College Football's Best Players Not Taken in the 2021 NFL Draft

With the 2021 NFL Draft officially in the books, it’s time to look back and see which of college football’s biggest stars went undrafted. Whether it was a concern about size, overall talent, an injury, how a player will transition from scheme or handle the jump to the NFL, a handful of stars from the previous college football season did not hear their name called over the three-day event.

 

Every position featured a notable college star who didn't get drafted, including quarterbacks like SMU's Shane Buechele, Arkansas' Feleipe Franks, Georgia's Jamie Newman, and prolific running backs like Buffalo's Jaret Patterson, UAB's Spencer Brown, Louisville's Javian Hawkins and Marshall's Brenden Knox. The wide receiver position also featured several names that went undrafted. Arkansas State's Jonathan Adams, Wake Forest's Sage Surratt, Florida State's Tamorrion Terry, USC's Tyler Vaughns and Colorado State's Warren Jackson top the list of notable undrafted targets on the outside. On defense, Florida State's Marvin Wilson, West Virginia's Darius Stills and Alabama's Dylan Moses were just a few of the top players who will look to make a team as an undrafted free agent this offseason.

 

Which of college football’s biggest names went undrafted? Here’s a look at the best players, weighing talent, career and 2020 achievement totals.

 

College Football's Best Players Not Taken in the 2021 NFL Draft

First-Team Offense

 

QB       Shane Buechele, SMU

RB       Jaret Patterson, Buffalo

RB       Spencer Brown, UAB

RB       Javian Hawkins, Louisville

WR      Sage Surratt, Wake Forest

WR      Tamorrion Terry, Florida State

WR      Jonathan Adams, Arkansas State

AP/WR Whop Philyor, Indiana

TE       Matt Bushman, BYU

C          Drake Jackson, Kentucky

OL       Kayode Awosika, Buffalo

OL       Tommy Kraemer, Notre Dame

OL       Adrian Ealy, Oklahoma

OL       Alaric Jackson, Iowa

 

First-Team Defense

 

DL       Marvin Wilson, Florida State

DL       Darius Stills, West Virginia

DL       JaQuan Bailey, Iowa State

DL       Raymond Johnson III, Georgia Southern

LB        Dylan Moses, Alabama

LB        Paddy Fisher, Northwestern

LB        Charles Snowden, Virginia

LB        Erroll Thompson, Miss. State

DB       Ar'Darius Washington, TCU

DB       Paris Ford, Pitt

DB       Shakur Brown, Michigan State

DB       Olijah Griffin, USC

 

First-Team Specialists

 

K         Jose Borregales, Miami

P          Max Duffy, Kentucky

RS        Avery Williams, Boise State

 

Second-Team Offense

 

QB       Feleipe Franks, Arkansas

RB       Brenden Knox, Marshall

RB       Trey Ragas, Louisiana

RB       Stevie Scott III, Indiana

WR      Warren Jackson, Colorado State

WR      Tyler Vaughns, USC

WR      Tre Walker, San Jose State

WR      Trevon Grimes, Florida

TE       Kenny Yeboah, Ole Miss

AP/RB       Pooka Williams, Kansas

C          Ryan McCollum, Texas A&M

OL       Ryan Neuzil, App. State

OL       Parker Ferguson, Air Force

OL       Carson Green, Texas A&M

OL       Sadarius Hutcherson, South Carolina

 

Second-Team Defense

 

DL       Malik Herring, Georgia

DL       Justus Reed, Virginia Tech

DL       Lorenzo Neal, Purdue

DL       Mustafa Johnson, Colorado

LB        Calvin Bundage, Oklahoma State

LB        Hamilcar Rashed Jr., Oregon State

LB        Tavante Beckett, Marshall

LB        Amen Ogbongbemiga, Oklahoma State

DB       Lamont Wade, Penn State

DB       Trill Williams, Syracuse

DB       Tariq Thompson, San Diego State

DB       DJ Daniel, Georgia

 

Second-Team Specialists

           

K         Riley Patterson, Memphis

P          Drue Chrisman, Ohio State

RS        Jeremiah Haydel, Texas State

 

 

Jaret Patterson photo courtesy of Buffalo Athletics