Shrine Bowl 2025 Preview: How and who to watch for the 2025 NFL Draft
Check out 12 East-West Shrine Bowl prospects with the most to gain in the 2025 NFL Draft and more
The 2024 East-West Shrine Bowl produced 57 players who heard their names called in the draft, marking a new high-water mark for the All-Star event. However, none of those prospects went in the first round, and only two cracked the top 50. This year’s Shrine Bowl roster features several likely first round selections in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Schedule and Viewing
Shrine Bowl practices begin on Saturday (today) at 8:15 a.m. with the East Team taking the field until 9:45 a.m. The West Team follows from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. There are four days of practice, and the two teams rotate practice times each day. The game itself takes place on Thursday and starts at 7:00 p.m. in AT&T Stadium. Here’s a full schedule for the event.
The four practices will be streamed on the free app Lights Out Sports TV, which was created by former NFL All-Pro Shawne Merriman. The stream will feature multiple camera angles and has the chance to provide the most in-depth broadcast access and viewing of an All-Star event’s practices.
Injuries and Caution Tape
The NFL asked All-Star games to avoid inviting players who couldn’t or didn’t intend to participate in practices and the game. That seems to have fallen on deaf ears in Texas because several injured players will be attending to interview with teams and the media.
Brett Kollmann, who has close ties with the Shrine Bowl and annually features several of its attendees on his social channels, reported the names of eight players who are too injured to participate. Presumptive first round pick Shavon Revel Jr. (Scouting Report) leads the list as he continues to recover from a torn ACL.
Guard Tyler Cooper, defensive lineman Joe Evans, running back Phil Mafah, cornerback Jason Marshall Jr., outside linebacker Que Robinson, nose tackle Jay Toia, and safety De'Rickey Wright are the remaining seven players.
Kollmann claims Michigan’s Kenneth Grant (Scouting Report), another projected first rounder, and Colorado’s contingent, including Shedeur Sanders (Scouting Report), intend to participate fully. While I hope that’s the case, I’m skeptical players like Grant and Sanders will return later in the week if they dominate early, which is always a concern with All-Star events.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Sanders doesn’t practice at all.
Similar to Kollmann, I’m also interested to see how much the Notre Dame attendees participate after their short turnaround from the College Football Playoff Championship Game.
The Superstars
Three names clearly separate themselves when scanning the Shrine Bowl’s roster. Michigan’s goliath, Kenneth Grant, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, and Ole Miss linebacker Chris Paul Jr. stand head and shoulders above their competition. LSU’s Bradyn Swinson (Scouting Report) would’ve been included in this section, but he appears to have withdrawn after initially accepting an invite.
Paul is an ultra-dynamic athlete with sideline-to-sideline range and untapped potential in coverage. His instincts as a run defender are developing nicely, turning him into a quick-diagnosing human missile. Paul’s speed, burst, and fluidity are rare physical gifts that should vault him into the second round conversation. He’ll go in the third round at the latest.
Grant is a hulking figure with rare speed and closing burst for a nose tackle tipping the scale at roughly 340 lbs. His high pad level creates some limitations when attempting to anchor, but his massive arms help him stack, peak, and shed blocks. Grant’s suddenness and nimble footwork pair with a basic pass rush plan to help him flush quarterbacks into his edge rushers.
Sanders lacks the impressive arm strength and velocity usually required of a first round quarterback, but his anticipation, touch, and precision make him an intriguing option for a coach off the Shanahan tree. His playstyle should translate well to an event like this, considering the number of drills with no pass rush. He has a lot to lose if things go poorly.
12 Players with the Most to Gain
While the 7-on-7 and team drill portions of Shrine Bowl practice are important and often more translatable, the 1-on-1s tend to be the main attraction. The offensive vs. defensive line drills in particular attract a ton of eyes. This drill is slanted toward the defender but provides an excellent opportunity for offensive linemen to put their physicality on tape.
Florida right tackle Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson and Rutgers right tackle Hollin Pierce have Day 3 grades, but the lack of quality offensive tackle prospects has opened a vacuum in the third and fourth rounds. Crenshaw-Dickson and Pierce, who are unofficially listed at 6'7", 322 lbs. and 6'8", 344 lbs. respectively, have NFL-caliber size and length but aren’t the most fluid movers.
Sticking in the trenches, edge rushers Tyler Batty (BYU), Elijah Roberts (SMU), and Johnny Walker Jr. (Missouri) have the potential to produce some eye-catching wins with power. Batty and Roberts have experience reducing inside because of their play strength and primarily win with power. Walker packs less full-body power and relies a little more on vertical speed, but his long arms make him a threat to walk linemen back into the pocket.
Wide receivers Kaden Prather (Maryland), Dont'e Thornton (Tennessee), LaJohntay Wester (Colorado), and Ricky White (UNLV) could gain a lot of ground in a weak wide receiver class. Prather (6'3 1/4", 211 lbs.) is the latest underutilized pass catcher out of Maryland. He reaches a nice top speed, possesses the initial burst to stack press-man corners, and makes surprisingly sharp cuts at his size.
Thornton is unofficially listed at 6'5", 214 lbs. and has the speed to stretch defenses vertically. He wins one-on-one outside against man coverage and gashes coverages that leave the middle of the field open on catch-and-run slants and posts. Thornton will likely only fill a limited role early in his career but has the physical tools to be an offense’s high ADOT playmaker.
Wester is a completely different athlete than Prather and Thornton. He’s unofficially listed at 5'11", 167 lbs. but compensates for his lack of size with explosiveness, speed, separation, loose movement skills, and twitch. He’s at his best as a low ADOT receiver in catch-and-create scenarios. Wester returned punts for touchdowns in each of the past two seasons.
White also offers special teams value. He blocked FOUR punts in 2024, quietly making him one of the most valuable special teamers in the sport. White lacks elite athletic tools but is a quality route runner who wins the leverage battle. After the catch, his acceleration, contact balance, creativity, and sharp cutting ability make him a threat to generate chunk plays.
Zah Frazier is the next toolsy UTSA cornerback. He’s listed at 6'3", 185 lbs. and is coming off a season with six interceptions. His length helps him re-route receivers at the line of scrimmage and create disruption at the catch point. Frazier’s speed is good enough to carry receivers vertically, and he showcases good juice to recover when beaten early in the rep. My main concern is the one-year starter will struggle to mirror and get grabby against more complex route runners.
Syracuse’s Kyle McCord and Minnesota’s Max Brosmer are the top quarterbacks at the Shrine Bowl not named Shedeur Sanders. McCord posted historic numbers at Syracuse but also had a five-interception meltdown against then-undefeated Pitt. The narrative around the former Ohio State quarterback remains that he cracks under pressure.
McCord has the physical talent to make every throw in the book. He put some lasers on tape this season. It wouldn’t shock me if he finishes as a top four quarterback in this class when his NFL career ends, but he needs to navigate pressure better and keep a cool head.
Brosmer overcame a torn ACL at New Hampshire to earn FCS All-American honors before transferring to Minnesota. I was hoping for more consistency from him this season, but he had a few dominant games. Just go watch his Maryland tape.
Brosmer lacks the arm strength to hit every throw but has the anticipation, ball placement, touch, and processing to beat defenses with a thousand cuts. His velocity at the intermediate level pops too.
Early Day 3 Prospects
I have fourth round marks or higher on several Shrine Bowl attendees, and I could see the league coming back with high grades on a few others. I don’t have fourth round grades on Oklahoma defensive end Ethan Downs and Notre Dame tight end Mitchell Evans, but they’ve had games over the past two years that make me believe they could provide top 130 value.
Oregon’s Jabbar Muhammad is a player I’ve had in or around my top 100 frequently, but I understand the league is lower on him because of his limited frame and average speed. Muhammad is a smart, gutsy football player who has the tape to be at least a fourth round selection but might drop because of physical limitations.
Cornerbacks Zy Alexander (LSU), Cobee Bryant (Kansas), and Jermari Harris (Iowa) are all in the fourth round on my big board. Alexander is the lowest of the three because of his inconsistencies in press and limited long speed. Bryant also lacks elite acceleration and twitch but is a ball hawk and competitor in the run game.
Harris is an older player with an extensive injury history but is a patient, smooth mover with excellent IQ in zone and flashes of impactful reps in press coverage.
Two of the game’s pass catchers, Louisville’s Ja'Corey Brooks and Syracuse’s Oronde Gadsden II, also belong in this discussion. Brooks doesn’t separate at a high level, but he dominates in contested catch situations downfield. Gadsden bulked up for 2024 to play more in-line but maintained his ability to create speed mismatches against linebackers and height mismatches against defensive backs.
Kyle McCord is also a fourth rounder on my latest board.
Undervalued Attendees
Keep an eye on Cincinnati’s John Williams and Georgia’s Xavier Truss along the offensive line. Truss had his fair share of struggles at Georgia, but he’s been playing out of position since the start of 2023. His long-term fit is at left guard, which is where he started in 2022. Williams plays left tackle but is also a better athletic fit at guard.
The Shrine Bowl roster lets you know just how loaded this tight end class is. There’s Gadsden as a big ticket name, but Texas Tech’s Jalin Conyers, Ole Miss’ Caden Prieskorn, and South Carolina’s Joshua Simon all deserve more attention than they’ve received so far. Conyers and Simon are YAC machines with impressive open field speed. Conyers has better route running chops than Simon and is the best of the trio. Prieskorn is a zone beater with good size and bulk.
Georgia’s Warren Brinson and South Carolina’s Tonka Hemingway stand out along the defensive line. Brinson is a quick, powerful defensive tackle who lacks refinement, but his flashes pop even compared to his highly viewed teammates. Hemingway is an undersized interior player who wins with lateral explosiveness, balance, and movement skills that match his frame.
Clemson safety RJ Mickens and South Carolina cornerback O'Donnell Fortune didn’t receive much attention during the season because they played on loaded defenses. Fortune is a high IQ defender in zone with some impressive plays against fades in man coverage. Mickens is a disciplined defender who plays the run well and rarely busts in coverage. He was the fixer for Clemson’s young secondary in 2024.
Cal’s Nohl Williams might work his way into this discussion if he flashes early in the week. He intercepted seven passes in 2024 and checks a lot of boxes with his traits but suffers from a high number of technical breakdowns.
I Have Questions
This preview has carried on long enough, so I’m going to keep this section brief by listing a few questions I’m hoping players will answer with their performance this week.
Will the pass rushers completely outclass the offensive tackles?
Which of these SEC running backs will separate from the pack? Someone between Jaydon Blue, Ja'Quinden Jackson, Montrell Johnson, and Raheim Sanders must rise.
Is this the start of Jaydon Blue’s rise or will his inconsistent performance continue?
Will Maryland’s Jordan Phillips turn my skepticism into belief? I have a Day 3 grade on him, but many analysts have been talking about him as a top 100 prospect in the past week.
Will I buy back into one of Jamon Dumas-Johnson or Francisco Mauigoa (downhill linebackers)?
Can Miami’s Sam Brown and Ole Miss’ Antwane Wells Jr. return to their 2023 forms and overcome poor seasons?
How many unique ways can Antwaun Powell-Ryland win, and does a big week get him out of mid-Day 3?
What positions do JJ Pegues take snaps at in the 1-on-1 reps?
Can Chaz Chambliss’ sparks and flashes catch fire?
Does Montana State guard Marcus Wehr have the power to hang with the FBS prospects?
Can San Jose State quarterback turned wide receiver Nick Nash avoid key drops and remain productive against better competition than he faced in 2024?
Will Tyler Baron’s talent cancel out some of the character questions?
What version of Towson tight end Carter Runyon are we getting?
How much will separation concerns limit Colorado’s Will Sheppard?