College Football Week 0: 2026 NFL Draft prospects to watch
By Jack Brentnall
After what feels like an eternity of football-free Saturdays, college football is back, and with it comes the start of draft season.
While Week 0 might not feature a full slate of top-25 matchups, it provides the first opportunity for future pros to make their mark and rise up draft boards.
Here are five names that I will be watching closely this weekend.
Domonique Orange - IDL, Iowa State (6-2, 328, Senior)
The start of the college football season is always full of excitement, let alone when it starts with a rivalry game between a pair of ranked opponents in Iowa State and Kansas State.
If there is a player in the Farmageddon matchup that can go inside the top 100 in the 2026 NFL Draft, I would put my money on the Cyclones’ defensive tackle, Domonique Orange. The senior has developed into a key part of their defensive front over the last two seasons and looks primed for a big 2025.
Orange aligns primarily as a nose tackle, where his thick 325 lbs frame can clog up rushing lanes and cause problems for opposing centers. He is more athletic than his size might suggest though, showing some impressive movement skills for a bigger player. This is evidenced in how creative Iowa State were with him last year, moving him up and down the line of scrimmage to create favourable matchups.
In terms of his outlook for 2025, Orange still has room to grow as a technician and NFL scouts will also be keen to see more from him as a finisher. He has logged 42 career pressures, but has just one sack in three seasons so far. A big game this weekend in Dublin would be big for his draft stock.
Avery Johnson - QB, Kansas State (6-3, 196, Junior)
On the other side of that matchup will be Kansas State quarterback Avery Johnson. Johnson was a four-star recruit in the 2023 class and became the first top 100 prospect to commit to the Wildcats in almost a decade.
In high school, Johnson was a two-sport athlete who excelled on the football field and basketball court. That athleticism is readily apparent on tape and he showcases impressive quickness and true dual threat ability. Johnson ran for almost 700 yards in 2024, and his 11 breakaway runs ranked third amongst Power Four quarterbacks.
He also shows impressive arm strength and has some exceptional flashes as a passer. The issue so far in his career though has been consistency. He has struggled with accuracy and ball placement, with an adjusted completion percentage of 70.9% in 2024 that is far below what you want in an NFL quarterback prospect.
His consistency and reliability as a decision maker also remains a question. Johnson tends to struggle if he is forced off his initial read, and he is a little too quick to resort to using his legs when the pocket starts to crumble. Iowa State will be a great test for him to start the season.
VJ Payne - S, Kansas State (6-3, 210, Senior)
Sticking with the Wildcats, they also have a number of talented draft prospects on defense, including senior safety VJ Payne. A former three-star recruit, Payne is entering his third season as a starter for the Wildcats.
Payne’s biggest calling card is his versatility. Throughout his career he has logged more than 400 snaps at free safety, in the slot, and in the box. He plays the game with a physical, hard-hitting style and he shows no fear when flying downhill. He is also said to be one of the fastest players on Kansas State’s roster, apparently clocking in at over 23mph on the GPS.
Payne won’t be a fit for every scheme. He is a taller player and that comes with limitations in terms of his transitional quickness. Despite his reported speed, he feels more at home in a two-high role that puts less pressure on his ability to quickly flip his hips and break on the ball.
Looking ahead to 2025, scouts will want to see him show more as a tackler. Whilst Payne’s toughness and speed are not in doubt, he really struggles to break down, leading to poor pad level on contact and hindering his stopping power. Payne missed 15.7% of his tackles last season and needs to show he can be more reliable in 2025.
Daniel Hishaw Jr. - RB, Kansas (5-10, 220, rs-Senior)
Later on Saturday we will see Kansas kick off their season against Fresno State. The Jayhawks are home to several interesting prospects, including edge rusher Dean Miller and guard Kobe Baynes, but the player I’m interested to watch this weekend is their running back Daniel Hishaw.
Hishaw is at this point part of the furniture at Kansas, pre-dating head coach Lance Leipold. He is entering his sixth collegiate season, and this will be his first as a starter.
Hishaw has sat behind Devin Neal for much of that time, and has dealt with more than his fair share of injuries. He missed all of 2021 and much of 2022 with a pair of hip injuries. His 2024 season was also limited to eight games because of a leg injury.
When he has been on the field, Hishaw has been productive, averaging 5.2 yards per carry and almost 3.5 yards after contact per attempt. Now he will get his chance to show what he can do with a starting role. Lance Leipold has stated his faith in Hishaw to take on a bigger role and that starts this weekend against Fresno State.
Hishaw is not the most athletic running back and he still has a way to go in terms of displaying consistent vision and reliable decision making, but he has the strength and frame of an NFL back and is a very talented pass protector. If he can stay healthy he could have a big 2025 season.
Collin Wright - CB, Stanford (6-0, 195, Senior)
If you are sticking around to watch the late games on Saturday evening, you should be keeping an eye out for Stanford cornerback Collin Wright.
Wright enters 2025 off the back off a very strong junior season that saw him earn Stanford’s Gundelach Award, given to the team’s most outstanding junior player. He finished the year with three interceptions and five pass breakups, allowing a completion rate of less than 60%.
After playing almost exclusively as a boundary corner in 2023, Wright was asked to play a more varied role in 2024. Stanford used him across their secondary, and Wright played some of the best football of his career. He even managed to pick off Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik whilst playing as a deep safety.
Wright doesn’t have elite long speed, but he showcases impressive hip fluidity to mirror in space and plays with commendable toughness against the run. Hawaii shouldn’t present too many challenges for him this weekend, but I am interested to see how Stanford uses him this season.
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.