- CLEMSON (10-4): After a couple of uncharacteristic off years, the Tigers look they could be back in the national championship picture this coming fall; they also could be major players at the 2026 draft. Indeed, the Tigers have a couple of defensive linemen – DE TJ Parker and DT Peter Woods – with top 5 potential, while QB Cade Klubniak is being mentioned as possibly being the top prospect at the position among returning veteran passers. Clemson also has a couple of other potential later opening round candidates in CB Avieon Terrell and WR Antonio Williams, while RT Blake Miller is a solid second-day prospect and OG Walker Parks and DT DeMonte Capehart provide depth.
- PENN STATE (13-3): The Nittany Lions made last fall’s CFP semi-finals, but will be after bigger things this fall with a very deep roster that starts with QB Drew Allar who likely would have been one of the first 3-4 QBs selected this past April had he turned pro this winter. Penn State, in fact, returns its whole backfield as RBs Nicolas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, both of whom ran for over 1,000 yards last season, also somewhat surprisingly opted to return to school. And while QB Allar lost his top target – TE Tyler Warren, a first-round pick in April – he does get a couple of quality receivers in WRs Kyron Hudson and Devonte Ross who transferred from Southern Cal and Troy respectively. Allar also gets his LT back as veteran OT Drew Shelton also returns to anchor OL along with rising OG Vega Ioane, one of this year’s top interior offesive line prospects. The Lions also lost their top defender in Abdul Carter, the 3rd player selected overall this past April who had 12.5 sacks last season, but do get back DE Dani Dennis-Sutton, who had 8.5 sacks of his own; he has some late first-round potential as does CB AJ Harris, while DT Zane Durant is a second-day candidate.
- ALABAMA (9-4): The Tide are coming off a disappointing season in which they were unceremoniously left out of the 12-team CFP playoff field; however, they were able to extend their streak of having at least one first-round pick to a new record of 16 straight years this past April. And while they may not have quite the elite talent they have featured in recent years, Alabama still looks to be in good shape to make it 17 years in a row with a #1 pick at the upcoming draft. LT Kadyn Proctor, for example, is currently considered to be a top-10 prospect, while DE LT Overton, a prototype 3-4 DE, LB Deontae Lawson and NT Tim Smith are each among the top 2-3 candidates at their respective positions. The Tide also feature a number of veterans with second-day potential including C Parker Brailsford, OG Jaeden Roberts, and S Keon Sabb. Alabama’s best prospect overall, though, is sophomore WR Ryan Williams who’d be very much mix to be the first player picked this year if he were draft-eligible.
- LSU (9-4): Overall, the Tigers will be fielding a very young squad this year – their entire offensive line, for example, will be made up of freshmen and sophomores -but, the veteran talent they do return is really good. QB Garrett Nussmeier who threw for over 4,000 yards and 29 TDs in 2024, for example, is the leading returning passer in college football and likely would have been one of the top 2-3 QBs selected this past April had he not opted to return to school. And Nussmeier, the son of a coach with elite tools, will have a couple of proven big-play targets to throw to in WRs Nic Anderson and Barion Brown, who transferred to LSU from Oklahoma and Kentucky, respectively, this past winter. Anderson, a huge target at 6-4, 220 who didn’t play last fall because of a torn thigh muscle, averaged just under 22 yards per catch and scored 10 times the previous year, in particular, has all the look of a top draft prospect if he can stary healthy, while Brown doubles as one of the most electric return artists in college football. LSU could also feature a dynamic edge rush as DE Patrick Payton and OLB Harold Perkins, both of whom were considered to be potential top 10 candidates for 2025 at this time last year, are back this fall. Payton, though, had a very disappointing year last fall at Florida State, while Perkins missed the better part of the year with a torn ACL. For good measure, the Tigers defense has a couple of other second day prospects in MLB Whit Weeks, a tackling machine who had 118 stops last fall, and CB Mansoor Delane, who transferred from Virginia Tech after posting 54 tackles and 4 picks in 2024.
- TEXAS (13-3): Needless to say, there’s a changing of the guard in Austin where Arch Manning takes over at QB for the Longhorns replacing Quinn Ewers. And Manning, the grandson of one former #1 pick and the nephew of two others, has been the presumptive top pick this coming April literally since his high school days, although he is still yet to play all that much for the Longhorns to date; indeed, he’s thrown less than 100 career passes so far for the Longhorns, but clearly the tools are there along with the bloodline. However, there’s also no guarantee that Manning will even enter the upcoming draft as the Mannings have tended to stay in school ad complete their eligibility. Manning also won’t necessarily be surrounded by a ton of veteran support this fall, although RB Quint Wisner could get some 2nd day looks if he opts to enter the upcoming draft, while OG DJ Campbell is one of the top interior OL prospects in the country, but is the only returning starter upfront on offense. At the same time, the Longhorns top 2026 prospect other than Manning is MLB Anthony Hill, the consensus top LB in this year’s draft who has some top 10 potential of his own, while CB Malik Muhammad, OLB Trey Moore and S Michael Taafe are second-day candidates. Overall, though, the Longhorns’ top prospect other than Manning is sophomore ER Colin Simmons, who had 9 sacks last fall.
- OREGON (13-1): After finishing the 2024 season as the only undefeated DI team in the country, the Ducks are in something of a reloading mode after having ten players selected at this past April’s draft. And while the Ducks likely won’t match that number this year, what they lack in numbers, they make up for in quality. In fact, the Ducks have two of the most intriguing, high-ceiling prospects in this year’s draft class in OT Isaiah World and DE Matayo Uiagalelei. World is a rangy 6-8 LT candidate with a basketball background who could figure in next April’s top 5, although he needs to work on keeping his pads down when blocking for the run. For his part, Uiagalelei, the brother former Clemson/Florida State QB DJ Uiagalelei, emerged as a top edge-rush prospect last fall when he posted 10 sacks; he’s a full-sized 6-4, 270 and could actually play some snaps on offence as he was also a highly regarded prep TE. At the same, Oregon has several other players including RB Mahki Hughes, OG Emmanual Pregnon, S Dillon Thieneman and MLB Bryce Boettcher, who are all among the top 2-3 prospects at their respective positions.
- OHIO STATE (14-2): The Buckeyes are coming off a dream season in which they won the national championship and then capped it off by leading the country with 14 players selected at the 2025 draft. It was also the 10th year in a row that Ohio State had had at least one player selected in the first round, a streak that should almost certainly continue this coming April especially if FS Caleb Downs, who is generally considered to be one of the top 2-3 non-QB prospects in college football, opts to turn pro this winter. In fact, there’s a better than even chance that the Buckeyes will have at least one #1 pick this year even if Downs chooses to stick around for his final year of eligibility as WR Carnell Tate, OT Ethan Onianwa, and CB Jermaine Matthews each have late first potential, while TE Max Klare and LB Sonny Styles are also among the top prospects at their respective positions, but are considered to be more later second-day candidates. Meanwhile, sophomore WR Jeremiah Smith IS generally considered to be THE best player in all of college football period, but won’t be draft-eligible until 2027.
- OKLAHOMA (6-7): The Sooners may not necessarily have one of the best or deepest 2026 draft classes, but they certainly have one of the most interesting. QB John Mateer, for example, is an athletic gunslinger who emerged as a true sleeper prospect at the position at Washington State last fall when he threw for over 3,000 yards and ran for another 800-plus, along the way accounting for 44 TDs including 29 thru the air. And while he’s a tad undersized at barely 6-1, Mateer is a legit sleeper candidate with the tools to ultimately go very high. Mateer will be joined in the Sooners’ backfield by RB Jaydn Ott, a California transfer who looked all the part of a top prospect after rushing for over 1,300 yards in 2023, but missed most of last season with a leg injury. For good measure, Mateer will be throwing to one of the top transfer receivers in the country in former Purdue WR Deion Burks. The Sooners could also field one of the most dynamic pass rushes in college with a group of edge rushers led by R Mason Thomas who had 9 sacks last fall along, while fellow ERs Marvin Jones and PJ Adebawore are both former 5-star recruits who haven’t done much on the field to date, but do have elite tools.
- GEORGIA (11-3): The Bulldogs have pretty much dominated the draft so far this decade. Indeed, UGA has had 55 players selected since 2021, compared with 44 for Alabama and 40 for Ohio State. And almost assuredly, Georgia is going to add to that total this coming April, although the Bulldogs don’t necessarily have any first-round locks. LB CJ Allen and DT Christen Miller, though, are currently rated among the top 2-3 prospects at their respective positions, but they’re both 3rd year juniors at somewhat lower-value positions. CB Daylen Everette should also get some late first-round consideration, while the Bulldogs will feature one of the more interesting WR rooms featuring transfers Zachariah Branch, the former USC speedster who doubles as one of the most electric kick returners in the country, and 6-5 Noah Thomas, who comes over from Texas A&M. Meanwhile, G/T Earnest Greene and TE Oscar Delp figure to be decent mid-round type candidates. Whether the Bulldogs can make it back to the CFP playoffs, though, will depend largely on whether QB Gunnar Stockton can replace Carson Beck who moved on to Miami this winter. Stockton, the former walk-on is a character kid with a great story, but the question is whether he has the tools to deal with tough SEC on a weekly basis.
- MIAMI (11-3): The Hurricanes are coming off something of a draft high after QB Cam Ward was the first player selected overall this past April. Miami will be replacing Ward with former Georgia QB Carson Beck who, somewhat ironically, was actually the guy being considered as the likely #1 pick in 2025 at this time last year. But he struggled thru an inconsistent season last fall that included too many turnovers which prompted a return to school and transfer. However, even if Beck can’t resurrect his draft prospects, there is a better than even chance that the Canes will have a major impact on the upcoming draft as they have a couple of elite prospects in DE Rueben Bain and OT Francis Mauigoa, both of whom have top 5-10 potential. The Canes should also feature a number of decent mid-to-late round candidates including DE Akeem Mesidor, DT David Blay, LB Mo Toure, and WR CJ Daniels. Toure, a Rutgers transfer, in particular, is an outstanding player, but has had his career path interrupted by a couple of torn ACLs included one that kept him off the field the entire 2024 campaign.
- TEXAS A&M (8-5): The Aggies made a brave start to their tenure in the SEC early in the previous decade, but it’s been more of a slog in recent years. And that trend has carried over to the draft. Between 2011 and 2017, for example, 9 former Aggies were first-round picks including 6 who were selected with top 10 selections, a run that culminated with Myles Garrett going first overall in 2017. In contrast, just 2 Aggies have been drafted in the first-round since and neither were top 10 selections. And that trend likely isn’t going to change next April, although the Aggies do have some talent. In fact, RB Le’Veon Moss and LB Taurean York are both rated among the top 2-3 prospects at their respective positions and should get at least some late opening round consideration, while OG Ar’maj Reed-Adams, LT Trey Zuhn, WR KC Concepcion, and DE Cashius Howell all have mid-to-later round potential.
- FLORIDA (8-5): The Gators had a nice bounce-back season in 2024 when they doubled their win total from 4 to 8 and they’ll be back in what could be a crowded SEC mix this coming fall. And while Florida doesn’t have anyone considered to be a lock to be selected in next April’s opening round, they do have a number of players who will get at least some first-round looks including C Jake Slaughter, arguably the top interior OL prospect in the 2026 class, along with OT Austin Barber, DT Caleb Banks and rising ER Tyreak Sapp.
