Thor Nystrom tracks players opting out of upcoming bowl games as well as the coaching changes around the college football landscape. Thor will update the article through the remainder of the season to keep you updated on bowl games, college prospects, and the 2023 NFL Draft.
And below we’ll take a closer look at the upcoming bowl game.
Check out Thor’s projections for all college football bowl games 
ReliaQuest Bowl: College Football News, Player Opt-Out Tracker & Game Preview (Mississippi State vs. Illinois)
- Monday, January 2 | 11:00 AM
- Mississippi State (-1) vs. Illinois | Total: 46
- ATL: MSU -4.9 | ATT: 51
Mississippi State
- RB Dillon Johnson (Transfer portal)
- RB Ke’Travion Hargrove (Transfer portal)
- RB J.J. Jernighan (Transfer portal)
- RB Ke’Travion Hargrove (Transfer portal)
- WR Rara Thomas (Transfer portal)
- WR Zavion Thomas (Transfer portal)
- WR Scoobie Ford (Transfer portal)
- S Collin Duncan (Unclear)
- S Dylan Lawrence (Transfer portal)
CB Emmanuel Forbes and S Jackie Matthews both declared for the NFL draft – but have importantly announced that they plan to play in this against Illinois.
S Duncan also declared for the draft, but didn’t specify whether or not he would play in the bowl. Duncan was the defense’s second-highest graded starter behind Forbes. Considering that Forbes and Matthews were very clear in their intentions to play, while Duncan has not been, our current best guess is that Duncan will not play – but that’s just a guess as of this writing (Dec. 24).
WR Rare Thomas posted 44 catches this fall as one of the team’s four starting receivers. Mississippi State has the depth to cover for his loss – even with the losses of buried-on-the-depth chart WRs Zavion Thomas and Ford – but the Bulldogs’ receiving corps greatly underwhelmed this fall and WR Rara Thomas was the highest-graded pass-catcher of the top-four snap-getters in that group.
RB Johnson was one-half of MSU’s RB platoon. Johnson (81.2 PFF grade) slightly outplayed RB Jo’quavious Marks (75.8). Marks will need to shoulder more usage in the bowl, especially with RB4 Jernighan and RB6 Hargrove also out the door. This means that redshirt freshman Simeon Price will have to prepare for more usage.
Illinois
- RB DD Snyder (Transfer portal)
- RB Josh McCray (Injury)
- RB Aidan Laughery (injury)
- RB Chase Brown (Opt-out)
- TE Luke Ford (Opt-out)
- LB Ezekiel Holmes (Injury)
- CB Devon Witherspoon (Opt-out)
- CB Tahveon Nicholson (Injury)
- S Sydney Brown (Opt-out)
CB Witherspoon and S Brown opted-out and declared for the NFL Draft on Dec. 17. Each was named to First-Team All-Big 10 for their work in the regular season.
Witherspoon was PFF”s No. 2 graded Power 5 cornerback. Witherspoon led the country in completion percentage against (33.8) and forced incompletions (16), per PFF. A consensus all-American in 2022, Witherspoon is a projected first-round pick.
CB Brown started all five seasons he was on campus. During the 2022 regular season, Brown tied for the FBS lead with six interceptions. Last year, Minnesota HC P.J. Fleck compared the hard-hitting Brown to Hall of Famer Troy Polamalu.
CB Brown’s twin brother, RB Chase Brown, opted-out of the bowl on Dec. 23, similarly declaring his intention to enter the NFL Draft. RB Brown was the offense’s workhorse bellcow, leading the P5 in the regular season with 1,643 rushing yards to go with 10 TD.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. currently lists Brown as the No. 9 RB in the class. For whatever it’s worth, Kiper ranks S Sydney Brown as the No. 7 safety in the draft.
It’ll likely be RB Reggie Love III’s show in the bowl. Love has shown workmanlike efficiency in the past. This year, with Brown assuming so much usage, Love was only used sporadically, totaling just 276 yards. At least he’ll be fresh for all the touches that figure to be coming his way.
TE Ford, a projected UDFA, was a somewhat surprising addition to Illinois’ opt-out list. The 6-foot-6, 265-pound Ford had 10 receptions for 88 yards in 2022. Despite the meager receiving production, Ford was a valued blocker in the Illini’s physical downhill ground attack. A top prospect coming out of high school, Ford originally signed with Georgia before returning home to finish his career at Illinois.
C Bret Bielema is lobbying hard for star CB Quan Martin to play in this game. Martin is the last of Illinois’ stars who has yet to announce – all the others have ultimately decided to opt-out. Illini DL Johnny Newton, meanwhile, said he will play in the bowl game.
Backup RBs McCray and Laughery are both questionable with injuries. LB Holmes and CB Nicholson were previously ruled out for the season with injuries.
Coaching News
Mississippi State HC Mike Leach died on Dec. 12 following complications to a heart condition. The day before, Leach collapsed at his home in Starkville. At the time of his death, Leach ranked No. 5 among active coaches in wins. Among the FBS’ single-season passing yardage leaders, four-of-the-top-nine were coached by Leach. Leach was 61.
MSU’s administration, who initially had tabbed DC Zach Arnett as interim HC for the bowl, hired Arnett as permanent head coach in the aftermath of the tragedy. Arnett’s signature 3-3-5 scheme performed well this season, putting him in a position to become the FBS’ youngest HC at 36. Prior to joining Leach’s Mississippi State staff in 2020, Arnett logged nine seasons as an assistant at San Diego State under former HC Rocky Long.
Meanwhile, Illinois DC Ryan Walters accepted the Purdue head coaching job on Dec. 13. He replaces Jeff Brohm. Walters was a finalist for the Broyles Award this season. The Illini defense took incredible leaps in the regular season, becoming a dominant unit that finished No. 1 in fewest points allowed and No. 2 in fewest yards allowed. The 36-year-old Walters becomes the fourth-youngest HC in the FBS.
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