NFL Draft: 2026 prospects to watch as Ohio State, Indiana, Georgia and Texas Tech join CFP fray

A couple weeks ago I previewed the top NFL prospects on the teams seeded 5-12 for the College Football Playoff. As the playoff reaches the quarterfinal stage and its respective bowl tie-ins, it’s time to preview the prospects for the top four seeds as they now enter the fray, starting with the defending national champion playing in the New Year’s Eve matchup.

Ohio State

Ohio State is loaded with future NFL talent (again). The Buckeyes have the most future NFL prospects in the playoff and in all of college football (again) this season, and will almost certainly have the most players drafted in the first round (again) and in the entire draft (again).

LB/edge Arvell Reese

Reese was my No. 2 overall player on my most recent big board and has a real chance to be the top player on my board as this draft cycle continues. He’s a weapon in the front seven who has dominant reps as an edge rusher, but also has the intelligence and range to play as an off-ball linebacker. Reese can take over a game, even when he’s not loading up the box score with sacks, and impact the play in a variety of different roles. He’s a needle-mover in every sense who would be fully unlocked in a creative defensive scheme, but he can improve any type of defense by allowing it to always have its best front seven players on the field. He reminds me a lot of Jaylon Smith at Notre Dame before he suffered his major knee injury.

S Caleb Downs

We’re not finished with Ohio State’s defense. Downs is the back seven version of Reese: an impact player who can be moved around like a chess piece and impact the game in a variety of ways. Safeties have a ceiling on how they go in the NFL Draft, but Downs is the type of player who not only makes plays for himself, but boosts the teammates around him because of what he can unlock. Downs can play in coverage on the back end, from the slot or from the box, and is used as a roving “monster back” at times in front of the safeties with the freedom to read and react to the offense. Downs is a top-10 player in this draft class.

Ohio State and the CFP's other top four seeds are loaded with talent. (Amber Matsumoto/Yahoo Sports) — Ohio State and the CFP’s other top four seeds are loaded with talent. (Amber Matsumoto/Yahoo Sports)

LB Sonny Styles

Reese isn’t the only first-round linebacker the Buckeyes have. His teammate Styles is also rangy, long and intelligent, with the strength to take on blockers in the run game. He’s the epitome of a modern-day NFL linebacker with his speed and ability to play in coverage and even with his ability as a blitzer. Styles is likely to crack the first round in a loaded linebacker class. That’s three potential first-rounders along Ohio State’s defensive spine — and we’re not finished

NT Kayden McDonald

McDonald has really come along this season in the interior of the Buckeyes’ defensive line. He’s just an average pass rusher, but McDonald has great size (6-foot-3, 326 pounds) and can hold the point against double-teams. He’s been a lot of fun to watch and his value as a run defender should give him plenty of looks in the back half of the first round.

Edges Kenyatta Jackson and Caden Curry

Ohio State has several more potential top-100 defenders, too. Jackson and Curry are firm Day 2 prospects. Curry is a productive player who has a knack for being around the ball and stacking positive plays. Jackson is an underclassman, so we’ll have to see if he declares, but his length and twitch are going to have NFL teams drooling. Jackson has real speed and a frame that he can continue to grow into, but already shows off strong hands and the ability to use speed-to-power. His best performances have come at the end of the season against Michigan and Indiana, and I could see him ending up rising even more throughout the playoffs and draft process and ending up as a first-rounder when it’s all said and done. I can’t wait to watch him against Miami’s offensive line.

[Get more Buckeyes news: Ohio State team feed]

WR Carnell Tate

On offense, Tate has been this year’s first-round wide receiver. Tate, who I ranked 12th overall on my most recent big board, is a long-legged and fluid athlete with hands and a catching range that allows him to play even bigger than his listed 6-2 size. His sideline catches are a true highlight of his game. Tate can eat up ground with his strides and seems to surprise defenders with how quickly he can close space and threaten the opposition vertically, while also having enough fluidity to consistently throttle speeds and get out of his route breaks. I’m a big fan of Tate and his game.

TE Max Klare

Klare is a Day 2 tight end who is battling behind Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq to be the second tight end off the board. He’s a smooth mover who can create a bit with the ball in his hands and reminds me a little bit of the Texans’ Dalton Schultz.

Other potential top 100 or mid-round selections

CB Davison Igbinosun

CB Jermaine Mathews Jr.

OT Austin Siereveld

OG Tegra Tshabola

Texas Tech

Edge David Bailey

Bailey, who was the 10th overall player on my most recent big board, is pure heat off the edge. He doesn’t have great size (listed 6-3, 250 pounds), but he’s a dynamic pass rushing threat who constantly takes it to offensive tackles throughout the game and forces offenses to account for him every snap. He’s likely never going to be a plus run defender, but he fights and his improvement in that area has really helped his stock, at least in my eyes.

Edge Romello Height

Height also lacks size (listed 6-3, 235 pounds) but his speed can overwhelm offensive tackles right after the snap. Height has upside as a pass-rushing dynamo that can be part of a rotation and I like him as a Day 2 prospect.

NT Lee Hunter

Hunter has outstanding size (6-4, 330 pounds) and while he can eat double-teams and space in the middle, he’s also an explosive athlete who can push the pocket and even penetrate right after the snap with a quick first step and active hands. Run stuffers with enough pass-rushing juice to stay on the field for all four downs are valuable. I have Hunter as an early Day 2 prospect, but he could rise even further during this process. I’m a big fan of his game.

LB Jacob Rodriguez

Rodriguez racks up tackles and turnovers like he’s collecting Pokemon cards. He’s a smart and sound player who has a nose for the football (seven forced fumbles and four interceptions this season). His quick diagnosing skills help him constantly be around the ball, especially in the run game and when blowing up screen plays. Rodriguez’s average size (6-1, 235 pounds) might hinder how high he will be ranked on big boards, but he’s a fun player to watch fly around on this talented defense.

Indiana

QB Fernando Mendoza

Mendoza was my QB1 when I did my too-early big board right after the 2025 draft, and a campaign that produced a Heisman Trophy, an undefeated season, and Indiana’s first Big Ten championship since LBJ was in office has done nothing to change that ranking. I previewed Mendoza in an article in May and will have another breakdown in the coming weeks, but the short version of why he’s the favorite to be the first signal-caller (and player) selected in this spring’s draft is because of his accuracy, footwork, polish, and enough arm strength to attack all parts of the field and get the most out out of whatever play is called. Mendoza might not have the superhero ceiling of recent high-end QB prospects, but it’s higher than he gets credit for. He has enough athleticism to create, and his ball placement, timing and ability to consistently diagnose defenses should let him solidify the offense of whatever struggling NFL team selects him. My high-end comparison for Mendoza is Matt Ryan.

WRs Omar Cooper Jr. and Elijah Sarratt

Indiana is well-coached, but it also has way more talent than I think the general fan gives the Hoosiers credit for. Along with Mendoza, Indiana’s offense has two top-100 wide receivers in Cooper and Sarratt. Cooper is a twitchy receiver who does a lot of damage from the slot, but he has good hands and real ball skills to high-point throws and passes away from his body, and he can work from outside as well. Cooper’s build, explosiveness, and ball skills remind me of a Diet Coke version of Deebo Samuel.

Saratt is a big-body outside receiver who developed instant chemistry with Mendoza. He’s a weapon in the red zone and on back-shoulder throws, and can consistently win when isolated and in contested catch situations.

LT Carter Smith

Smith is a top-50 prospect who could keep rising because of his play and the play of the rest of this year’s offensive tackle class. He’s a plus run blocker who might end up as a guard at the next level, but he’s more than held his own on the outside in pass protection and could get a shot to hang at right tackle in the NFL.

CB D’Angelo Ponds, S Amare Farrell

The Hoosiers have a couple of talented defensive backs who are smart, constantly make plays and seldom get out of position. Ponds (listed 5-9 and 170 pounds) lacks size, but he is extremely competitive and brings the fight to the receivers he’s guarding. He has no qualms taking on offensive linemen on blocks and is a constant pest to WRs and quarterbacks. Ponds’ size will limit how high he can go, but his always-battling, football-first mentality will win some teams over. Just a pure football player.

Ferrell is versatile and is very smart on the back end of Indiana’s defense. He is a quick diagnoser who constantly puts himself in position to make plays. I like him on Day 2 and think he has all the makings of a starting safety at the next level.

Other Day 3 prospects

RB Roman Hemby

RB Kaelon Black

Georgia

LB CJ Allen

Georgia is Georgia, so of course the Bulldogs have talent, but “only” a few top 100 players here instead of the usual dozen or so that we’ve been accustomed to. Allen was the 25th overall player on my most recent big board and is Georgia’s best player. He is a classic man in the middle of a defense, a smart player with a quick reaction to what the offense is doing and enough speed and range to cover the pass and run from sideline-to-sideline. Allen is also a strong tackler, and his competitiveness is infectious if you’ve ever watched Georgia over the past three seasons. Another talented linebacker in this year’s class.

CB Daylen Everette, DT Christen Miller

Everette and Miller are other defensive prospects of note for Georgia. Everette has played a lot of football and has been a solid player over that time, while Miller (listed 6-4, 305 pounds) is a strong run defender but with light enough feet to be used as an attacking interior lineman on slants and defensive line games. I like him as a Day 2 prospect.

WR Zachariah Branch

Branch is dynamic with the ball in his hands underneath or on gadget plays and is one of the best returners in the country. Branch isn’t very big (5-10, 180 pounds), but he has the athletic twitch and big-play potential to always be a threat to pop the game open. I have him graded as a Round 3 player.

LT Monroe Freeling

Freeling is an excellent athlete with length. He is a former basketball player and he looks like it. He’s explosive out of his stance and is a true weapon in space as a puller or on the second level. Freeling’s athleticism and ability to recover with his light feet and balance give him real potential to be a starting left tackle at the next level. His strength has kept improving, which also lets him anchor more consistently and get real movement at the point of attack in the run game. Freeling is an underclassman and might return to school, but in a wide open offensive tackle class he could end up rising into the first round if he declares. The flashes are bright with Freeling and they keep getting more consistent. He’s a very intriguing player.