The 2023 ACC Championship Game will pit dozens of potential 2024 NFL Draft prospects against one another in what should be a tightly contested battle without Florida State Seminoles quarterback Jordan Travis. Who’s at the top of the list for both teams?
ACC Championship Prospect Preview
Florida State is quite clearly the more talent-dense team in this ACC Championship matchup, but don’t discount the Louisville Cardinals.
Louisville is 10-2 heading into this game, with wins against Notre Dame, Miami, and NC State. They have two prospects flirting with top 100 range on the PFN Consensus Board and several more who’ll make themselves known on the all-star game circuit.
Florida State Seminoles NFL Draft Prospects
Keon Coleman, WR
An absolute alpha, Keon Coleman is the top prospect on a very talented Florida State squad. On the latest iteration of the PFN Consensus 2024 NFL Draft Big Board, he’s the 12th overall prospect and the fourth overall wide receiver.
At 6’4″, 215 pounds, Coleman is an explosive athlete and a menacing contested-catch target who combines steely instincts and sense with overwhelming play strength and physicality. On the year, he has 11 touchdowns and 639 yards on 46 catches.
Without Travis, Coleman’s production in this game might be stunted — but his presence always demands attention wherever he lines up. And with a backup QB in, he may be relied upon more as an RAC threat.
Jared Verse, EDGE
Seminoles edge rusher Jared Verse was ranked as the 18th overall prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft on the latest edition of PFN’s Consensus Board. Though risers like Dallas Turner, Chop Robinson, Princely Umanmielen, and Laiatu Latu have complicated his standing, Verse is trending up after a 2.5-sack, three-TFL outing against Florida.
At 6’4″, 249 pounds, Verse is an elite explosive threat off the line with devastating power capacity and a relentless motor. He’s a competent hand-fighter and run defender and should be able to hit the ground running in the NFL.
Trey Benson, RB
Trey Benson was rated as the second-best RB prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft on PFN’s latest consensus board, behind only Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson. Benson even had a top-50 ranking from yours truly.
MORE: Top RBs in the 2024 NFL Draft
Volume backs who can generate big plays with speed and provide value in the passing game are few and far between, and Benson fits that description. He’s a rapid accelerator through lanes who can also barrel through tackles with his contact balance.
Benson has 1,050 yards from scrimmage and 15 total touchdowns on just 156 touches heading into the ACC title game and is in line to pad his stats even more with Travis out.
Johnny Wilson, WR
At 6’7″, 235 pounds, Johnny Wilson is one of the most unique WR prospects to come out in recent memory. In fact, he’ll be one of the tallest and longest wide receivers ever to play in the NFL once he makes the leap.
Wilson still has room to grow as a football player. He’s not the most natural separator, and his hand technique as a catcher is very inconsistent. Nevertheless, his size-speed combination alone will entice teams in April.
Jaheim Bell, TE
Versatility is the name of the game for Jaheim Bell. The 6’3″, 230-pound TE had his best season yet at Florida State, with 39 catches for 503 yards. Just a year ago, he was essentially a fullback at South Carolina, accruing 73 carries for 261 yards.
Bell is a hybrid H-back type of weapon who can be schemed the ball in a variety of ways, and his high-level explosiveness and contact balance combine to grant him venerable RAC ability in the open field. A Senior Bowl roster addition, he’s strongly on the draft radar.
Other Florida State NFL Draft Prospects
- Joshua Farmer, DT
- Braden Fiske, DT
- Patrick Payton, EDGE
- Fabien Lovett, DT
- Fentrell Cypress II, CB
- Renardo Green, CB
- Akeem Dent, S
- Kalen DeLoach, LB
- Jarrian Jones, CB
- Robert Scott Jr., OT
Louisville Cardinals NFL Draft Prospects
Jamari Thrash, WR
Jamari Thrash cracked the top 100 of my latest 2024 NFL Draft Big Board update. In my opinion, he’s one of the 16 best WR prospects in a stacked 2024 class, and his production — 117 catches, 1,923 yards, and 13 scores over the past two years — corroborates that.
MORE: Top WRs in the 2024 NFL Draft
At 6’0″, 185 pounds, Thrash is a nuanced and flexible separator who can leave DBs lurching with his sudden sinking ability and hip fluidity at stems. On top of that, he’s also a feisty RAC threat with sturdy hands over the middle of the field and legitimate vertical speed.
Ashton Gillotte, EDGE
Ashton Gillotte fell just outside the top 100 on our latest 2024 Big Board update at PFN. On my personal board, he’s in the top 100 fringe at No. 106 overall. Much like YaYa Diaby a cycle prior, he could end up being a surprise early-round pick.
On the year, Gillotte has 11 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss. He’s a relentless edge rusher with an enthralling mix of explosiveness, vertical speed, hip flexibility, and power at 6’3″, 270 pounds. The tools are all there to a very high degree, as is the motor.
Quincy Riley, CB
The Cardinals have a number of potential NFL defensive backs in their secondary, but the top one is Quincy Riley. The 6’0″, 185-pound Riley recently accepted an invite to the Senior Bowl after racking up two interceptions and eight deflections in the 2023 regular season.
Riley is experienced and adept at finding the football, but his skills go beyond that. He’s also a good communicator between the boundary and the slot and has the corrective twitch to clamp down on curls and hitches.
Jawhar Jordan, RB
On the season, Jawhar Jordan has 1,076 yards and 13 touchdowns on 167 carries, to go along with 18 catches for 225 yards and an additional score. He’s one of the top offensive weapons in the ACC and could give Florida State’s defense trouble.
Jordan is undersized at 5’10”, 185 pounds. He’ll also be a 25-year-old rookie, so no kind of draft capital is a guarantee for him. But with his speed, agility, vision, and versatility, Jordan’s a ready-made playmaker who could be available at a bargain price.
Isaac Guerendo, RB
On the surface, Isaac Guerendo looks like the thunder to Jordan’s lightning at 6’1″, 225 pounds. Yet, Guerendo is also pretty fast in his own right. He can house big plays once he has space, and his mix of fluidity and physicality is extremely enticing.
Right now, Guerendo is more of an elite physical talent than an elite running back. But if coaches can continue to develop his vision and creative instincts, he has the tools to drastically exceed his draft capital at the NFL level.
Other Louisville NFL Draft Prospects
- Willie Tyler, OT
- Bryan Hudson, C
- Storm Duck, CB
- Jack Plummer, QB
- Devin Neal, S
- Jarvis Brownlee, CB
- Jermayne Lole, DT