College Football Week 3: NFL Draft big board rankings
Quenton Nelson
OG, Notre Dame
Nelson isn’t even considered the best NFL prospect on a loaded Notre Dame offensive line, but is still building an impressive enough resume to be selected near the end of the first round.
While the Fighting Irish faced a tough task against Georgia’s stacked front seven on Saturday night in South Bend, Nelson and company did a nice enough job for most of the afternoon by allowing three sacks, two of which came in the final minutes. Where scouts might have some concern about Notre Dame’s performance as a whole was in run blocking, as it managed only 55 yards on 37 attempts.
There was never any doubt about Nelson’s talent level, as he piled up the accolades in high school and was named a five-star recruit in the class of 2013. Nelson took over the starting left guard job the next year and helped Notre Dame own one of the most productive rushing offenses in the nation, although some regression over the past year plus has knocked him down to end of the first round.
At a mammoth 6-foot-5. 325 pounds, Nelson is ready for the next level due to his combination of size and athleticism when asked to block at the second level, making him an excellent fit for a zone running scheme. There aren’t a lot of glaring weaknesses in Nelson’s game due to his experience, although he will need more consistency in pass protection to go in the top 10.
Nelson will get an interesting matchup next week against Boston College, as the Eagles feature one of the nation’s best pass rushing prospects in Harold Landry.