for the starting job. First-year coach Will Muschamp confirmed that on Monday, via the Columbia Rotary Club, the race was basically down to Orth and McIlwain.
Orth, who according to Josh Kendall of The State was injured during a closed scrimmage on Saturday, is expected to return to the team by June. That means the remainder of spring ball—South Carolina's spring game is scheduled for April 9—will likely see McIlwain getting the bulk of the first-team reps.
Junior Connor Mitch and sophomore Michael Scarnecchia will also get a look, but with Orth and sophomore Lorenzo Nunez (who sprained a knee the week before) out, there are more opportunities for McIlwain to prove himself.
South Carolina's quarterbacks were collectively subpar in 2015, as the team completed only 54.4 percent of its passes for 207.5 yards per game with 17 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, per Sports-Reference.com.
Falling: USC's Defensive Line Depth
8 of 9
An injury to junior defensive tackle Kenny Bigelow doesn't just rob USC of a potential starter on an experience-challenged defensive line, it could make for a significant change in alignment for the 2016 season.
Bigelow suffered a torn ACL in his right knee last week, according to the school, and will be out at least seven to nine months. Though he had only three sacks and 10 tackles in 13 games last year, he was set to be the only upperclassmen on a defensive line unit that graduated five seniors, including all three starters.
Now, USC might end up playing more of a nickel defense to account for its lack of depth and experience up front. Shotgun Spratling of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the Trojans could start two down linemen and four linebackers—two of whom would play up front as stand-up defensive ends.
The 6'3”, 290-pound Bigelow was heading into his fourth year with USC, but last year was his first time getting on the field. He redshirted in 2013 and missed all of 2014 with a torn ACL in the same knee.
Rising: Vanderbilt's Offense
9 of 9
Much of it didn't come against projected first-teamers, but the numbers Vanderbilt produced on offense during its spring game on Friday are cause for optimism.
Being able to move the ball effectively and consistently has been a major problem for the Commodores under third-year coach Derek Mason.
Even without junior running back Ralph Webb, a known entity who ran for 1,152 yards last year but was held out of the spring game for precautionary reasons, Vandy's offense scored a 42-31 win over the defense per Adam Sparks of the Tennesseean.
Projected starting quarterback Kyle Shurmur was 7-of-9 for 96 yards, and collectively, five QBs combined to go 17-of-25 for 221 yards and no interceptions.
"That last number is important because Vanderbilt’s quarterbacks threw five interceptions in the 2015 spring game, so it seems they’re making progress," ESPN's Sam Khan Jr. wrote.
Vanderbilt was second-to-last in the SEC in passing in 2015, averaging 171.8 yards with 11 touchdowns, 16 interceptions and a 51.1 percent completion rate.
Statistics courtesy of CFBStats.com or Sports-Reference.com, unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
