by Austin Silvey @SilveyESP
NEW ORLEANS, LA -- Clemson and LSU are set to meet up on Monday night for the National Championship. It would be Clemson's third title in four years and fourth championship overall. It would be LSU's first title since 2007 and also their fourth overall.
Both teams have made it here with great coaching and great players. There are quite a few players on each team that the NFL will be salivating over but not all are eligible for the upcoming draft.
In honor of both teams chasing their fourth title, here are the Top Four 2020 NFL prospects for both Clemson and LSU...
CLEMSON
1) Isaiah Simmons - LB/Hybrid
Simply put, Simmons is a freak. Super athletic, fast, explosive, charismatic, and loves to flash that million dollar smile. He also values his education and his mama's opinion about it. He can cover the full width of the field and play just about any position you ask him to. A formed tackler. Tough against the run and can drop into coverage and cover a large amount of ground quickly. He is a Top 10 player in this year's class.
2) Tee Higgins - WR
Higgins dominates the catch point. If you throw him a 50/50 ball he will make it 80/20 the majority of the time. He doesn't create separation often in his routes but his ability to high point balls and catch away from his body help equal things out. He doesn't blow past DBs off the line but has breakaway speed after the catch. A lot of draft experts have him ranked anywhere from WR4 to WR7. I have him ranked as my WR2 for the 2020 class.
3) Travis Etienne - RB
Etienne has the most elite contact balance I've seen with my own two eyes. He is a strong runner with great speed. He can beat you to the edge and make you miss with a quick cut or juke move. He can run past you, over you, through you, and around you. His catching out of the backfield has improved drastically this year and over the course of the season. Still needs to continue to work on his pass blocking but it has gotten marginally better as well.
4) AJ Terrell - CB
You don't hear his name called during games very often and that is both good and bad. Teams don't throw his way very often which shows how much they respect his ability to cover and make plays. The bad part is that his boxscore numbers can put out a false narrative that would suggest he is ineffective. That is not the case though. Terrell is one of the top corners in the upcoming draft.
LSU
1) Joe Burrow - QB
This goes without saying. Burrow burst onto the scene this year in a loud and unexpected manner. A multitude of broken records, numbers and awards came his way because of it. But as far as his ability goes, he is the ultimate competitor. He lives in the film room and is a great leader. His ability to move in and around the pocket while keeping his eyes down field is elite. Tremendous pocket presence and awareness to go along with passing accuracy; whether he has a clean pocket to throw from or even if it breaks down and he has to throw on the run.
2) K'Lavon Chaisson - LB/ER
Most would have Grant Delpit as the second best 2020 prospect on LSU's roster but to those people I say, "NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND!" Chaisson flashed as a freshman in 2017 before missing all but one game in 2018 with a torn ACL. In that one appearance he had five tackles and a forced fumble. He is long and athletic and much like Isaiah Simmons, he is a physical freak of nature. He has great bend off the edge and is explosive off the snap. He has speed and pretty good short area quickness for a guy his size. The best thing about Chaisson is that he hasn't even come close to reaching his full potential.
3) Grant Delpit - S
After the 2018 season, Delpit was seen as a guaranteed top 15 pick in this upcoming draft. He still has that potential and ability but his 2019 season left much to be desired. He was dealing with an ankle injury most of the season and wasn't able to perform to his full capability. He has been great in run support and plays really well downhill. Has good ball skills but tackling form and physicality could use some work.
4) Kristian Fulton - CB
Fulton is an all-around good athlete with great athleticism and traits at his position. He is good at staying in phase with receivers but, like most of the LSU defensive backs outside of Derek Stingley Jr, he doesn't always track the ball well. Quick-twitch reactions and good change of direction. He will also participate in the Senior Bowl held in Mobile, AL that starts a week after the National Championship game.
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