College Football Bowls 2016: 10 NFL Draft prospects who can help their stock
By John Buhler
If there is any player in the 2017 College Football Playoff that can elevate his NFL Draft stock, it is Clemson Tigers running back Wayne Gallman. Clemson will be playing the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Playstation Fiesta Bowl in the College Football Playoff.
Everybody will be watching this high-profile playoff game, especially NFL scouts. Clemson has a certain first-round lock at quarterback in junior Deshaun Watson. He graduates this semester and will be turning pro at season’s end. Watson is going to be one of the three quarterbacks to go in the first round should Mitch Trubisky and DeShone Kizer also declare.
So the attention will be very much on Clemson in this game. Watson isn’t going to pass the ball on every snap, as the Tigers don’t exactly run a Big 12 Air Raid offense — they’ll have to run the ball sometimes. That is where Gallman can improve his draft stock more than anybody on his team.
Gallman is a redshirt junior and should go pro this season, even if CBS feels that he is only a third-round grade. Running backs have only so many hits in them. Gallman has one, maybe two more college games to show NFL scouts that he can run, catch and pass protect at the next level. Look for him to take advantage of the stage in these playoffs.