The nation's leading rusher and passer, two of the most productive linebackers in the SEC and eight total quarterbacks will be on view Saturday in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl all-star game.
The Carson, Calif.-based game, which is in its third season, will be televised on ESPN2 (6 p.m. ET) and features former NFL coaches Dennis Green and Dick Vermeil leading teams of college all-stars.
NFL Media senior analyst Gil Brandt believes there are plenty of reasons to pay attention to this game.
The American team, coached by Green, features Bloomsburg (Pa.) tailback Franklyn Quiteh, a Division II player who led all of the NCAA with 2,195 rushing yards. Quiteh (5-foot-10, 206 pounds) rushed for 7,523 yards in his career, with three 2,000-yard seasons. His total is third-most in NCAA history and second in Division II to the 7,962 gained by Chadron (Neb.) State's Danny Woodhead, who now plays for the San Diego Chargers. Quiteh lacks speed, but has good vision, patience and toughness.
The nation's passing leader is West Texas A&M's Dustin Vaughan (6-5, 220), a Division II player who threw for 5,401 yards and 53 touchdowns. The TD total is the third-highest in Division II single-season history. Vaughan, a pre-med major, has prototype size for a pocket passer and has a strong arm.
The SEC linebackers are Missouri's Andrew Wilson and Kentucky's Avery Williamson. Wilson (6-3, 240) was second in the SEC with 113 tackles, while Williamson (6-1, 238) was sixth with 102 despite playing with a thumb injury for much of the season. Neither is considered a three-down linebacker at the next level, but both are noted for their run-stuffing skills and could be enticing for a team looking for a late-round linebacker with those skills.
South Carolina's Connor Shaw, who threw 24 touchdown passes and just one interception this season, is one of four quarterbacks on the National squad. He is joined by Vaughan, Louisiana-Monroe's Kolton Browning and Cincinnati's Brendon Kay, who threw for 3,289 yards and 24 TDs this season.
The American team's quarterbacks are headed by Missouri's James Franklin; he is joined at the position by UNLV's Caleb Herring (24 TD passes this season), Hawaii's Sean Schroeder (28 TD passes) and Ohio State backup Kenny Guiton, who played well when Braxton Miller missed two games and most of another with a knee injury.
The game features lower-tier prospects. But college fans can peruse the rosters and realize how many good college players likely will go undrafted and have to make a team via free agency.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
