Scout's Notebook - 2026 Hula Bowl Preview

John B. Everett
10 minutes ago
8 min read

Mississippi State QB Blake Shapen scrambles for a first down — *Blake Shapen / QB / Mississippi State*

The 80th Hula Bowl is scheduled to kick off at 12 noon ET / 9 am PT on Saturday, January 10, 2026 from Deland, Florida, making this All-Star game a perfect appetizer before the NFL playoffs begin later Saturday afternoon. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

The first college All-Star Game of the postseason, Hula Bowl participants are primarily lower level NFL prospects who grade out as late round draft prospects and high level undrafted free agents (UDFA). Prospects who excel during practices and in the Hula Bowl can earn an invitation to the East-West Shrine Bowl on 1/27 or the Senior Bowl on 1/31 where the best draft-eligible prospects earn invitations. There are several quality NFL prospects scheduled to participate. Let's take a look at the position groups and participants scheduled this week in Deland, Florida.

Blake Shapen / Mississippi State

Braylon Braxton / Southern Mississippi

Kyron Drones / Virginia Tech

Derek Robertson / Monmouth

Jake Retzlaff / Tulane

Athan Kaliakmanis / Rutgers

Jalen Kitna / UAB

Preston Stone / Northwestern

The QB class at the Hula Bowl is a quality group of experienced collegiate signal callers with the requisite game experience that the NFL wants in their QBs. Most of these QBs hope to become reliable backup QBs in the NFL but Shapen and Retzlaff offer enough tools to become eventual starters in the NFL. Shapen, the 2021 Big 12 Championship Game MVP at Baylor, lacks ideal size but has the arm, toughness, durability, and intelligence to become a low-end NFL starter. Retzlaff is a streaky passer but his mobility, feistiness, and leadership skill gives him a chance to become an eventual NFL starting QB.

Jaden Nixon / UCF

Myles Montgomery / UCF

Dean Connors / Houston

Kevon King / Norfolk State

Coleman Bennett / Kennesaw State

Davon Booth / Mississippi State

Desmond Reid / Pittsburgh

Leshon Williams / Kansas

Truman Werremeyer / FB / North Dakota State

The RB class at the Hula Bowl is unlikely to see any of the RBs drafted but a few of these prospects are likely to either make a 53-man roster or a practice squad next fall. Connors is an experienced and productive RB at Rice and Houston and is one of the best pass protectors in the 2026 class. Booth is a well-rounded RB with a quality burst. Reid has battled injuries the last two years but looks like an ideal third down back in the NFL. Williams has extensive playing experience at Iowa and Kansas and could become a feature back in the NFL. Werremeyer is one of the best FBs in college football and with the position gaining importance in the NFL, he could have a long NFL career.

Camden Brown / Georgia Southern

Will Pauling / Notre Dame

Junior Vandeross / Toledo

EJ Horton / Purdue

Octavian Smith / Maryland

O'Mega Blake / Arkansas

Jalil Farooq / Maryland

Tre Shackelford / Tulane

Kyle Dixon / Culver-Stockton

Kobe Prentice / Baylor

Reggie Retzlaff / Colorado State-Pueblo

Chris Hilton / LSU

Hank Beatty / Illinois

Matthew Henry / Western Kentucky

Taro Igarashi / Kwansei Gakuin (Japan)

Unlike most other position groups at the Hula Bowl, the WRs have a number of prospects who could make a 53-man roster or practice squad next fall. Pauling was a starter at Wisconsin but found himself stuck in the depth chart last season at Notre Dame. Pauling is smooth and reliable. Vandeross is a dangerous slot receiver who uncovers easily against both man and zone coverage and is a home run threat every time he touches the ball. Blake has desired size, good hands, and is a productive third down WR. Farooq, a transfer from Oklahoma, has a great combination of size and athleticism to be developed into a quality number three or four WR in the NFL. The Hula Bowl serves as a great opportunity for two small school WR prospects - Dixon and Retzlaff - who need a productive week to get established firmly on NFL Draft radars.

Hudson Habermehl / UCLA

JT Byrne / Georgia Tech

Dan Villari / Syracuse

Brandon Frazier / Auburn

Louis Hansen / UCONN

Carsen Ryan / BYU

Evan Svoboda / Wyoming

Bauer Sharp / LSU

Lance Mason / Wisconsin

The TE class at the Hula Bowl look to offer several potential late round draft picks and UDFA. Villari and Frazier are big, strong traditional Y-TEs who are quality blockers and reliable underneath targets. Ryan and Sharp fit the modern-era prototype for the position with the athleticism and skills in space, combined with the blocking skill, to be developed into eventual starters.

Shiyazh Pete / Kentucky

Corey Robinson / Arkansas

Rasheed Miller / Louisville

Enrique Cruz / Kansas

Micah Pettus / Florida State

Gunnar Hansen / Florida State

Jack Walsh / Wyoming

Alex Wollschlaeger / Kentucky

Bruno Fina / UCLA

Tristan Leigh / Clemson

Sam Hagen / South Dakota

Reuben Unije / UCLA

Jondarius Morgan / UAB

The OT class at the Hula Bowl offers a solid group of talented, well-rounded blockers, many of whom will end up sliding inside in the NFL, who could be long time NFL contributors. Robinson, Hansen, and Leigh are all highly experienced Power 5 (P5) OTs who have the size, skill, and playing style to be developed into eventual NFL starters, either at OT or inside at OG.

IOL

Gavin Gerhardt / OC / Cincinnati

Evan Beernsten / OG / Northwestern

Bryce Foster / OC / Kansas

Caden Barnett / OG / Wyoming

Josh Gesky / OG / Illinois

Melvin Priestly / OG / Illinois

Jordan White / OC / Vanderbilt

Daniel King / OG / North Carolina

Tyler Doty / OG / Buffalo

Jimto Obidegwu / OG / North Texas

Fintan Brose / OG / Delaware

Ryan Schernecke / OG / Kutztown

Taylor Poitier / OG / Kansas State

Van Wells / OG / Oregon State

Ryan Linthicum / OC / Clemson

The IOL at the Hula Bowl are a talented mixture of P5 and smaller school NFL hopefuls. The best prospects include Beernsten, who has received an invitation to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl; Foster, a big-sized OC with plenty of starting experience; and Gesky and Priestly are experienced and productive Big Ten OGs. The Hula Bowl is a huge opportunity for the smaller school prospects but especially Schernecke, who steps up from the Division II level to compete with more seasoned prospects.

EDGE

Nathan Voorhis / Ball State

Wesley Bailey / Rutgers

Marvin Jones, Jr. / Oklahoma

Michael Heldman / Central Michigan

Eric O'Neill / Rutgers

Mitchell Melton / Virginia

Ben Russo-Bell / Virginia Tech

Voorhis and Heldman are productive MAC DEs with solid sack production - Voorhis finished with 12 sacks and Heldman recorded 10.5 sacks in 2025. Bailey has a good combination of size, strength, and athleticism and is likely to be drafted sometime on the third day of the draft. Jones was a 5-star recruit, and the son of former NFL first round draft pick, Marvin Sr. (Jets), but he has never played up to his hype or potential. It is highly unlikely that Jones falls out of the draft, even though based on production and track record, he has not earned a draftable grade. Jones has elite measureables that the NFL typically embraces.

IDL

Bernard Gooden / LSU

Tommy Dunn / Kansas

Gabriel Rubio / Notre Dame

Keeshawn Silver / USC

Dominic Bailey / Tennessee

Carlos Allen / Houston

Bobby Jamison-Travis / Auburn

Damonic Williams / Oklahoma

Travis Shaw / Texas

The IDL at the Hula Bowl are a talented group of draft-worthy prospects, many of which are likely to be late round draft picks or high priority UDFA. Arguably the two prospects that will generate the most buzz out of this position group are Allen and Jamison-Travis, both of whom have starting potential early in their NFL careers. Allen relies on quickness and effort to compensate for lack of ideal size. He should thrive as a pass rush specialist. Jamison-Travis has premium size and natural strength desired on the inside.

MacArthur Harris / USF

Dasan McCullough / Nebraska

AJ Pena / Rhode Island

Devon Williams / Minnesota

Jordan Crook / Arizona State

Jackson Kuwatch / Miami, Oh

Jonathan Vaughns / UCLA

Mani Powell / Purdue

Andrew Jones / Ole Miss

Dariel Djabome / Rutgers

Elijah Herring / Florida State

Kalib Fortner / Army

Shad Banks / UTSA

Kosuke Hara / Waseda (Japan)

James Jackson / Virginia

The LBs at the Hula Bowl are an athletic group of off-the-ball LBs, most of whom need to excel on special teams to get an opportunity in the NFL. Harris had a successful senior season in Tampa and has the speed and instincts that fits well into NFL systems. McCullough is likely to get some reps as an EDGE this week since he spent the early part of his career at Indiana as a pass rush specialist and his ability to bend, flatten, and close on the QB is amongst the best in his draft class. A name to watch is Kuwatch, a transfer from Ohio State, with the size and frame that NFL teams look for in their ILBs. Kuwatch could shoot up draft boards with a productive week in Florida.

DeCarlos Nicholson / USC

Phillip Dunnam / CB-S / UCF

Toriano Pride / Missouri

Joshua Eaton / Michigan State

Jaden Rios / Texas State

Karon Prunty / Wake Forest

Josh Moten / Southern Mississippi

Kani Walker / Arkansas

Cam Miller / Rutgers

Ceyair Wright / Nebraska

Dreyden Norwood / Missouri

JQ Hardaway / Kentucky

Fred Davis / Northwestern

Preston Hodge / Colorado

Devon Marshall / North Carolina

The CBs at the Hula Bowl are a group of long-limbed DBs with the size and length that NFL teams covet in their outside CBs. Two of the most impressive ball hawks in the nation are participating in the Hula Bowl - Moten and Rios, who finished the 2025 season with 5 INTs (Moten) and 4 INTS (Rios), respectively. Along with Moten and Rios, the best NFL prospect playing at the Hula Bowl is Nicholson, an experienced CB with experience in the SEC at Mississippi State, as well as at USC, and he possesses the frame, length, and physicality desired in an outside CB.

Malik Spencer / Michigan State

Jacob Thomas / James Madison

Robert Spears-Jennings / Oklahoma

Xavier Nwankpa / Iowa

Jalen Stroman / Notre Dame

DQ Smith / South Carolina

Gavin Gibson / North Carolina

Duce Chestnut / Syracuse

Jett Elad / Rutgers

Larry Worth / S-LB / Arkansas

Cam Smith / Marshall

Although the safeties participating in the Hula Bowl this week are a quality group of prospects, most of this group is likely to go undrafted in April, even though most, if not all, of these prospects are likely to make a 53-man roster or practice squad next season. The two best safeties participating this week are Nwankpa and Smith, both of whom offer the desired size and hitting ability that the NFL teams covet. A prospect to keep an eye on this week is Worth, an extremely large safety that will garner interest from some NFL teams as a developmental LB.

Specialists

Jeff Yurk / P / Elon

Ben Mann / LS / Boston College

Gabriel Nwosu / P / Penn State

Isaiah Hayse / LS / Temple

Laith Marjan / K / Kansas

Noe Ruelas / K / UCF

None of the specialists participating in the Hula Bowl are likely to get drafted but all six specialists should be in training camps next summer. Marjan hit 14/17 FGs last season and was 2/2 on FG attempts of over 50 yards with a career long of 55 yards. Ruelas made 15/17 FG attempts, including 3/4 from beyond 50 yards with a career long of 54 yards.