Oregon QB Marcus Mariota Leads Top NFL Draft Talent

It’s finally time for the College Football National Championship game between the Oregon Ducks and Ohio State Buckeyes, and we can promise you one thing — with quarterback Marcus Mariota and about nine other guys, there will be plenty of talent for the 2015 NFL Draft class on display in this game wearing white.

The Ducks are obviously a supremely talented college team, led by their Heisman Trophy winner and superstar quarterback Marcus Mariota. Mariota is the top player on most boards right now and is widely expected to be the number one overall pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, though some remain unconvinced that he is worthy of that distinction already.

Even with Mariota’s talent and growth as a prospect over his four years at Eugene, some remain skeptical about his game in the NFL for different reasons, but most because of the simplified decision making of the Oregon offense as it pertains to the quarterback position. Still, Mariota is a smart player who doesn’t make a lot of bad throws, who has the best TD-INT ratio of any college quarterback ever. This is a player who has a strong, accurate arm and is track star fast. He has so much athletic ability and ad 6-foot4, 215 pounds, he also has the size NFL teams covet in the position.

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I’ve seen comparisons of Mariota to Colin Kaepernick, and I’d say that’s pretty fair though I think Mariota is much more advanced as a quarterback coming out of college at this point. In my opinion, he is ready to be a number one overall pick, and is ready to start for some franchise this next season.

Along with Mariota, the Ducks boast a trio of defenders that should go in the top 64 selections. Starting with All-American cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, who is short (5-foot-9) but has been nothing short of phenomenal in his time as a member of the Ducks. Unfortunately for Oregon, he will not play for them in this game due to the fact that he tore his ACL and that will ultimately affect his draft stock as well.

Right now, he’s been pushed down boards a ways because of his injury, but whatever team gets him is hopefully going to get a guy who is bigger and stronger than the one who went down with injury. We’ve seen so many players come back from knee injuries lately, and hopefully Ekpre-Olomu is able to do the same. This is a guy who is smart, athletic, uses great technique, and will be a steal on draft weekend.

Also from the Oregon defense are a couple of ‘trees’ on the defensive line in Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner. Armstead is the more highly ranked of the two despite Buckner having better numbers. Armstead is a former basketball player with huge upside who had really underwhelming numbers with 37 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks this past year. Still, the athleticism and upside are there, which is why he’s so highly rated by draft scouts.

Buckner is a player who leads the Ducks with 13 tackles for loss and finished the season with four sacks and four batted passes. He’s an underclassman who has risen to the top 50 of some boards with a phenomenal frame for a defensive end at 6-foot-6, 290 pounds. It will be interesting to see how much these two defensive ends affect tonight’s game and the Ohio State offense, which has been given a jolt even with third string QB Cardale Jones.

Senior linebacker Tony Washington is a really solid all-around player and mid-round prospect that NFL fans will love getting to know for his overall game. He finished this season with 53 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, six sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries including one for a touchdown, and a pair of passes broken up. This production is building off of a really solid junior season in which he put up very similar numbers. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up as a steal as a mid-round pick for some NFL team.

Not unlike Tony Washington, senior safety Erick Dargan is another Ducks player who is not getting the credit he seems to deserve with seven interceptions and two forced fumbles to go along with 90 tackles this season. The 5-foot-11, 212 pound safety might be a mid-round prospect right now, but he has the makings of someone who could ascend this offseason after a phenomenal senior season.

Along the offensive line, Oregon boasts two potential top 100 picks in Jake Fisher and Hroniss Grasu. Fisher is getting a bit lost among a deep class of offensive tackles this season, but he is a really good player who is a long time starter at right tackle. He’s got strong hands and a great 6-foot-6, 299 pound frame.

Grasu is one of the top center prospects in this year’s draft class, and looks NFL ready for a zone blocking scheme with quickness, lateral agility, and strength. Twice an All-Conference pick, Grasu is a guy who has started 40 plus games in his collegiate career and should be penciled in as an immediate starter in the NFL.

Other prospects on the Ducks who will warrant NFL consideration are linebacker Derrick Malone Jr., cornerback Troy Hill, and guard Hamani Stevens.

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