Sports360AZ
Story by Daniel Rios (Daniel the Draftnick)
Here are five players who continue to impress
Fernando Mendoza
It’s hard to start a list like this without Mendoza. His postgame interview after the Big 10 championship game was legendary, and it had to be following his performance. His stat line is tagged with the interception, but it was more of an unlucky play, if anything. He finished with 222 yards and a touchdown with three big-time throws, according to Pro Football Focus.
Mendoza showcased his accuracy on deep balls to everyone watching and, most importantly, his ability to step up in big moments. He’s done it for Indiana all year long, and once again, when his team needed him most, he stepped up against then-No. 1 Ohio State and led a big touchdown drive that ended on a fade route to his favorite target all year, Elijah Sarratt.
He isn’t scared of big moments, and the game showed it. While he may not have risen far in terms of boards, he’s locked himself as a clear quarterback favorite come April.
Sonny Styles
Styles was on the losing side of things in the championship game, but man, did he fly around the field all night long. He was considered a first-round pick before the weekend, but now it’s a fair debate if he’s a top 10 pick.
He’s a converted safety at the linebacker position, and one of the main concerns with that usually is play strength. It’s clear Styles doesn’t lack much play strength at all, and he still flashes that athleticism he had at the safety position.
PFF tracked him with seven run-stop tackles, and watching back the game, it certainly feels like there’s more. He finished with 12 total tackles and even two pressures.
Cayden Curry
Curry is one of the hottest players in the country, totaling five sacks over his last three games. He rose to the occasion in the Big 10 championship game and consistently pressured Mendoza, making it hard for the Indiana offense to find rhythm.
While he’s not a first-rounder, Curry most likely will track to be picked somewhere in the middle rounds of the draft, and barring an impressive run in the College Football Playoff, he could boost his stock even more. He ended the game with a team-high six pressures and a 20 percent true pass set pass-rush win rate.
David Bailey
Texas Tech dominated BYU in the Big 12 championship game, and a big reason for that was the performance of the Red Raiders’ defense line. Bailey has been the star all season long along the line, and once again in the biggest moment of the season, he delivered.
Bailey finished with four total pressures and one sack in the win, and it was another performance that was fun to watch back. He’s tracking to be a first-rounder, but it’s hard to project exactly where he’ll go. There’s a ton of edge talent in this 2026 class and plenty of different builds. Teams will be able to sort through and pick the type of rushers they like, but one thing is that Bailey can do it all on the outside.
Kadyn Proctor
Alabama would probably love to have a redo of the SEC championship, but no matter what, they still made the College Football Playoff. Quarterback Ty Simpson didn’t have a game he’d like to be remembered for, but Proctor was a highlight of the offense.
He’s had an up-and-down season, but the championship game against Georgia certainly was an up. He only allowed one pressure and one hurry the entire game. Proctor has the build to be a franchise left tackle at 6-foot-7, 366 pounds, and he’ll certainly be a hot topic over the coming months leading up to the draft. But for now, he impressed against Georgia and can boost his stock with another promising performance against Oklahoma.
