Ohio State's top defender figured to have a shot at attending the 2018 Heisman Trophy ceremony the way his junior season began. He started the first three games, making 14 tackles, six for loss, four sacks, and a forced fumble. However, an injured core muscle suffered in Week 3 forced him to spend the rest of the fall rehabbing and preparing for the draft. The Heisman hype was real due to his play in 2017, where he was named the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year and first-team all-conference selection (34 tackles, 15 for loss, eight sacks), despite starting only 4 of 14 games played. The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native contributed heavily his freshman year, as one would expect from one of the top five recruits in the country, playing in all 13 games and making 29 stops and five sacks. Bosa is the brother of Joey, the 2016 No. 3 overall pick for the San Diego Chargers, and son of John, the 1986 first-round pick of the Miami Dolphins.

Tyshun "Deebo" Samuel received his nickname because he often bullied other kids growing up. That sort of attitude has proven to be a good thing on the field, especially when he starred for USC in 2018. He earned first-team All-SEC honors as an all-purpose player and return specialist (23-570-24.8, TD on kickoffs) and was also named a second-team all-conference receiver (62-882-14.2, 11 TD). He started 11 of 12 games played but chose not to participate in his team's bowl game in order to prepare for the draft. Samuel was off to a hot start the first three games of 2017, being a factor as a receiver (15-250-16.7, three TD), rusher (2-30-15.0) and returner (both kickoff returns went for touchdowns) before breaking his leg. The South Carolina native had shared the team's Most Valuable Player award after the 2016 season with quarterback Jake Bentley, leading the Gamecocks with 59 receptions for 783 yards (13.3 average) and one touchdown in 10 starts. Samuel also scored as a kick returner (16-431-26.9), though he missed three games with a hamstring injury. He had hamstring problems as a redshirt freshman, as well, though he managed to catch 12 passes for 161 yards (13.4 average) and a score in five games (three starts).

Hurd was a five-star running back recruit who ranked among the top 10 players in the country at his position despite playing in just one game as a senior due to a shoulder injury (he was Tennessee's Mr. Football in 2012 with 3,357 rushing yards). As a true freshman at Tennessee, Hurd led the Volunteers in rushing (190-899-4.7, 5 TDs) and also contributed as a receiver (35-221-6.3, 2 TDs) while starting 9 of 13 games played. He made an impact in his first bowl game, rushing for 122 yards and two scores against Iowa in the TaxSlayer.com Bowl. He was a second-team All-SEC pick as a sophomore, starting all 13 games, again leading his team in rushing (277-1,288-4.6-12), being active in the passing game (22-190-8.6), and excelling in the postseason (Outback Bowl MVP with 24-130-5.4, TD vs. Northwestern). Things began to change in 2016 when Hurd started the first seven games of the year (112-4541-3.7, three TD) but suffered a concussion. He approached his coaches about a position change due to the head injury, and when they declined to move him, Hurd decided to transfer. Baylor accepted him into the fold in 2017, and he sat out the year while learning the wideout position. Coaches used him as a running back on occasion (48-209-4.4, three TD) during his senior season, but he won the Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year award because he led the Bears in receiving (69-946-13.7, four TDs) while starting 11 of 12 games played. Hurd had a procedure on his knee in December, missing his team's bowl appearance.

Wishnowsky was an Australian Rules Football player in Perth growing up but had to give up that sport due to a chronic shoulder injury. He took up American football and caught the eye of Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. Wishnowsky did have to attend a junior college for one year before enrolling at Utah, so he played at Santa Barbara (Calif.) Community College in 2014 (39.8 yards per punt, 30 of 63 inside the 20-yard line). He did not play football in 2015, but then came on like gangbusters the following fall. He won the 2016 Ray Guy Award as the nation's top punter and earned consensus All-American and first-team All-Pac-12 honors after leading the FBS in net punting (44.63 yard-average) and 50-plus yard punts (30 of 64). He ranked second nationally with a gross average of 47.7 yards per kick. Wishnowsky was a third-team Associated Press All-American, first-team All-Pac-12, and finalist for the Ray Guy Award in 2017, ranking sixth in the country with a 43.9-yard gross average. He also took over kickoff duties in 2017 (44 touchbacks on 65 kickoffs) and used his Aussie Rules Football tackling skills five times on coverage that year. In 2018, he was named AP second-team All-American. He did not kick off for the Utes in his senior season, but his punting was once again outstanding as he landed Associated Press second-team All-American and first-team All-Pac-12 honors. Wishnowsky finished 10th in the FBS with a 45.2-yard per punt gross average. He forced 25 fair catches on his 59 punts, placing 24 kicks inside the 20, but also saw three of his kicks blocked.

A Fayetteville native, Greenlaw was an all-state selection after his senior year with 119 tackles, four interceptions and 10 pass breakups. His mental transition was seemingly as easy as his geographic transition, as he earned All-Freshman accolades in 2015 by topping all SEC freshmen with 95 tackles (11 starts, 3.5 tackles for loss). Greenlaw missed six regular season games with a broken foot (42 tackles in seven starts) and then injured that foot again the team's bowl game. Healthy again in 2017, Greenlaw made 103 tackles, 1.5 for loss, for the Razorbacks as a 12-games starter at the Will linebacker spot. He again missed time with an injury (high ankle sprain) his senior year. Greenlaw was productive in the nine games (eight starts) that he played, however, posting 80 stops, 6.5 for loss, two sacks, and two interceptions.

Smith applied for early entry in the 2019 NFL Draft to become the sixth tight end from Stanford since 2012 to be selected in the top four rounds. That reputation as "Tight End U" helped the Cardinal land Smith, a five-star recruit from Marcus, Texas. He redshirted the 2016 season and then played in 14 games as a key reserve the following year (23 catches, 414 yards, 18.0 ypc, five touchdowns). Smith's performance against USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game that year caught the eyes of scouts (4 catches, 80 yards, 20.0 average, two touchdowns). He was even more productive as a junior despite missing the final three games with a foot injury, earning second-team All-Pac-12 honors and being named a Mackey Award finalist by catching 47 throws for 635 yards (13.5 average) and two scores in 10 starts.

Skule (pronounced school) has become a sturdy left tackle for the Commodores, starting all 25 games at the position during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He slid there from the right tackle spot, where he started all 13 games in his sophomore season. Skule was an All-State pick and Washington Post All-Metro performer at Centreville High School in Virginia before heading to Nashville. In his first year on campus, he started twice at right tackle in seven games but then suffered an injury that ended his season.

A four-star recruit and top-20 cornerback prospect nationally, Harris drove down interstate 64 from Richmond to Charlottesville to play college football. He started 7 of 11 games as a true freshman (26 tackles, two pass breakups) and 5 of 10 games his sophomore year (19 tackles, one interceptions, four PBUs). He started 9 of 10 games in 2015 (34 tackles, three for loss, one interception, six PBUs), missing two games with a shoulder injury. He missed most of the next two years with injuries, playing in two games in 2016 (three tackles) and one game in 2017 (one tackle). Harris rebounded nicely in 2018, starting 8 of 13 games played and recording 36 tackles, 1.5 for loss, two interceptions, and four PBUs.