Editor’s Note: It’s NFL season and that means you’ve got a chance at $100,000 with Sunday Night 7. Predict what will happen on Sunday Night Football and watch along to see if you’ll be the next big winner. Click here to get started with the NBC Sports Predictor app.
Week 5 of the college football season featured a handful of exciting games and saw an ACC upset with Wake Forest downing Florida State in Tallahassee.
In that game, Wake Forest wide receiver A.T. Perry, who I mentioned earlier this season, went for 8-91-1 on 11 targets, pushing his 2022 receiving line to 24-364-3. Perry, who went for 1,296 yards and 15 touchdowns last season, is well off his 2021 pace through five games this season but is ranked as the ninth-best receiver of the 2023 class per NFL Mock Draft Database.
Perry still has time to regain his 2021 form with seven games left in the regular season, but the slight decline is worth noting.
I also continue to monitor TCU wide receiver Quentin Johnston, who turned yet another underwhelming performance in a game where TCU hung 55 points on Oklahoma. Once an explosive playmaker, Johnston had his best performance of 2022 last week but managed just four receptions for 41 yards.
Like Perry, Johnston still has time to get right, but I mentioned last week that Johnston’s struggles may have little to do with him and more to do with TCU’s offensive scheme.
Keeping a watchful eye on Perry and Johnston, here’s a look at some Week 5 performances from other top prospects.
Note: Stats and information courtesy of PFF.com, CollegeFootballData.com and Sports-Reference.com.
Will Levis, QB (Kentucky)
Passing: 18-of-24 passing, 220 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
Levis is the No. 3 ranked quarterback of the 2023 class per NFL Mock Draft Database. The former Penn State product has thrown for 1,403-12-4 to start his season and is averaging 9.9 YPA -- a career-high.
Outside of a Week 2 matchup against Florida (202-1-1), Levis had a relatively soft start to his season. He’s torched the likes of Miami (OH), Youngstown State and Northern Illinois, but is now 1-1 in SEC play. You can consider me a bit lower on Levis than consensus, but there’s time to turn that around.
Despite the rocket arm and decent accuracy, Levis is a fifth-year quarterback who spent three seasons at Penn State, unable to beat out Sean Clifford -- who is far from an NFL talent in his own right. Levis has also fumbled three times and lost two against Ole Miss. His second fumble came late in the fourth quarter as Kentucky was driving in the Rebels’ red zone.
Numbers-wise, there’s no arguing that Levis has gotten off to a fine start, but he’ll be judged heavily over the next two months as he heads into conference play. While some would argue Levis is deserving of his No. 3 ranking, I’m taking a wait-and-see approach and reserving judgment for a later date.
Jahmyr Gibbs, RB (Alabama)
Rushing: 18 carries, 206 yards, 2 TDs
Receiving: 2 receptions, 20 yards, 0 TDs
Alabama faced an uphill battle last week against Arkansas. Playing on the road, the Tide held a 28-23 lead entering the fourth quarter, and needed 21 points in the fourth quarter to retain their undefeated season.
To make matters worst, quarterback Bryce Young left with a shoulder injury, throwing quarterback Jalen Milroe into the fire in a critical conference game.
Fortunately for Milroe, little would be asked of him, as transfer running back Jahmyr Gibbs put the team on his back to secure the win.
Currently, the No. 2 ranked running back of the 2023 class by NFL Mock Draft Database, Gibbs transferred to Alabama after the 2021 season and has hit the ground running in what will likely be his only year with the team. Through five games, Gibbs has rushed for 43-378-2 (8.8 YPC) and has caught 19-of-20 targets for 207 yards and another three scores. His 4.72 YCO/ATT ranks 12th in the nation, and 63.5% of his yards have come on breakaway runs per PFF.
Last week against Arkansas, Gibbs saw 148 of his rushing yards come on two carries after he broke off 72 and 76-yard touchdowns to give Bama the win. Our own Eric Froton was kind enough to post each of Gibbs’ carries from last week and share them on Twitter.
Alabama 2023 RB Jahmyr Gibbs (5’11/200) set career-highs with 206 rushing yards while also recording the 2 longest touchdown rushes of his career (72 & 76).
— Eric Froton (@CFFroton) October 4, 2022
Here are all Gibbs’ touches from his banner game against Arkansas. #2023NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/KFdWJhpLI3
Don’t be fooled by Gibbs’ slow start to the season. Outside of a Week 2 game against Texas, the Tide have plowed their way through inferior opponents. Last week’s game with Arkansas was a taste of the kind of workload we should expect from Gibbs through the remainder of the season.
In addition to his rushing upside, Gibbs has a career receiving line of 78-978-3. He’s the every-down-back dynasty managers dream of.
Johnny Wilson, WR (Florida State)
Receiving: 6 receptions, 85 yards, 1 TD
We should probably talk about FSU wide receiver Johnny Wilson for a moment. The transfer wide receiver is the 26th-ranked receiver of the 2023 class per NFL Mock Draft Database, but that’s not the real reason we’re talking about him.
There’s a chance that Wilson could rise up draft boards over the next two months. That tends to happen when 6-foot-7, 235-pound wide receivers enjoy career years.
Per 247Sports, Wilson was the 36th-ranked wide receiver of the 2020 recruiting class and was a four-star talent. Despite the prestigious honors he brought with him to Arizona State, Wilson caught just 18 passes for 237 yards and one touchdown during his time with the Sun Devils. Through five games at Florida State, he’s gone for 19-357-3 and had a 7-149-2 performance against Louisville.
With two big games on his 2022 resume, Wilson could continue to rise through the ranks as the season progresses. His 3.61 Y/RR rank ninth among all receivers thus far, while his 18.8 YPR is tied for 38th nationally. He has three games of 60+ yards to his name on the young season, and a 12-yard stinker against Boston College, but he’s seeing the most opportunity he has in any of his three years on a college campus.
Wilson could opt to stay at FSU for another season, but he’s a name you’ll want to know if he decides to declare.
Kayshon Boutte, WR (LSU)
Receiving: 1 reception, 4 yards, 0 TDs
I touched on Kayshon Boutte earlier in the year but now feel a need to revisit him.
Viewed as one of the top receivers in next year’s draft, Boutte’s 2022 season has been anything but elite. I wish I could say it’s been good.
A player who went for 45-735-5 as a true freshman, Boutte’s injury-shorted sophomore season in 2021 saw him go for 37-503-9 in six games, putting him on pace for 74-1006-18 over a 12-game season.
This season, however, Boutte looks like a lost man. The junior wideout has caught 11-of-21 targets for 97 yards and no touchdowns despite an ADOT of 10.8. His 0.79 Y/RR ranks 384th in the nation and his 3.7 YAC/REC is nearly half of the 7.4 YAC/REC he averaged heading into this season.
Head coach Brian Kelly has attributed Boutte’s struggles to him working with a new quarterback. He also acknowledged that Boutte has faced a lot of double-teams on the year.
All of that can be true, and we hope it explains some of the early struggles we’ve seen from the star receiver, but the slow start is still alarming. Boutte ranks third on LSU in targets on the season (21) and has run a route on 93.2% of his snaps. We’ll hope a bounce back is around the corner, but this unexpectedly slow start can’t be overlooked.