Ever since 2021 and the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, Reese’s Senior Bowl experience seemed to dwindle for fans, players, and media alike. While many players lost opportunities to go out and showcase their abilities for the final time before the draft, it also made it difficult for media and scouts to find the best available talent. As a result, the talent pool became very difficult to vet. While the game was exclusively opened to senior football players, the reality is that many of the nation’s top players were already highly touted as underclassmen, making it glaringly obvious that the best players were not participating in the Senior Bowl. 

For media personnel who want to see the best available talent one last time and fans who want to see their underclassman, All-American QB, it was in the Senior Bowl’s best interest to open up the invites to the underclassmen across the nation. With such a vast pool of new players being added, the competition will intensify come February. Media members will no longer be relegated to players opting out of the game, leaving Mobile early, and not participating in the final game.

The mindset that many top-projected players would not benefit from playing in the Senior Bowl is completely false. While the risk of injury plays a large role in many decisions to sit out, the likelihood of injury is always present even during pre-draft conditioning.

 With the competitive landscape of college football now, the opportunity to get more tape and live action in front of scouts is always a benefit. Within the NFL community, the Senior Bowl has a great reputation for allowing scouts to get a feel for the players that they are considering drafting. Since the teams are being coached by NFL staff, the players can get real experience working in an NFL organization. 

The Reese’s Senior Bowl will kickoff on Saturday, February 3rd, 2024 in Mobile, Alabama at 1pm. 

LeMarkus Bailey
-Writer/President

Day 3 Senior Bowl Takeaways 

It was a little bit slower last day at the Senior Bowl on Friday in preparation for the game on Saturday. There were yet again a bunch of standouts that popped off on their last day of practice in Mobile. The National team had their best day of practice overall, while the American team's defense had their way on Friday.

National Team Standout Player Purdue TE Payne Durham

Durham has had an impressive week and what he did on Friday could only boost what was already an eye-opening two days of practice. The former Boilermaker scored twice, one on a twenty-yard contested catch where his helmet came off then again on a bootleg from the red zone. The toughness combined with the athletic ability to get down the field and climb over defenders to make catches makes Durham one of the more appealing prospects at the Senior Bowl. Northwestern Defensive Lineman Adetomiwa Adebawore also stood out for the National Team today. His push upfront was giving Michigan guard Jarrett Patterson and Troy center Carlton Martial problems. Even getting into it with Patterson after a physical rep in which he beat the former Wolverine lineman. 

National Team Standout player: Daiyan Henley, LB Washington State

If anyone has truly raised their stock during this past week in Mobile, Daiyan Henley has. The one drill he has excelled in and has no peer on is the LB coverage drills. Henley has shown great discipline at anticipating whether the RB is running an angle or flat route and hand placement for the pass breakups which is easy for him with his 77 and 7/8 wingspan. This 2023 draft class doesn’t have a plethora of good LBs, but in a passing league and with Henley showing great skills in pass coverage, he could climb up on draft boards with his performance this week showcasing his ability to be a 3 down LB.

American Team Standout Player: Darius Rush CB South Carolina

The secondary for the American team today was giving quarterbacks TCU’s Max Duggan and Houston’s Clayton Tune problems. Darius Rush was all over the field today he broke up multiple passes and had an interception off of Duggan during the 7-on-7 session. One wide receiver who did have a good day for the American team was Virginia’s, Dontavious Wicks. Wick’s smooth hands and graceful route running were on display during the 1 on 1 matchups. His ability to work the corner of the end zone with his size and range should translate to the next level. Expect a good chunk of targets to go Wick’s way on Saturday. 

American Team Standout player: Don’tayvion Wicks, WR Virginia

Watching these practices I feel like the American team has the better group of WRs and that every practice a different WR takes the title of best WR. Today Don’tayvion Wicks took the crown. Wick was amazing in the 1v1 and on the 11 on 11s. He got off the LOS with ease against any CB that lined up with great footwork and release package, fought through any contact the DB gave him, and showed off very good concentration catches.

My favorite catch of the day from Wicks came from the redzone 11 on 11 where he worked the back of the endzone and made a toe tap TD grab between zone coverage. Wicks’ stock has definitely gone up during his time in Mobile. His ability to get open immediately after the LOS and gain significant separation from the defenders would make him a wonderful addition to any team looking to add to their WR room.

National Team Sleeper: Daniel Scott, S, Cal

One of the smartest defenders on the field, Daniel Scott can be seen as a quarterback on the field. In his final practice, Scott solidified his position as the best safety in Mobile. His knack for being near the ball is definitely high on the priority list for NFL scouts as well as his innate leadership ability. He is not super flashy or loud, but his game is very crisp and clean. He did not waste many steps in coverage and he easily picks up on defensive calls, checks, and motions. 

As a major contributor in 4 out of 5 total seasons at Cal, Scott has surely created a resume for himself. In 2022, Scott dominated the PAC 12 with 85 Tackles and 3 interceptions, one going for a touchdown. Scott will be a day 2 player that will fit into a defense day 1. 

American Team Sleeper: Rashee Rice, WR, SMU

As dominant as the American Team’s defense is, the offense is filled with dynamic playmakers across the board. Rashee Rice is one of those guys. Despite Rice not having a major day on Thursday’s practice, he showed his consistency across the week. Rice did well in one-on-one situations in finding the windows. Rice is very strong in his routes and does not get pushed off of his spot. On the day, Duggan connected with him several times in team and skelly periods. Along with his American Conference counterpart, Tank Dell, Rice is gradually climbing up draft boards. Although he has not yet become a household name for scouts, his consistency will be needed on Saturday for the young American Team quarterbacks. 

-By: Sam Kirk, LeMarkus Bailey, & Kris Thomas

The second day in Mobile brought out more standouts and a bit more offense than Day 1. Seeing these prospects for a second day in a row helps separate the players who need to raise more eyebrows, those who are taking advantage of the moment, and others who need to make a play in order to get more eyes on them. I will give my breakdown of standouts from each team and takeaways heading into the rest of the week. 

National Team Player to Watch: Jayden Reed, WR Michigan St. & Kyu Blu Kelly, DB Stanford

On the offensive side of things, Jayden Reed WR from Michigan St. had a strong showing today on the second day.  He showed good fluid route running, quickness to gain separation from the defender, and reliable hands catching deep passes on the 1v1 release drills. Reed was the biggest standout out of the group of the national team WRs. One of his biggest strengths was his ability to make tough contested catches and he showed that today in the two deep pass reps in the drills.

The biggest standout today on the defensive side of the ball was CB Kyu Blu Kelly from Stanford. It started off rough at first with him during the 1v1 release drills where WRs Ronnie Bell and Tre Tucker got the better of him but in a rep against teammate Elijah Higgins, he was able to undercut an out route and pick it off. Kelly’s day continued to trend upwards during the 11 on 11 drills where he would make an amazing interception again off of Elijah Higgins Ricky Manning Jr. style which turned to a pick-six and the national team’s defense celebrating with him in the endzone. Kelly had a strong day showing that he has the ability to jump routes and has good instincts at anticipating routes.

American Team Player to Watch: Kenny McIntosh, RB Georgia

As far as the American team on the second day of practice, it was hard to pick between the two RBs Tyjae Spears from Tulane and Kenny McIntosh from Georgia who had the better day. It was good to see McIntosh back on the field today after leaving yesterday’s practice with a leg cramp. McIntosh has all the ability to be RB1 one day but at the very least coming into the league an excellent change of pace back. He held his own in the blocking drills and showed explosiveness when hitting the gaps. Tyjae Spears during an interview said that he wanted to prove that he is a true four-down RB and has proven it far. He showed fearlessness in the pass-blocking drills against Jackson State’s Aubrey Miller and showed great vision and second-level speed when hitting the gaps. Spears has shown that he’s nothing short of a big-play RB on the next level and that when it comes to the debate on who is RB1 on the American roster between Spears and McIntosh, it’s a hard decision to make but since both are teammates at the moments the National team is going to have its hands full on Saturday.

Starting with the National team one player who really stood out was Notre Dame guard Jarrett Patterson. Patterson was continuously drawing attention by dominating the defensive line in one on one drills. Between Patterson and Michigan lineman Ryan Hayes and Olusegun Oluwatimi the National Teams offensive line was getting a heavy push upfront allowing Illinois running back Chase Brown to find holes during the 9-on-7 period. These lineman weren’t the only ones putting on a display of elite blocking. Purdue’s tight end Payne Durham was undefeated during his 1 on 1’s and was making noise holding off defensive lineman at the tight end position. On defense, for the National team Army’s linebacker Andre Carter continued his successful first day with another solid performance on Wednesday. 

The American team yet again outshined the National team on Wednesday. Princeton wide receiver Andrei Iosivas turned heads once again on his second day of the Senior Bowl. Iosivas was displaying all you need from the wide receiver position, amazing route running combined with downfield speed, and reliable hands. The Ivy Leaguer is becoming one of the most coveted receivers at the Senior Bowl this week helping his draft stock tremendously. 

Another takeaway I have after watching this talented and deep American roster practice for two days is that it makes sense that TCU made it all the way to the National Championship. Most would think that quarterback Max Duggan and wide receiver Derius Davis would be the horned frogs making noise this week but it actually comes from the defensive side of the ball. Linebacker Dee Winters and defensive lineman Dylan Horton have been aggressive and very impactful on both days. Winters had a pick today during a live 7 on 7 period then happened to force a fumble on the very next play. Horton on the other hand was winning his one on ones all day long with the combination of his bulrush and hand swipe. Beware of this American team they look out for blood heading into Saturday.

-By: Sam Kirk & Kris Thomas