Saturday NFL Draft watch notes

The games this week are pretty ordinary once again, but there are a few players to key on as you sit around the house all day getting to know players in the 2012 NFL Draft. I'll be watching Temple running back Bernard Pierce in person today as the Owls are poised to torch my lowly Akron Zips.

We'll have individual posts on Penn State/Alabama and South Carolina/Georgia in a bit.

In the Toledo/Ohio State game (noon, Big Ten Network), it will be hard to properly judge the far superior prospects the Buckeyes have. With that in mind, though, just keep an eye on Ohio State junior tight end Jake Stoneburner. Against Akron last week he was able to get himself open all game. He doesn't have the best speed, but his hands are superb and he's a good blocker.

Central Michigan has a deep sleeper at right tackle in junior Jake Olson. He has great size at 6-foot-8 and 300 pounds but is still bouncing back after missing most of last season with a leg injury. Central Michigan goes to Kentucky (noon, ESPNU). Also watch out for Kentucky safety/linebacker hybrid Winston Guy. He was al ove the field last week with 10 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and 2 interceptions.

North Carolina's Quinton Coples started his season right last week with 2 sacks against James Madison. He could have just as good of a game when UNC hosts Rutgers (12:30 p.m., ESPN3). Rutgers may use guard Desmond Wynn (a late-round prospect) to help put extra bodies on Coples. In this game, watch closely if UNC cornerback Charles Brown matches up against heralded Rutgers junior wide receiver Mohamed Sanu. Brown plays with good strength and it could give Sanu trouble.

Cincinnati running back Isaiah Pead has earned a considerable amount of hype. He showed why rushing for 87 yards and 2 touchdowns in a half of play last week. He'll have a harder time against Tennessee today (3:30 p.m., ESPN2). The Volunteers counter with a solid running back of their own in Tauren Poole. Both Pead and Poole are Day 3 NFL Draft choices, but solid prospects to watch. The Bearcats also have defensive tackle Derek Wolfe, a great hustle guy who would fit nicely on 3-4 team as an end.

Nevada may not have Colin Kaepernick, Dontay Moch or Virgil Green anymore, but the Wolf Pack still have linebacker James-Michael Johnson. He's a fluid athlete with a lot of experience. Johnson will get the task of handling Oregon running back LaMichael James (3:30 p.m., Fox Sports). James was somewhat of a disappointment last week and will need to do well against an overmatched Nevada defense.

If East Carolina's Dominique Davis wants to prove himself as an NFL-caliber quarterback, he'll get a good chance today hosting Virginia Tech (3:30 p.m., Fox Sports). Davis has been somewhat inconsistent during his career, but looked good last week against South Carolina, completing 66 percent of his passes for 260 yards, 4 touchdowns and an interception. Virginia Tech always has a good secondary paced by junior cornerback Jayron Hosley and senior safety Eddie Whitley.