Week 13 SCOUTING NOTEBOOK: Ersery vs Carter, Shaun Dolac and more

By Jack Brentnall

What a weekend of football! Week 13 had plenty to offer, with big games and upsets aplenty.

There was a lot to take in from an NFL Draft perspective too. We were treated to an excellent trench battle in Penn State-Minnesota and got another pair of strong outings from the Heisman frontrunners.

Here are some of my key draft prospect takeaways from Week 13.

Two picks for Shaun Dolac

If there was one player who really stood out for me in Week 13 it was Buffalo linebacker Shaun Dolac, who made headlines with an exceptional performance against Eastern Michigan.

Dolac’s game was probably the closest thing you will find to perfection for a linebacker. He was as reliable as ever when it came to tackling, successfully completing all 11 of his tackle attempts. These were impactful plays too, as Dolac led his team with seven defensive stops.

His biggest impact came in coverage though. Dolac snagged a pair of interceptions, including a beautiful play that saw him read the quarterback’s eyes perfectly in zone coverage before slaloming through the swarm of Eastern Michigan players for a pick six.

This game built on what has been an excellent season for Dolac, who leads the FBS in tackles (134) and defensive stops (65). He also has the second lowest missed tackle rate of any linebacker with at least 50 tackles and leads all linebackers with five interceptions.

Dolac will certainly not wow NFL teams with his physical makeup. He is a below average athlete and at 6’0” and 218 lbs he is on the smaller side for a linebacker too.

That said, his on-field production and ability to be a consistent difference maker on all three downs is hugely valuable. Linebacker is a position where so much of the skill comes down to what is between your ears. There is little doubt Dolac has that in spades.

Iron sharpens iron with Ersery vs Carter

There wasn’t a battle that draftniks were more excited to watch in Week 13 than Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter going up against Minnesota offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery.

It is safe to say that the battle lived up to its billing. Much like the game itself, it turned out to be a pretty even affair, with both players showing why they have been talked up as first round prospects.

Whilst Carter was held without a sack, he still impacted the game down-to-down. His instant burst and variety of moves kept Ersery on his toes, and Carter got a handful of impressive wins utilising inside counters to force Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer off his spot.

For Ersery, it felt like this went as well as it probably could have done. After all, asking anyone to contain Carter completely for a full game is unfair. Ersery didn’t allow Carter to sack or hit his quarterback and had some impressive reps of his own, including a nice snatch trap move to get Carter on the deck.

So often we come away from these matchups with a definite winner and loser. This feels like one of those rare cases where both players came out of it boosting their draft stock.

More disappointment from Jaydn Ott

Go back to the summer and one of the names getting talked up as a 2025 NFL Draft prospect with upside was Cal running back Jaydn Ott.

Expectations were understandably high after a strong 2023 season that saw him earn First Team All-Pac-12 honours, but he just has not been able to match that sort of production this season.

Week 13 saw another really disappointing outing for the junior back. Despite facing a poor Stanford run defense, Ott struggled to make any sort of meaningful impact, finishing with just 17 yards on his 10 carries.

Ott has now averaged more than two yards per carry just once in his last five games. His production has declined significantly compared to last season. In 2023, he averaged 109 yards and a touchdown, with an average of 20.5 carries per game.

This season those numbers have dropped across the board, with Ott averaging 33 yards and 0.5 touchdowns, with an average of 11.5 carries per game.

He’s declined in pretty much every other area too. Ott’s trademark as a runner has been his breakaway quickness and ability to make defenders miss in space. Both of these things have been conspicuously absent from his game this season. 

He hasn’t forced a single missed tackle as a runner in his last four games and he has just four runs of 15+ yards this season. That pales in comparison to 2023, when he had 16.

It is fair to say that Cal’s offensive line doesn’t do him any favours. That said, for any running back to be worth their salt they need to show that they are able to overcome their surroundings and that they are not wholly dependent on them.

Given his lacklustre production and the depth available in this year’s running back class, it would not be surprising at this point to see Ott return to school, or even enter the transfer portal in the hope of an improved senior season.

Heisman frontrunners continue to impress

College football has been awash with debates over whether it should be Ashton Jeanty or Travis Hunter who wins this year’s Heisman Trophy. After another strong week from both players, that debate isn’t going anywhere.

Jeanty looked as dominant as ever this weekend against Wyoming. He carries the ball 20 times, rushing for 169 yards and a touchdown, averaging 8.5 yards per attempt. 

148 of those yards came after contact, with Jeanty forcing six missed tackles in the process. His five runs of 15+ yards were the most of any player this weekend. 

The fact that this sort of game has begun to feel routine for Jeanty speaks volumes to the talent he possesses and why he is one of the rare running backs to warrant a first round pick. He now has 2,061 yards and 27 touchdowns this season and still has a legitimate chance to set the single season collegiate rushing record.

Not to be outdone, Travis Hunter had one of his best games of the season against Kansas, despite the Buffaloes falling short of victory. Hunter finished the game with eight catches for 125 yards and two touchdowns and a perfect passer rating when targeted.

This included an electric 51-yard touchdown that saw him take a screen to the house, showing off his silky smooth athleticism and explosive capacity.

He was his usual self in coverage too. Kansas were wise enough to avoid testing him too often, when he was targeted there was nothing there for the Jayhawks. Hunter didn’t allow a catch on his two targets and managed to produce an impressive pass breakup on a crossing route.

The spotlight will be on both players over the next few weeks as the Heisman race hots up, but I feel like it is important to just savour their respective performances whilst we can. We might not see play like this again for a long time.

Mikail Kamara goes missing vs Ohio State

Coming into the weekend, Indiana edge rusher Mikail Kamara led the nation in pressures. In my Week 13 preview article I mentioned that his clash against Ohio State would be the toughest test of his season and an excellent litmus test for him as a prospect.

I never expected Kamara to take over the game. Given the competition, that would be a little unreasonable. I was however hoping that he could show some flashes and give the Buckeyes offensive line a few problems. That never materialised.

Kamara was barely a factor at any point in the game. He finished with zero pressures on his 25 pass rushing snaps. Perhaps more concerning was that he logged a 0% pass rush win rate.

He wasn’t much better against the run either. Ohio State’s line was consistently able to get him off his spot and wash him out of plays. Kamara finished the game with just two tackles to his name.

The question with Kamara has always been his physical limitations. At 6’1” he is short for an edge rusher and lacks ideal length. Those issues were difficult to overcome against top competition this weekend, and whilst it doesn’t invalidate his production to this point, it does cast some doubt on his NFL projection.

It remains to be seen as to whether Indiana gets a playoff berth, but if they do it will be worth watching to see how Kamara fares against any other quality opposition. The stakes for those games have certainly been raised.

JACK BRENTNALL

HEAD OF NFL DRAFT CONTENT

Previously the founder of The Jet Sweep, Jack joined The Touchdown as head of Draft Content in 2024. A Scouting Academy alumnus, Jack has been Covering the NFL Draft since 2020. Follow him on Twitter @Jack_Brentnall.

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