I hope that you enjoyed the first round of the 2025 freshman mock draft. With the majority of the bigger, more well-known names now gone, the second round becomes increasingly more difficult to draft. The players listed below either have holes in their game, are in extremely unpredictable situations, or both, making things interesting this season on FanDuel Sportsbook. They are currently ordered based on my personal rankings and current news that has come out of spring camps. Enjoy!
2.01 Dallas Wilson (WR – Florida)
If you’re searching for a prototypical X wide receiver to add to your devy roster, look no further than Dallas Wilson. He is 6’3” and 209 lbs. and is a physically gifted player, but his high school tape is filled with straight-line play and lacks evidence that he can be a good lateral mover and route runner. He has impressive speed and can break away from press coverage when needed.
The reason he finds himself in the early second round of this mock draft is that he has been receiving some rave reviews throughout spring camp. He showed off his speed, soft hands, and abilities after the catch in the Florida Gators spring game to the tune of 195 yards and 2 touchdowns. His 10 receptions in the game were also a Florida spring game record. While I don’t typically condone buying so much into spring game hype, it’s hard to ignore the steady drumbeat coming out about Wilson. He has a unique skill set compared to any other receiver in the Florida receiving corps, which could provide him with early field time this season. I am very optimistic that this spring camp/game hype can stick long-term and make Wilson a future first-round NFL draft pick.
2.02 Elijah Thomas (WR – Oklahoma)
Outside of Lotzeir Brooks, the biggest freshman player receiving spring camp buzz has been Elijah Thomas. Much of this is due to injuries in the Oklahoma wide receiver room, but first-team reps throughout the spring practice period along with strong reviews from the staff, are never a bad sign. Thomas is a dynamic athlete with a track background who boasts big-play ability with the ball in his hands. He has impressive movement skills and very quick footwork, which will help him become a good route runner at the college level. His high school tape did not reveal him to be a versatile route-runner, but he has the tools to improve at it. He has a strong burst, above-average speed, and great hands at the catch point. He also has the size and frame that could also prove advantageous for him as an outside receiver. Returning starter Deion Burks will be locked into the slot position, but the remaining receiving roles are ripe for the taking, and I think Thomas can step in early and often. For a player that was not viewed as a highly touted receiving prospect, taking him this highly may appear to be a bit of a reach, but I think he has all the capability to become a future day 2 draft pick in the NFL.
2.03 Gideon Davidson (RB – Clemson)
Gideon Davidson is a four-star running back prospect and early enrollee for the Clemson Tigers. He enters a rather empty running back room after 2024 freshman prospect David Eziomume failed to impress last season. Davidson has done everything that we could have hoped to try to seize the starting role this spring – enrolled early, received first-team reps throughout spring practices, and even made Dabo Swinney gush about him in interviews (something we rarely hear Dabo do for freshmen).
On the field, Davidson is an explosive athlete with the tools, size, and speed to be a successful runner for Clemson and at the next level. He is a 5’11” 202 lb. back who has good footwork, contact balance, and solid lateral agility. He also appears to display good vision on tape but will need to work on his initial burst and acceleration throughout his college career. He compares favorably to players like Jordan Mason, Tyler Allgeier, and Cam Akers. With the spotlight on him at Clemson over the next 3-4 years, there is no reason he couldn’t end up as the RB1 from this class, despite being in the second round of my mock.
2.04 Vernell Brown III (WR – Florida)
Brown III is a dynamic, play-making wide receiver with exceptional movement skills with the ball in his hands. He is an adept route runner who easily creates separation from opposing defenders using his elite burst and acceleration. At 5’11 and 172 lbs., Brown III is a smaller-framed receiver that will likely find himself playing in the slot for the Gators. This is probably my biggest concern for him moving forward – he currently sits third on the depth chart for this position behind Eugene Wilson and Tank Hawkins. While Eugene Wilson will be graduating and declaring for the NFL after the upcoming season, Tank Hawkins showed enough last season to remain ahead of an incoming freshman on the depth chart and be a thorn in the side of Vernell Brown III’s development. Drafting Brown III will be a true waiting game, which can sometimes be a risky investment and lead to a rapidly depreciating asset.
2.05 Talyn Taylor (WR – Georgia)
Georgia has been taking full advantage of the transfer portal year after year at the wide receiver position. The worst part is that the receivers they are bringing in aren’t elite devy assets or players, rather they are just barely good enough to clog up the receiver room and prevent freshman receivers from getting playing time. At this point, I like Talyn Taylor a bit more than his freshman counterpart, C.J. Wiley, but it’s hard to feel great about any receiver that winds up at Georgia these days.
Taylor is a speedy, sudden, and smooth route runner who is capable of winning all over the field. With a smaller frame, he lacks physicality in the early stages of his career, but there is no lack of athleticism. He probably finds himself routinely playing inside rather than outside as his career progresses, but there is a chance that he improves his size and physicality throughout his time at Georgia enough to warrant some outside playing time. Any player that has the tools that Taylor does is intriguing, regardless of landing in a historically poor situation.
2.06 Kaliq Lockett (WR – Texas)
The Texas wide receiver room is one of the more challenging ones to figure out and has more players than I typically want in one receiving room. Ryan Wingo, DeAndre Moore, and Emmett Moseley are the presumed starters for the Longhorns this season, and only one of them is likely to leave for the NFL draft next offseason. This leaves the three incoming freshmen fighting for time on the field, and each will be a candidate to enter the transfer portal moving forward.
My favorite of the group is currently Kaliq Lockett, a 5-star receiver who played his high school football in Texas. While Lockett excels with his body control and hands, he is a rather poor route runner and often fails to create any separation from defensive backs. He profiles as a longer, range-y outside receiver that will need a ton of work to refine his route-running and footwork if he wants to improve his projected NFL draft capital. Assuming he stays at Texas for the duration of his college career, I expect him to be a late day two pick in the 2028 class.
2.07 Marquise Davis (RB – Missouri)
Davis played his high school football in Ohio and amassed some gaudy stats over the final two years of his career, totalling 3,800 yards and 58 touchdowns during that time. Much like Gideon Davidson, Marquise Davis has the requisite size and athleticism that is needed to be a future NFL running back. Contrary to Davidson, however, Davis is a much more physical specimen who plays through contact and continues to move his feet after defenders get their hands on him. The reason I have him a few spots lower are that he doesn’t appear to have great lateral agility or speed to get around the edge. I will be intently watching Davis in the early years of his development to see if he can improve on these aspects of his game.
Missouri brought G5 transfer Ahmad Hardy into the fold this year and he will likely assume the role of RB1 for the Tigers. Outside of Hardy, however, the roster lacks depth and will provide Davis with a chance to show his value throughout the season. Missouri has also shown that they can develop and send running backs to the league in recent years, including Tyler Badie, Cody Schrader, and Nate Noel.
2.08 Malachi Toney (WR – Miami)
Toney is yet another receiver that has been getting a ton of buzz throughout spring camps, and he is perhaps the biggest riser compared to my original rankings before the freshmen stepped on campus. At 5’11” and 182 lbs., he is a smaller framed receiver that projects as a high-volume playmaker in the middle of the field. He re-classified and skipped his senior season due to impressive junior season statistics for American Heritage in Florida.
Toney creates easy separation in the middle of the field, and will likely be a target hog in the slot role for the Hurricanes. This wide receiver group has also just seen Xavier Restrepo vacate this role after having a career year in 2024. While I don’t expect Toney to replicate Restrepo’s 2024 production as a freshman, he should find his way onto the field early as the only truly notable names in the Hurricane’s receiving corps. are Joshisa Trader and CJ Daniels. Toney has good burst and acceleration to create separation for himself underneath, and always looks to get upfield quickly after he gets the ball in his hands. He doesn’t have the speed to outrun defensive backs, but he is evasive in the open field and more than capable of picking up yards after the catch.
2.09 Harlem Berry (RB – LSU)
You might be surprised to find the top rated running back by the services down in the late second round of this mock draft. Harlem Berry was ultra-prolific as a high school player, and concluded his high school career with over 2,500 yards and 45 touchdowns. He was also a standout track athlete with state titles in the 100 and 200 meter dashes.
So what is the catch? Berry has two things that really give me pause when investing in a running back. FIrst, he lacks the size and natural frame to be a true bell-cow back at the college level. Second, he played against a very poor level of competition in high school. His short area quickness and game-breaking long speed were all he really needed to put up gaudy high school statistics, and he never really needed to be a creative or technical runner.
Berry committed to LSU and I struggle to picture how he will quickly earn a prominent role in the offense. Caden Durham emerged as a start last season and still has two years of eligibility left. Additionally, Kaleb Jackson remains with the Tigers and, rumor has it, he has shed some weight this offseason and is looking more like his old self. It could be three years before we see Berry have a shot at being the RB1, and by then he could be recruited over. My point in ranking him at this spot – exercise caution.
2.10 Alvin Henderson (RB – Auburn)
As I just mentioned, playing a low level of competition is one of my bigger red flags for running backs entering college. They tend to get by on their athleticism rather than technical skill. Henderson played against some of the worst competition in Alabama and was easily the best player on the field in any game he played in. The good news is that he managed to beat Derrick Henry’s high school state rushing record.
As a runner, Henderson displays good footwork, adept lateral cutting ability, and great burst after making his initial move. Because he was a much better athlete than the opposing defenders in high school, he was impatient in setting up his blocks and was quick to try to get upfield. I do like his frame a bit better than Berry, but he will need to show that his athletic ability can translate to the college level. As a small side note, I am also a big fan of the other running back that Auburn brought in this year, Omar Mabson, and believe he could end up being the better of the two when we look back on it in a few years.
2.11 Malik Washington (QB – Maryland)
It’s unique to have a quarterback attending the University of Maryland in the top 24. Still, Washington was a consensus top ten quarterback in the class with a fascinating athletic skill set. He finished high school with nearly 8,000 yards and 93 touchdowns playing against difficult competition.
Washington stands at 6’4” and 220 lbs. and has prototypical size to be an NFL signal-caller. He also has a strong arm to pair with this size and can fire the ball into necessary windows at all levels of the field. His athleticism also allows him to be used as a dual-threat quarterback, and he has been clocked running a 4.65-second 40-yard dash.
Washington has done well to begin his career at Maryland this spring and even has a chance to be the game-one starter for the Terrapins. The traits that he possesses are what I am gambling on here. I believe that with a strong year in 2025, he will be a coveted player for teams to try to coerce into the transfer portal. Should he move on from Maryland to a better system for his development, he could find himself as a day 2 pick in 2028.
2.12 Jace Clarizio (RB – Michigan State)
It’s possible I could be putting my foot in my mouth with this one, but I am not afraid to stake my claim that Jace Clarizio is a top 24 devy asset in this year’s class. There were a few other considerations for this spot, and I have listed them below, but I wanted to put a spotlight on one of “my guys”.
Clarizio is a 3-star prospect from Michigan who stands at 5’10” and 191 lbs. Before committing to Michigan State, he held offers from notable programs such as USC, Alabama, and Iowa to name a few. Clarizio has a compact frame that allows him to get in and out of cuts easily, and displays good contact balance with the ability to fall forward. He struggles with his vision at the line of scrimmage on occasion and needs some work setting up his running lanes, but once he makes his move to get up-field he is very quick in doing so. His shorter strides allow him to cover ground quickly and he has the ability to outrun closing defenders.
The best part about buying in on a player like Clarizio is that he enters a wide-open Michigan State running back room. They brought in Elijah Tau-Tolliver in the transfer portal, but it would be a surprise if he acts as a substantial road block for Clarizio to get on the field. Clarizio offers a blend of bust and athleticism that is otherwise non-existent in the Michigan State running back room, and I expect that we get an early glimpse at his talent throughout the 2025 season.
Honorable mentions: C.J. Wiley, Bryce Baker, Matt Zollers, Kamario Taylor
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and I hope you got some valuable information you can use for your fantasy team! If there were any players that you felt should have made the cut for the top two rounds of my freshman mock draft, please reach out to discuss. If you’d like additional insight into Dynasty Football news and analysis, please follow me on Twitter @Evan_Kerr_ #DFFArmy #AlwaysBeBuilding
