Prospects to watch in LA Bowl … If one is going to have a bowl in this day and age in which nobody outside the respective schools cares, then maybe Wednesday night’s LA Bowl (9 PM ET; ESPN) got it right as both California (6-6) and 324 UNLV (10-3) are well within driving range. It also doesn’t hurt that this game actually features a disproportionate number of quality pro prospects, especially for a first-week bowl. California, for example, has an All-American in CB Nohl Williams (#3, 6-1, 200) who leads the country with 7 picks to date. Meanwhile, LB Teddye Buchanon (#10, 6-2, 235) is a very productive inside backer who racked up over 100 tackles on the year, while DE/OLB Xavier Carlton (#44, 6-6, 275), who is coming off a 9 sack campaign, is an underrated edge guy with imposing size and surprising athleticism. The Bears also have one of the top backs in the country in Jaydn Ott (#1, 6-0, 200) who was talked about as a possible 3-4 back coming into the season, but may opt to return to school after fighting thru an injury plagued season. UNLV actually goes one better than Cal as the Rebels have a couple of AA candidates in LB Jackson Woodward (#7, 6-2, 230) and FS Jalen Catalon (#1, 5-11, 205). Woodard racked up almost 125 tackles on the season including 3.5 sacks and 4 interceptions, while Catalon, a one-time top prospect at Arkansas who was finally healthy this year, had 89 tackles and 5 picks. The Rebels best prospect though is likely WR Ricky White (#11, 190) a smooth operator who had 90 receptions this fall for over 1,000 yards and 11 scores. Indeed, scouts are more than looking forward to watching White go head-to-head with Cal’s Williams on Wednesday.
