DRAFT NEWS

Three conference games matching ranked teams are the most important contests on the college football schedule for week three and no game will be more intense and emotional than the return of Lane Kiffin to the school he spurned last November for the money and the resources that LSU offers. Kiffin brings an absolutely loaded team into Oxford for Saturday night's contest.

The biggest inter-conference game of the 2026 college football season kicks off Saturday night in the comedy center of the universe, but the tilt between the Buckeyes and Longhorns is no laughing matter. It's a possible sneak preview of the national championship game and a preview of a possible generational choice at the top of the 2027 NFL Draft between Jeremiah Smith and Arch Manning.

The 2026 NFL Draft QB class looked like it could have been special at the beginning of the 2025 college football season but the reality of the class is there are few potential starting QBs in this draft and only one that could project to being a franchise QB - Indiana's Fernando Mendoza. Another ten or so prospects look like potential developmental starting QBs. The remaining QBs figure to fight for a roster, or more likely, a practice squad spot next fall.

Entering last weekend, eleven teams were undefeated, a large number for this point of the season. But after last Saturday, that number has been reduced to six teams after (2) Miami, Fl (lost to Louisville), (5) Ole Miss (lost to Georgia), (7) Texas Tech (lost to Arizona State), (22) Memphis (lost to UAB), and UNLV (lost to Boise State) all tasted the bitterness of defeat. The remaining undefeated teams come from the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12, ACC, and AAC.

Now that college athletes can be legally paid - and paid extraordinarily well - the expectations have also risen to the point where a preseason favorite for the national title, a team that was one possession away from playing Ohio State for the title last season, stumbled to a 3-3 start, lost a potential first-round pick QB to a season-ending knee injury, and fired their head coach. Penn State will be paying ex-coach James Franklin $49 million to go away, a lot of money for a

It's mock draft time here at SNS! Although the leaves are only beginning to turn, certain patterns are already setting in about the 2025 NFL season. Four teams clearly need an upgrade at QB - New Orleans, Miami, NY Jets, and Cleveland - but the quality of the 2026 QB class is in question by the performances put on film by the projected top prospects Drew Allar, Garrett Nussmeier, Carson Beck, Cade Klubnik, and Arch Manning so far this season.

The potential top OT prospects look to be similar in quality to last year’s class and should provide NFL teams with several starting caliber OTs next April, including a couple of players projected to be elite blindside protectors in the NFL. The depth at OT should provide teams with potential starters available on days two and three of the draft next spring. This class is stocked with big and long levered OTs who check the boxes from a physical specimen stand point.

After a down year for the QB position in the NFL Draft, the prospective top upper classmen signal callers could be a bounce back class that delivers several potential franchise QBs to NFL teams in need next April. Although there is no clear-cut leader in this class, there are several prospects that have the combination of physical tools, mental makeup, and game experience to be drafted first overall next year.