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We made it to Week 3 college football! This is a weekly article for anyone who doesn’t keep up with college football but wants to see some of the potential draft-eligible players for the 2027 rookie draft. Each week, we preview their upcoming match ups and what to watch for from each college prospect. We also briefly mention what they did the week before as the season progresses.
Not every week will feature the same group of players or only the best players. As the season moves along, certain players will fall out of this article while others work their way into the conversation. These players are in no particular order. This is simply a look at 10 draft-eligible prospects to watch for the 2027 rookie class, not the top 10 overall players in college football.
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2027 NFL Draft Prospects to Watch Week 3 College Football
Jeremiah Smith | WR | Ohio State
Last week stats: 8 Recs, 164 Yds & TD
Week 3 | Kent State @ 12:00p Day (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Jeremiah Smith continues to show just how dominant of a receiver he is after a massive performance against a top-ranked Texas defense. Ohio State may have lost the game, but Smith has locked himself in as the top receiver in this class and, in my eyes, the 1.01 in next year’s rookie drafts. He now faces Kent State, which has a below-average defense and was blown out by South Carolina a few weeks ago. At this point, we probably don’t need to watch Smith to learn much more about his talent, but when you’re watching a potentially generational prospect, you want to see him dominate as often as possible.
Dante Moore | QB | Oregon
Last week stats: 48.3 Comp %, 191 Pass Yds, 2 TDs
Week 3 | Portland St @ 10:30p Night (Friday, Sept. 18th)
Oregon quarterback Dante Moore has not been at the top of his game through the first 2 weeks of the season, especially after completing fewer than 50% of his passes and being held under 200 passing yards in last week’s loss. We need to see Moore bounce back and regain some confidence, and there may not be a better matchup to do that than against Portland State, which has a young secondary that lacks depth.
For Moore, it’s about making the easy throws, going through his progressions and finding the open receiver, all areas where he struggled last week. He should face less pressure in this matchup, but we still want to see him handle pressure situations better after taking more sacks than he should have. Oregon hasn’t had its cupcake matchup yet, so Moore needs to take advantage of Portland State and get back on track.
T.J. Moore | WR | Clemson
Last week stats: 7 Recs, 103 Yds & TD
Week 3 | UNC @ 12:00p Day (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Junior receiver T.J. Moore had a strong Week 2 performance, finishing with more than 100 receiving yards and finding the end zone. Moore has now produced one good game and one disappointing game this season, while his matchup against UNC falls somewhere in the middle compared to his first two opponents. UNC has Jaiden Patterson and Kaleb Cost in the secondary, but Moore should still have opportunities to produce.
That’s what we want to see this week: Can Moore continue commanding a high target share while showing more explosiveness in his routes? He’s already a savvy route runner, but we need to see more speed and big-play ability from him. We also want to see if he can continue outperforming fellow highly-regarded prospect Bryant Wesco Jr. He’ll have a strong chance to prove any doubts against UNC.
Omarion Miller | WR | Arizona State
Last week stats: 9 Recs, 29 Yds
Week 3 | Kansas @ 12:00p Day (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Arizona State receiver Omarion Miller failed to make a major impact against No. 9 Texas A&M, and the bigger concern is that teammate Reed Harris is starting to make a name for himself in the offense. Miller needs a big performance against a Kansas secondary that has been shaky early this season, including allowing No. 20 Missouri to produce two 100-yard receivers last week.
We need to see Miller reestablish himself as the WR1 in this offense and become a bigger part of the passing game. Kansas has also struggled against receivers in the red zone, giving Miller an opportunity to use his size to win near the goal line and find the end zone. He can’t continue to be outshined by Harris, or his draft stock could start to slip, making this an important matchup for Miller.
Mario Craver | WR | Texas A&M
Last week stats: 3 Recs, 34 Yds, TD
Week 3 | Kentucky @ 3:30p Day (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Mario Craver has continued to find the end zone, scoring touchdowns in back-to-back games to start the season. The volume and yardage have been minimal, though, and now Craver gets a matchup against a solid Kentucky secondary that held Ryan Coleman-Williams to fewer than 50 receiving yards. We want to see Craver step up with a bigger performance against a talented secondary and show off more of his explosive playmaking ability. He has yet to surpass 42 receiving yards in a game this season, so this is an opportunity to change that. Against Kentucky’s tall, lengthy defensive backs, Craver needs to use his explosiveness and speed to create separation and produce more consistently downfield.
KJ Duff | WR | Rutgers
Last week stats: 8 Recs, 137 Yds, 2TDs
Week 3 | USC @ 3:30p Day (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
One receiver who has been climbing through the first two weeks is KJ Duff, who has dominated with 333 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns. While his matchups have been mediocre at best, we are finally getting a tougher test for Duff to show off his talent. USC has shown promise early in games when it comes to slowing opposing receivers, but depth has been an issue in the secondary, with more production coming once the backups enter the game.
The biggest thing to watch with Duff is how he performs against USC’s starting secondary and when his production actually comes. If he can win consistently against the starters rather than piling up numbers against the backups, it would be another positive sign for his rising stock.
Kewan Lacy | RB | Ole Miss
Last week stats: 13 Atts, 87 Yds, 2 TDs
Week 3 | LSU @ 7:30p Night (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Kewan Lacy showed much better efficiency in Week 2, improving from 3.6 yards per carry to 6.7 against a lower-tier opponent. Now comes the real test against LSU, which ranks No. 2 in run defense and has allowed just 36 rushing yards through its first two games. LSU has tackling machines throughout its front seven, including linebacker T.J. Dottery and freshman defensive tackle Deuce Geralds.
Lacy needs to continue showing that he can break tackles and create efficient runs against a much stronger defense. In a game that could feature more scoring, we could also get valuable film on Lacy’s ability as a receiver out of the backfield. He produced 87 rushing yards and a touchdown against LSU last season but averaged only 3.8 yards per carry, so improved efficiency will be important this time around. If you’re watching this game, Lacy needs to be one of the players you’re focused on.
Trinidad Chambliss | QB | Ole Miss
Last week stats: 88.5 Comp %, 225 Pass Yds, 2 TDs
Week 3 | LSU @ 7:30p Night (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
We are sticking with Ole Miss, and another player to watch is senior quarterback Trinidad Chambliss. He played well against LSU last season, producing 385 all-purpose yards and a touchdown in a win. With the Ole Miss defense looking shaky early this season, Chambliss may need to put the offense on his back against the No. 1-ranked defense in the nation. LSU has an elite secondary and a strong front seven that should create plenty of pressure, making this a major test for Chambliss.
We want to see him show explosiveness while playing clean football and limiting mistakes in a difficult matchup. We also need to see Chambliss get back to using his legs after not needing them as much last week. For Chambliss, this game will be about consistently starting and finishing drives if he wants to lead Ole Miss past LSU again.
Trey’Dez Green | TE | LSU
Last week stats: 6 Recs, 104 Yds, TD
Week 3 | Ole Miss @ 7:30p Night (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
This is the first time all season we’ve had a tight end make this list, and Trey’Dez Green is one of the top tight end prospects for the 2027 NFL Draft. He has already made plenty of noise with 10 receptions for 162 yards and a touchdown through 2 games. While the Ole Miss defense has struggled this season, it’s still probably the best defense Green has faced so far, making this a good test for the talented tight end.
With two top-ranked teams facing off, LSU could be forced to continue throwing throughout the game, creating more opportunities for Green. We want to see if he can continue creating after the catch, as 43.6% of his receiving yards came after the catch last week. We also want LSU to take advantage of his massive catch radius and size in the red zone, where Green has the tools to dominate.
Sam Leavitt | QB | LSU
Last week stats: 65.8 Comp %, 344 Pass Yds, TD, 3 INTs
Week 3 | Ole Miss @ 7:30p Night (Saturday, Sept. 19th)
Status – Doubtful – not ruled out yet
Yes, we have 4 players to watch from this Ole Miss-LSU matchup, as it’s one of the biggest games of Week 3 between two top-10 programs. Sam Leavitt helped LSU earn another win last week with more than 300 passing yards, but he also threw 3 interceptions, although not all of them were necessarily his fault.
This will be another important test for Leavitt, even with the Ole Miss defense struggling early this season. He should have opportunities to attack this secondary in different areas of the field, but the biggest focus needs to be limiting turnovers and handling pressure better. Ole Miss ranks 19th in pressure rate this season, so expect the defense to try to make Leavitt uncomfortable. He needs to stay composed and play clean football if he wants to continue pushing his way into the upper tier of quarterbacks eligible for the 2027 NFL Draft.
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Check out our latest 2027 1QB Rookie Mock Draft for more College prospects!
