Senior Bowl Winners: Day 2 Practices

Day two is now in the books. It was another great day of Senior Bowl practices, with multiple players making the most of their opportunity in Mobile. While I didn’t get to watch every rep from every player, there certainly were some standouts who caught my eye. After watching the 2nd day of Senior Bowl practices, here are the players that I saw that impressed me the most.

1. Quincy Roche, EDGE Miami

Quincy Roche has been killing it at the Senior Bowl practices, and it is no surprise to us here at Inside The Hashes. Recently featured in our “8 (more) Players To Watch at the Senior Bowl” article, Quincy Roche has certainly justified his pick. He has been one of the top performers in the 1v1 drills, living in the backfield.

In a great rep against Alabama tackle Alex Leatherwood, Roche does well to get his hands on Leatherwood first, swatting Leatherwood’s punch and giving one of his own to Leatherwood’s chest. From there Roche immediately dips and bends around Leatherwood for a sack. This play is special from Roche. That sort of bend is not something that can really be taught. What’s impressive is how active he is with his hands first. He isn’t just trying to use his physical advantages. When a player like Roche uses hands along with special athleticism as he has the past two days, you see a special pass rusher on display.

2. Creed Humphrey, OC Oklahoma

What struck me every time I watched Humphrey out there was just how much better than the competition he was. During the 1v1s, he didn’t look fazed at all. Humphrey has great anchor strength, he doesn’t seem to get pushed back too much. Creed uses great leverage, and almost always wins the hand fighting. After watching back his reps on day two, I don’t think he lost a single play. Humphrey came in as one of the premier interior linemen in the entire draft, and has further proved his reputation this week in Mobile.

3. Tarron Jackson, DL Coastal Carolina

There were few players with more to prove this week than Coastal Carolina’s Tarron Jackson. Jackson has been an extremely proficient pass rusher for the Chanticleers, with over 8 sacks in each of his past two years. Because of the conference they played in, Jackson didn’t really get much attention until this year during the Chanticleers magical 11-1 season.

How would Jackson do against some of the top offensive linemen in college football? Could he handle the leap in talent from the Sun Belt to the Senior Bowl? On day two of practices, Jackson answered any questions with a resounding yes. Jackson was one of the players that caught my eye most during practices. He displayed his extremely powerful hands in the 1v1 drills, getting into the backfield both from the inside and outside. With the entire Chanticleer’s fanbase behind him, Jackson has been a standout player this week.

4. Osa Odighizuwa, DL UCLA

Osa Odighizuwa has been one of the best interior defensive linemen so far in Mobile. For a player so big at 6’2 280, Osa sure can move. Offensive linemen have struggled all week to get their hands on Odighizuwa and stop him. He has good burst and quickness for a player of his size. He had the highlight of the day, with a nice spin move leading to a sack. Odighizuwa has impressed greatly in Mobile, and could see himself rise up draft boards come April.

5. D’Wayne Eskridge, WR Western Michigan

Once again we have another player featured in our “8 (more) Players To Watch at the Senior Bowl” article, this time it’s Western Michigan speedster D’Wayne Eskridge. The big question going into this week was if Eskridge could translate his success playing against top competition in the Senior Bowl. Not only has Eskridge played well, the tape virtually looks the same.
Eskridge has arguably been the best receiver in Mobile these past two days. He has shown off his great speed, using it to easily create separation from the corner. What’s most impressive about Eskridge isn’t his straight-line speed, it’s how he doesn’t lose any of that speed in his cuts. He accelerates through his routes. This makes him very hard to guard, ask any of the corners he’s been faced with this week. On top of that, he’s shown the ability to beat press coverage. If you are not yet on the Eskridge hype train, hop on before the train leaves the station.