Week 5 SCOUTING NOTEBOOK: Contrasting quarterback fortunes, Travis Hunter and more

By Jack Brentnall

Week 5 saw some epic college football matchups and some big performances from several draft prospects.

From some stellar defensive showings to a pair of quarterbacks whose stock is heading in very different directions, here are the things that caught my eye in Week 5.

Contrasting fortunes of top SEC quarterbacks

If there was one battle on every NFL scout’s radar coming into the weekend it was the clash between Alabama and Georgia, in particular their two quarterbacks. Both Carson Beck and Jalen Milroe have been talked up as potential first round picks, but both entered this game with questions to answer. One did a much better job of that than the other.

Milroe looked excellent throughout. His ability to win through the air and with his legs proved too much for the Georgia defense. He finished with almost 500 total yards and four touchdowns. 

Entering this game, Milroe needed to prove that he could do a better job of navigating pressure and avoiding sacks, and that is exactly what he did. He didn’t take a single sack on eight pressured dropbacks and on those plays he completed five of six passes for 78 yards. He looked particularly clinical against the blitz.

Another question mark with Milroe has been his ability to play in rhythm and get the ball out on time. He did a much better job of this too. He finished the game with an average time to throw of just 2.56 seconds, comfortably the lowest mark of his career.

Beck on the other hand, had a very different game. Things took a turn for the worst after he threw an interception as a result of a miscommunication in the first quarter. He never looked settled after that, with poor ball placement and some jittery feet in the pocket.

He threw another interception in the second quarter, followed by a really poor fumble in the fourth quarter. Things did improve a bit from there – Beck led the Bulldogs to three straight touchdown drives – but the game was over after he threw his third interception of the day in the end zone.

There is obviously still a lot of football to be played and it is important to not draw too many definitive conclusions from these performances. Nevertheless, it feels like Milroe and Beck are two players whose draft stock is heading in opposite directions.

Quiet season for Georgia's tight ends continues

Beck isn’t the only Georgia player who has underwhelmed. Coming into the season there was a lot of excitement about the Bulldogs’ tight end room. There were opportunities to be had following the departure of Brock Bowers, and both Oscar Delp and incoming transfer Benjamin Yurosek looked primed for good seasons. In reality they’ve barely featured.

Through four games, Delp has just three catches for 25 yards. His 0.37 yards per route run ranks 194th out of 203 tight ends with at least five targets. Yurosek has been even less productive, with a single target and no catches at all this season.

Both have fallen behind sophomore Lawson Luckie in the pecking order and this certainly won’t help their draft stock. As a true junior, Delp has eligibility remaining and it feels like a return to Georgia or transfer is more likely than him entering the NFL Draft at this point. 

Yurosek on the other hand is in his last year of eligibility. If he doesn’t see an uptick in production over the coming weeks the former Second Team All-Pac-12 member is going to continue his sharp slide down draft boards.

Travis Hunter continues to shine

Hunter might be one of the biggest names in the sport, but I still think that he is underappreciated as a player. What we are seeing him do week in and week out as a two-way star is frankly remarkable and is deserving of some serious praise.

That talent was on full display again in Week 5 as Colorado might light work of a heavily favoured UCF team. As always, they had Hunter to thank. He played an incredible 128 snaps and had an impact on both sides of the ball.

As a receiver he finished up with a respectable nine catches for 89 yards and a touchdown. He really shone as a cornerback though. Hunter had a big pass breakup on a third down that forced a punt from UCF. He also had one of the most ridiculous interceptions you will see all season, showing off his outstanding combination of football intelligence and short area quickness.

Through five games, Hunter has produced 46 catches for 547 yards and six touchdowns, as well as two picks, two pass breakups, and 11 defensive stops. There is going to be endless debate about whether his NFL future lies at wide receiver or cornerback, but it feels like for the next few weeks we should just appreciate what an incredible job he is doing for the Buffaloes while we can.

Abdul Carter balls out against Illinois

In this week’s scouting notebook I mentioned Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter as being a player with plenty to prove. Entering the season he was being talked up as a possible top five draft pick, but he had been underwhelming through three games, with just four pressures and one sack.

He answered his critics with a decisive Week 5 showing against Illinois. Carter took over the trench battle and was virtually unblockable for much of the contest. He finished the game with eight pressures on 27 pass rushing snaps. Two of these were sacks. He also managed to provide four defensive stops.

The question now is whether Carter can maintain this sort of form over the next few weeks as Penn State gets into their Big Ten schedule. If he can continue showing out against the best competition then he may well find himself back in the conversation as the top edge in the class.

DJ Uiagalelei demoted by Mike Norvell

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who has spent time watching Florida State this season, but Uiagalelei’s time as the Seminoles’ starter looks like it may be drawing to an abrupt end after just five games.

Entering the season there was real optimism surrounding the former five-star recruit. He was coming off a strong season at Oregon State and many were expecting him to thrive in Mike Norvell’s high-powered offense.

In reality, nothing has gone right. Uiagalelei is averaging just 6.7 yards per attempt and has just four touchdowns to six interceptions. Hiz 52.5% completion percentage is amongst the worst in the Power Four.

He was benched in Week 5 after throwing a pick six against SMU and he is now listed as a co-starter at quarterback. Whilst Norvell has said that this is the result of Uiagalelei suffering a broken finger, it is hard to see a way back for him at this point and by extension it is tough to see him making any waves whatsoever from an NFL Draft standpoint. 

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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