College Bowl Preview: Fiesta Bowl

Fiesta Bowl

January 4, Glendale, Arizona

Boise State (13-0) vs. TCU (12-0)

FOX-TV, 7 p.m. CST

BOISE STATE

#1 CB Kyle Wilson, 5-9, 184 pounds – He became a starter in his freshman season and was not out of the lineup the rest of his time with Boise State. Over his career, Wilson played in 49 games, with 156 total tackles and 11 interceptions. He returned two of those picks for touchdowns. He also had 59 punt returns, averaging 12.8 yards and three touchdowns. This season, he had three interceptions and 39 total tackles. Wilson received conference academic honors.

Evaluation – Very good and smooth athlete, strong and with good speed and quickness.

Wilson has not missed a game because of injury in his four seasons of play. He’s willing to come up and play the run and isn’t afraid of contact. He has a good cornerback mentality. Only knock on him is his height, but that won’t keep him out of the early second round.

TCU

#98 OLB Jerry Hughes, 6-2, 252 pounds – Two-time consensus All-America choice, he’s been the best pass rusher in college football for the last two seasons. In 48 games with the Horned Frogs, Hughes had 28.5 career sacks, to go along with his 138 total tackles and 39 tackles for loss. He also had three interceptions, including one he returned for a TD. He forced seven fumbles. Led Division 1 in sacks with 15 on the season as TCU had the nation’s No. 1 defensive unit. Last year, his sack with five minutes to go wrapped up a TCU victory over Boise State in the Poinsettia Bowl.

Evaluation – Adequate in size and weight, but Hughes has great feet, quick and fast. As a pass rusher, he’s advanced and among the best in the country. He has enough experience and know-how that he can get to the quarterback with his hand on the ground as a 4-3 end, or as a standup 3-4 rush linebacker. He plays with a non-stop motor and he appears disciplined in playing his position. What few questions there are about him involve whether he’s big enough to be able to battle with big NFL blockers and whether he saw enough top notch competition in the Mountain West Conference. A third question is what type defense best suits his skills. A second-round choice is where he sits now, but he’ll have a chance during the assessment period to move into the first round.

#41 ILB Daryl Washington, 6-1, 215 pounds – Washington played in 49 games at TCU. He had 210 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. He also had four interceptions, including one that he returned for a touchdown. He forced two fumbles. In the ‘09 season, he has three interceptions, including a 20-yard TD return, with 99 total tackles and two sacks. He missed two games at the end of the ‘07 season, including the Texas Bowl with an undeclared injury. Those were the only games he missed.

Evaluation – He’s going to have to bulk up to play in the league, but with his height and very good speed he will have that opportunity. Washington has a big motor and he’ll pursue everywhere. He’s not a big h itter, but he gets ball carriers on the ground. He’s shown enough quickness and fluidity to cover most back an d tight ends in man-coverage. His special teams work is a plus for him. Right now, Washington looks like a fourth-round player.