The Week in Review
During Week 0 we had several teams from Conference USA, the AAC, Ohio Valley, Southland, and the Sun Belt Conferences kick off their season. While this sample of schools does not typically offer many NFL prospects there are still takeaways from an exciting week. Many of these games were blowouts, so the players who participated need to be mentioned with a caveat that these performances do not necessarily reflect what these players will be capable of if they make it to the next level, some did show glimpses that they have what it takes.
From the Memphis Tigers 37-24 victory over Arkansas State, we had several high-level players. The well-known receiver for Memphis, Damonte Coxie put up a strong game together totaling eight catches for 90-yards and a score, but it was the super-senior Sean Dykes who stole the show with ten catches for 137-yards and two TDs. The South Alabama receiver, Jalen Tolbert put together a very impressive line with six catches for 169-yards and two TDs in their victory over Southern Miss. This may be the signs of a breakout from the junior who totaled 521-yards in the prior season.
Brigham Young played against the independent Navy team well known for their triple-option offense, but in a surprising outrushed Navy 307-yards to 120. BYU was powered by Lopini Katoa’s 80-yards rushing and three all-purpose scores and Tyler Allgeier’s 132-yards rushing with two scores. The pair of juniors both showed glimpses of the potential to be playing on Sundays. However, the weekend was highlighted by a member of the Marshall Thundering Herd.
The Breakout Player of the Week: Grant Wells, QB, Marshall
The Impact
This season has a significant impact on the Marshall Thundering Herd because it is the 50-year mark from the devastating plane crash that killed much of the 1970 Marshall players and coaches. The redshirt freshman was expected to deal with some growing pains after taking only one snap in his true freshman season, but this simply was not the case. Wells dominated the Eastern Kentucky defense leading Marshall to 31-points on the first five possessions of the game. Wells day would end just after the second offensive possession of the second half leaving his squad with a 45-0 lead.
The Prospect
Grant Wells is a 6’1” 192 lbs. three-star recruit coming out of West Virginia. He was ranked as the 133rd quarterback in the 2019 class, but he sure did not play like it. His 16 for 23 for 307-yards and four TDs is incredible, but even more incredible when watching him play. He added 30-yards rushing, which the Thundering Herd will use more often through the season. He reportedly ran a 4.51-second 40-yard dash according to his Offensive Coordinator. Though his size is not ideal, the NFL is becoming more accepting of the smaller quarterbacks based on the success namely of Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, and recently Kyler Murray.
The Analysis
When diving into the tape and comparing it to the advanced analytics Wells stands out as a potential sleeper quarterback. Of his six incompletions, one was dropped by a receiver and the other two we’re also throw in a spot which the receiver could have made a play had they run the route more cleanly. This results in a catchable pass rate of 86% compared to his 70% completion rate. He also showed the ability to read through progressions and get the ball downfield going seven for nine on balls that traveled 15-yards or more. Amazingly Wells had already racked up 280-yards and four TDs in the first half.
The Takeaways
Marshall has never been a pipeline for NFL talent, so Wells still has a long road from being a highly touted NFL prospect, but he has made quite the first impression. Marshall has produced the likes of Randy Moss, Chad Pennington, Byron Leftwich, Troy Brown, and Ahmad Bradshaw all who had impressive NFL careers in their own respective careers. Wells is going to have to add some muscle in order to take the beating of the NFL, he is also going to have to continue playing at a very high rate for the next two upcoming seasons, and potentially for a senior season. At this point we are not going to advise rostering Wells in even the deepest of leagues, however, he is someone to keep in mind if the success continues and he proves himself against stronger competition. He is worth a flier in Campus to Canton leagues if the league allows for waivers or adds/drops.
What is Coming
This upcoming weekend the ACC and Big 12 are set to kick off their seasons. From a devy perspective, these two conferences were not terribly impacted by player opt-outs due to COVID-19. Sage Surratt of Wake Forest joined the pair of highly coveted defenders in Caleb Fairley and Gregory Rousseau to opt-out. The Big 12 had even fewer big-name opt-outs Oklahoma’s Kennedy Brooks is the one to remember.
It is very exciting to see how star players like Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne, Chuba Hubbard, Sam Howell, and many others have developed their game in the offseason, but I am focusing more on some big questions that have major devy impact. Who will be the Clemson leading receiver with Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross no longer available? How will highly recruited Spencer Rattler perform in Oklahoma’s offense? Will North Carolina’s Sam Howell take another step forward in his second season in Phil Longo’s system? Tune in next week for the Breakout Player of the Week!
Thank you for reading my article! If you enjoyed it, keep an eye out for my future articles. You can also follow me on Twitter @DynastyDiagnos1 and reach out with any questions, comments, or ideas you’d like me to explore for a new article.
