If you’re new to the Weekly Watch, the goal is to provide you with the names of the top upcoming dynasty prospects in nationally televised college football games. It’s never too early to take a look forward. Who will be the sleepers of upcoming rookie drafts? Check back here every week as you get ready to watch each game.
Feel free to reach out on Twitter (X) (@THEtristancook) if you have players you think deserve to be mentioned in next week’s article.
#4 Alabama @ Wisconsin
Saturday, 9/14 | 12:00 PM ET | FOX
#4 Alabama
Jalen Milroe | #4 | QB | 2025 | 6’2” | 225 lbs.
The players to know in this game all reside on the Alabama side of the ball. The first is Heisman-hopeful, Jalen Milroe. He had a bit of a lackluster performance last week after completing only 61.5% of his passes for 194 yards against USF. If Milroe is going to make his way into the 1st round of the NFL Draft, he needs to show that he can pass the ball at a higher level than he did last week. This game against Wisconsin will be his toughest yet, so I’ll be watching closely.
Ryan Williams | #2 | WR | 2027 | 6’0” | 175 lbs.
Through 2 weeks, 17-year-old Ryan Williams remains the best weapon for the Crimson Tide offense. He backed up his big game in the opening week with 4 catches for 68 yards and 1 receiving TD last week against the South Florida Bulls. If you aren’t familiar with him, Williams is an outstanding recruiting prospect that is emerging as one of the best freshman receivers in the country. He has a long way to go before he’ll be draft-eligible, but he’s absolutely going to be one of the top receivers in the 2027 class.
#13 Oklahoma State @ Tulsa
Saturday, 9/14 | 12:00 PM ET | ESPN 2
#13 Oklahoma State
Ollie Gordon II | #0 | RB | 2025 | 6’2” | 225 lbs.
Once again, Ollie Gordon II is the best player on the field in this game. He struggled a bit last week against Arkansas, rushing for only 49 yards on 17 carries. Gordon managed to improve as the game went on, leading his team to a double-OT victory.
I expect this to be a nice bounce-back game for Gordon. However, if he’s going to ascend to the RB1 in the 2025 class, he’ll need to look better than he did last week, regardless of who is on the other side of the field. If you want a more in-depth analysis of Gordon, you can check out the Big 12 Conference preview.
#16 LSU @ South Carolina
Saturday, 9/14 | 12:00 PM ET | ABC
#16 LSU
Kyren Lacy | #2 | WR | 2025 | 6’2” | 213 lbs.
Through two games, Kyren Lacy has been the most exciting player to watch when LSU has the ball. He’s already scored four TDs and is leading the Tigers in all receiving categories. Lacy looks like he’s the next LSU receiver in a long line of dynamic receivers to come through Baton Rouge. He isn’t quite in the top tier of my WRs but if he keeps up this kind of production and tests well during the pre-draft process, he could vault up the rankings.
South Carolina
Raheim Sanders | #5 | RB | 2025 | 6’0” | 230 lbs.
Over on the South Carolina side of the ball, the main name to remember is Raheim “Rocket” Sanders. He came to South Carolina via the transfer portal this offseason after an injury cut his 2023 season short at Arkansas. Sanders hasn’t looked particularly explosive yet this season, only tallying 142 yards on the ground over 37 carries. If he’s going to regain any of the draft hype he had heading into the 2023 season, he’ll need to perform well against LSU this week.
Nyck Harbor | #8 | WR | 2026 | 6’5” | 235 lbs.
If you don’t know Nyck Harbor, now is a good time to get yourself acquainted with him. However, if you blink too long you might miss him. There are a lot of players who are described as having “track speed” but few of them have 10.11 second 100-meter speed. Even fewer have that kind of speed at 6’5” and 235 lbs. Harbor has a while left in college and needs to show he’s more than a freakish athlete, but there aren’t many people on this earth like Nyck Harbor.
#9 Oregon @ Oregon State
Saturday, 9/14 | 3:30 PM ET | FOX
#9 Oregon
Evan Stewart | #7 | WR | 2025 | 6’0” | 175 lbs.
This game features one of the best receivers in the country in Evan Stewart. After a disappointing Week 1 against Idaho, Stewart bounced back nicely last week with 112 yards and a touchdown on 5 catches. I’m expecting another big performance this week against the Beavers. Right now, Stewart is just behind Colorado’s Travis Hunter for the top WR spot in my rankings.
Tez Johnson | #15 | WR | 2025 | 5’10” | 165 lbs.
Tez Johnson isn’t on the same level as the aforementioned Evan Stewart, but he is worth knowing. He and Stewart have swapped strong weeks to start the year so it will be interesting to see if they can both perform here in Week 3. Johnson is actually leading the team in receptions (five more than the next closest pass catcher) but is 4th in receiving yards. In fact, his 5.3 yards per catch is the lowest on his team. I’ll be watching to see if he can work down the field a little bit more this week.
#1 Georgia @ Kentucky
Saturday, 9/14 | 7:30 PM ET | ABC
#1 Georgia
Carson Beck | #15 | QB | 2025 | 6’4” | 220 lbs.
In a trend that is becoming more and more common, the players to know all reside on one side of the ball. In this game, the top prospect on the field is Georgia’s Carson Beck. He has had 2 strong games to start the year, throwing for a total of 520 yards and 7 TDs, while completing over 70% of his passes.
Beck is a more traditional quarterback prospect and was tied for the top QB spot (with Colorado’s Sheduer Sanders) in Mel Kiper’s initial ranking. I have him just behind Sanders but he’ll likely be one of the top picks in superflex drafts this coming year, so you should be familiar with his name.
Trevor Etienne | #1 | RB | 2025 | 5’9” | 205 lbs.
Trevor Etienne is the other player I’ll be watching in this game, as he is finally in line to be the focal point of this rushing attack against Kentucky. Etienne transferred to Georgia from Florida this season but had to sit out the season opener because of a DUI arrest during the offseason. Now, due to some injuries, he should have plenty of opportunity to stake his claim as one of the top backs in the 2024 class.
Colorado @ Colorado State
Saturday, 9/14 | 7:30 PM ET | CBS
Colorado
Shedeur Sanders | #2 | QB | 2025 | 6’2” | 215 lbs.
As I mentioned, Sanders is currently my QB1 in the class and is tied with Georgia’s Carson Beck in Mel Kiper’s latest QB rankings. However, unlike Beck, Sanders is coming off of a terrible Week 2 game on the road at Nebraska. He completed only 60.5% of his 38 pass attempts for 244 yards, 1 TD, and an awful pick six en route to a 10-28 loss. I am very eager to see how he will look coming off his worst performance as a member of the Colorado Buffaloes.
Travis Hunter | #12 | WR/CB | 2025 | 6’1” | 185 lbs.
Unlike his teammate, Hunter had a strong Week 2 performance (statistically speaking). He hauled in 10 passes for 110 yards but wasn’t able to make a game-changing impact as he had in the past. He came into the week as my top ranked receiver and nothing has changed that. I expect to see Hunter come out particularly focused against Colorado State as he was knocked out of last year’s game after a late hit. This is a prime opportunity for Hunter, Sanders, and the rest of the Buffs to look much better than they did last week in the national spotlight.
Colorado State
Tory Horton | #14 | WR | 2025 | 6’3” | 185 lbs.
On the other side of the ball, the Rams have a dynamic receiver of their own in 5th-year senior Tory Horton. He is coming off back-to-back big seasons of eclipsing 1,100 yards, including a career high 96 receptions last year. The matchup I’m most excited about is to see if Travis Hunter will mirror Horton throughout the game. Horton isn’t the same level of prospect as Hunter (or some of the other top WRs in the 2025 class). However, he has the potential to be a value pick in the middle rounds of rookie drafts. This game could do a lot for his draft stock: good or bad.
San Diego State @ California
Saturday, 9/14 | 10:30 PM ET | ESPN
California
Jaydn Ott | #1 | RB | 2025 | 6’0” | 210 lbs.
For the late-night (formerly #Pac12AfterDark) crew, the player to know is Jaydn Ott. After he rushed for 1,305 yards in 2023, I had high hopes for Ott coming into this season. However, through 2 games, he’s averaging an abysmal 2.5 yards per carry. He really struggled last week against Auburn after rushing for 11 yards on 10 carries. However, in the opener, he only ran for 49 yards on 14 carries against a much lower-level opponent in UC-Davis. I do think better days are ahead for him, but he’s been one of the bigger disappointments so far in the young season.
That’s it for this week’s games. If there is anyone you’d like me to take a look at, hit me up on Twitter (@THEtristancook). Also, check out tape on some of these guys in the Dynasty Nerds Film Room. It’s an amazing tool that I try to take full advantage of. You can use the code “tcook” for 15% off a membership of any kind!
