Good morning New York Giants fans! Happy Saturday and welcome to Week 9 of the 2026 College Football Season.
The Giants are on their bye week this week and are guaranteed to control the NFC East regardless of what happens, so we’re all free to sit back and simply enjoy a weekend of football without stakes
As usual, we’re using college football and the NFL Draft as a lens through which to look at the New York Giants. In particular, we’re going to look at the Giants’ needs as we perceive them, and focus
on players who could fit those needs.
Texas Tech vs. Arizona
ESPN – Noon
Don’t look now, but Arizona is quietly making noise and could force their way into the College Football Playoffs. Texas Tech is more highly regarded right now, but Arizona is a fun team to watch. Keep an eye on freshman linebacker Dash Fifita, younger brother of Arizona QB Noah Fifita. Dash is coming off a game against Iowa State with 2.5 tackles for a loss and 2.0 sacks… At 5-foot-7, 190 pounds. He won’t be draft eligible for two more years and might not be a draftable prospect due to his size, but he’s fun.
For our purposes, however, I want to turn to the Texas Tech defense.
Player spotlight: A.J. Holmes Jr. (iDL, Texas Tech)
Holmes jr. transferred to Texas Tech a year ago, and was a productive member of that disruptive defensive front which carried them into the playoffs.
He’s having a fantastic year as “The Guy” on Texas Tech’s defensive line. So far he has 6.5 tackles for a loss and 6.5 sacks (leads the Big 12) though 7 games, as well as 23 total tackles and a forced fumble. Holmes Jr. is listed at 6-foot-3, 300 pounds, but plays with solid leverage and anchor, as well as impressive explosiveness and power. He excels at firing out of his stance and using heavy hands to rock blockers backward before shedding and using his agility and burst to make a play on the ball. He would likely be best in a 1-gap system at the next level, and could fit the Giants as a 3 or 5-technique depending on their personnel package.
As things stand now, Holmes Jr. is probably a second round pick, but he could work his way into the “1st – 2nd” range if he continues to produce as a disruptor.
(8) BYU vs. Arizona State
Fox – 3:30 p.m.
Most of the nation will be watching BYU to see if they can rebound after their 39-31 loss to UCF a week ago. BYU catapulted themselves into the national spotlight and the Playoff conversation with their upset win over Notre Dame two weeks ago, but couldn’t avoid the letdown game the following week.
For our purposes, however, we’ll be taking a look at the Sundevils. Arizona State has produced some interesting prospects over the last couple years, notably Cam Skattebo, WR Jordan Tyson, and now QB Sam Leavitt (currently at LSU). We’re going to stick to the offensive side of the ball and one of the fastest risers in recent weeks.
Player spotlight: Reed Harris (WR, Arizona State)
Both Harris and fellow WR Omario Miller could be of interest to the Giants, and both could be solid Day 2 picks. We’re going to focus on Harris, because he’s having a better year and his physical profile could be more appealing to the Giants. Harris is a transfer from Boston College and is an imposing presence on the field. He’s listed at 6-foot-5, 220 pounds and looks every bit of it. He appears to have solid speed and agility for a big receiver and plays with plenty of power. He has a massive catch radius as well as the ability to drag defenders as a ball carrier.
There would likely be some overlap between Harris and Malachi Fields, however redundancy isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The Giants have increasingly used Malik Nabers in the slot and he’s responded well, getting nearly as many yards from the slot as out wide, despite having far fewer snaps as a slot receiver. Adding a second big wide receiver could allow the Giants to use Nabers as a slot receiver even more often, or create size mismatches with smaller corners.
North Carolina vs. (1) Miami
ABC – 7:30 p.m.
We’re checking in on the ACC in the evening slate. The matchups between Ohio State and USC or Texas and Mississippi State may be more compelling, but the Hurricanes have a number of defensive players that could interest the Giants. Likewise, QB Darian Mensah could be one of the linchpins early in the draft, and sophomore WR Malachi Toney is simply a human highlight reel.
Player Spotlight: Justin Scott (iDL, Miami)
The Giants might not want to spend a first round pick on a defensive tackle — or the board may not line up for them even if they do. But, as noted up above, this is shaping up to be an impressively deep defensive tackle class. We’ve already talked about Miami defensive tackle Ahmad Moten, and his teammate is a high-upside player as well.
Scott has a versatile frame at 6-foot-4, 305 pounds with enough length and strength to play any gap alignment in an even or odd front. He boasts an explosive first step and should be a dangerous gap-shooter in a one-gap defense, while also having a powerful lower body to take on blockers in the run game. In addition to great explosiveness and power, he also has the kind of wide-open motor and competitive toughness we’ve come to expect from this Miami defense. That combination should appeal to the Giants’ coaching staff, and Scott could easily step into Shelby Harris’ spot as a 3, 4i, or 5-technique.
There’s currently some speculation that Scott could work his way into the first round conversation thanks to his traits. However, this could be a very deep defensive tackle class and there are prospects with similarly impressive traits who also have significant production to their name. As of this writing, Scott has 21 tackles but only 1.0 tackle for a loss and 0 sacks on the season. Unlike many of the defensive tackles the Giants have drafted lately, Scott is still young and won’t turn 21 until January. It’s possible that he could slide in a deep class and be available to the Giants somewhere in the second round.
