Irish RB Love enters draft … Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love has announced that he will be entering the 2026 draft where he has the potential to be a top 5-10 candidate.
Another dozen added to senior Bowl roster; QBs hilite Shrine signings … The Senior Bowl announced the addition of another dozen or so players to this year’s roster including a number of top prospects such as OTs Isaiah World of Oregon and Penn State’s Drew Shelton; Alabama WR Germie Bernard; RBs Nicholas Singleton of Penn State, Washington’s Jonah Coleman and Rahsul Faison of South Carolina; CBs Will Lee of Texas A&M and Chris Johnson of San Diego State; and Michigan S Zakee Wheatley; Texas Tech DE/ER Romello Height; and Texas A&M OT Dametrious Crownover.
The East-West Shrine game has also been building the roster of players that have agreed to participate in that game including among others QBs Cade Klubnik of Clemson and Georgia Tech’s Haynes King, along with DTs Darrell Jackson of Florida State and Cincinnati’s Dontay Corleone, Texas OG DG Campbell and LBs Harold Perkins of LSU, USC’s Eric Gentry and Lander Barton of Utah.
SC QB Maiava to return … Southern California lost a couple of players to the NFL draft earlier this week, but gets one back as QB Jayden Maiava, the 7th leading passer in college football this past season, has announced that he will be returning to the program next fall for his final year of eligibility.
Trojans lose 2 to draft; ACC Tigers keep one … Southern California lost a couple of underclassmen to the NFL draft overnight as both WR Ja’kobi Lane and safety Kamari Ramsey announced their intentions to turn pro this winter; both are considered to be second-day prospects for the upcoming draft. The NFL, though, is still waiting for word from Makai Lemon, the Trojans’ other star receiver who has top 10 potential, although it should be noted he has opted out of USC’s bowl game later this month. At the same time, Clemson finally got some good news from a star underclassman as rising junior DE Will Heldt, who led the team with 7.5 sacks this fall, has announced that he’ll be returning to the Tigers next fall.
Arch to stay with Horns; Duke QB looking at draft … To no one’s real surprise, Texas QB Arch Manning has confirmed that he’ll be back with the Longhorns in 2026. Manning, of course, entered the seasons as the prospective top pick at this year’s draft despite having barely played in college, but got off to a very rocky start before apparently righting the ship later in the season. On the other hand, there are reports out of Duke that redshirt sophomore QB Darian Mensah, who led the Blue Devils to that surprise ACC title, the program’s first in decades, has indicated that he is seriously considering entering the upcoming draft after getting a very positive report from the NFL’s draft advisory committee. This past season, the 6-3, 210-pound Mensah, who transferred to Duke this year after two campaigns at Tulane, completed 68% of his passes including 30 for scores against just 5 picks. For the record, Mensah has also reportedly told officials in the program that he’ll let them know as soon as possible – possibly as early as the middle of this week – what he’s decided about the NFL and that he is not considering the transfer portal if he opts to stay in college.
Weekly selection order posted … With another week in the books, the selection order for the first-round of the 2026 draft, were it to be held this week, has been updated here.
Dozen-plus added to Senior Bowl … The Senior Bowl has announced the addition of several more players to this year’s roster including a number of top prospects including RBs Kaytron Allen of Penn State and Jam Miller of Alabama; WRs Malachi Fields of Notre Dame and LSU’s Barion Brown; Texas A&M TE Nate Boerkircher; Arizona State Max Iheanacher; Iowa OG Beau Stephens; Michigan DE Derrick Moore; LBs Luke Basso of Oregon and Alabama’s Justin Jefferson; California CB Hezekiah Masses; Miami S Jakobe Thomas; and BYU PK Will Ferrin.
Bearcat QB weighing draft, transfer … Cincinnati QB Brendan Sorsby, one of the most dynamic dual-threat QBs in the country who started to attract some draft buzz earlier this year, is reportedly evaluating his football options for 2026. Sorsby has put his name into the transfer portal, but is also awaiting a report from the NFL draft advisory committee on where he stands for 2026. Stay tuned!
Giants, Raiders stay 1-2 at top of board; top 10 picks set … The NY Giants and Las Vegas will hold onto the 1st and 2nd slots in this week’s updated selection for the 2026 draft were it to be held this week, at least for another week, after both lost early games this afternoon. The Giants kept trying to give their game with Washington away, but the Commanders kept trying to give it back before finally prevailing 29-21 when a last gasp Giants rally fell short. The Raiders, on the other hand, left nothing to chance as they were drubbed 31-0 in Philadelphia. Remember for the record the Giants and Raiders are scheduled to play in Vegas in a couple of weeks. Tennessee also stayed at #3 with a loss in San Francisco, while Cleveland holds onto the #4 pick after getting drubbed in Chicago. However, wins by New Orleans and Washington will shuffle the top 10 to some degree with the NY Jets moving up to #5, followed by Arizona, New Orleans, Washington, Cincinnati and the LA Rams with a pick acquired from Atlanta.
Top 10 SEC DE enters draft; Big XII QB stays put … Auburn junior DE Keldric Faulk announced late yesterday that he will be entering the 2026 draft. The 6-6, 285-pound Faulk is considered to be a potential top 10 pick this coming April, despite the fact that he had somewhat production this year as he only posted a couple of sacks after registering 7 in a breakout campaign in 2024. On the other hand, Houston QB Connor Weigman has indicated that he will be returning to school for his final year of eligibility next fall.
IU QB Mendoza wins Heisman … To no one’s surprise, Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza was awarded this year’s Heisman at the annual ceremony in New York earlier this evening. Mendoza beat out Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia, Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love and Ohio State QB julian Sayin for the award, although the voting wasn’t all that close. Indeed, Mendoza captured over 70% of the first-place votes after leading Indiana to an unbeaten record and the #1 seed in the CFP playoffs this fall. And while he hasn’t yet declared for the draft, Mendoza who does have a year of eligibility remaining, is also the heavy favorite these days to be the first player selected at the 2026 draft if he should in fact opt to turn pro this winter..
Star Missou DE Young facing DWI charge … Missouri DE Zion Young, one of the better prospects at the position for the 2026, was arrested overnight and charged for an alleged DWI offence. The 6-4, 265-pound Young, who had 6.5 sacks this past season is currently #11 on the GBN positional ranking.
Sellers reportedly to return to South Carolina … Multiple sources are reporting this morning that South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers will be returning to school next fall for what will be his redshirt junior season. Sellers had been considered a potential top 5 pick this coming April, but he didn’t have a great year this past fall as the Gamecocks struggled to a 4-8 record.
PSU OG, Vols LB enter draft; Ducks DT stays home … There were several player announcements related to the 2026 draft overnight. To no one’s surprise, redshirt junior Penn State OG Vega Ioane, the consensus top IOL this year and a legitimate mid-to-late first round candidate, has declared for the upcoming draft and has opted out of the Nittany Lions’ Pinstripe Bowl date with Clemson later this month. In what is a little bit of a surprise, Tennessee LB Arion Carter has also opted to enter the 2026 draft despite having a year of eligibility remaining. The 6-1, 235-pound was a 2nd team All-SEC selection this past season when he had 76 tackles, including 6 for loss and 1.5 sacks in just ten games, but is considered to be more a mid-to-late round prospect. On the other hand, Oregon redshirt junior DT Bear Alexander announced on his social media that he would not be declaring for 2026 as many expected, and would instead be returning to Eugene for one more season in 2026.
ACC DE Parker hilites latest Senior Bowl commits … The Senior Bowl announced that four more players have committed to this year’s game including Clemson DE TJ Parker, Alabama DT Tim Keenan, Penn State DE Dani Dennis-Sutton and Texas S Michael Taafe. In fact, all four are interesting prospects with at least top 100 potential, none more so than Parker who entered the season rated #1 overall on more than one board around the NFL, but slipped well down the opening round after a very disappointing 2025 campaign. However, by going to Mobile, where he may very well be the top-rated Senior Bowl prospect, will give Parker the chance to maybe regain some of that lost ground with a dominating type performance.
Top WR enters draft … Arizona State junior WR Jordan Tyson, arguably the top prospect at the position for the upcoming draft, has confirmed that he will be turning pro this winter and entering the 2026 draft. Sun Devils’ S Xavier Alford, an oft-injured 5th year veteran who barely played in both 2023 and 2025 because of injuries, also indicated that he’ll also be entering the draft where he projects to be either a late-round or free agent candidate.
Red Raider heads latest Senior Bowl commits … The Senior Bowl announced the addition of 8 new players to this year’s roster including 3 from 4th ranked Texas Tech including rugged NT Lee Hunter and WRs Caleb Douglas and Reggie Virgil. The other new commits announced earlier today include LBs Deontae Lawson of Alabama and BYU’s Jack Kelly; Minnesota DT Deven Eastern; Georgia State WR Ted Hurst and Washington CB Ephesians Prysock.
Vols WR Brazzell enters draft … Tennessee junior WR Chris Brazzell is the latest underclassman to confirm that they will be passing on their final year of college eligibility and entering the 2026 draft. Brazzell, a rangy 6-5, 200-pounder with legit deep speed was a consensus first team all-SEC performer this year when he hauled in 62 passes for over 1,000 yards and 9 TDs. He is considered to be a late first, early second round candidate for this coming April’s draft.
Second Gamecocks’ DB to enter draft … It has not been a great day for the South Carolina secondary. Earlier today, rising junior CB Brandon Cisse confirmed that he’ll be entering the upcoming draft. Then later today, junior S Jalon Kilgore announced that he’ll also be entering the 2026 draft. However, while Cisse has legit first-round aspirations, Kilgore is more a 3rd-day type, although he has good size (6-0, 210) and was very productive in his three years at USC where he had over 170 career tackles, along with 8 picks.
Second SEC CB enters draft … Literally just hours after Tennessee junior CB Jermod McCoy confirmed that he was entering the upcoming draft, South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse also announced his intentions to forego his final year of college eligibility and enter the 2026 draft. The 6-0, 190-pound Cisse, who allowed a completion percentage below 40% this past fall against SEC opponents after playing for a couple of seasons at NC State, is considered to be a late first round prospect.
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