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2022 East-West Shrine Game Notable Invites (Fantasy Football)

2022 East-West Shrine Game Notable Invites (Fantasy Football)

Many don’t know this, but the East-West Shrine Bowl is the country’s longest-running college all-star football game. The Shrine Bowl has benefited Shriner’s Children’s, whose mission is to provide advanced care for children with orthopedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip. For that alone, it deserves recognition. It also gives us one more chance to scout and watch some unheralded prospects entering the 2022 NFL draft. Let’s dive into who you should be watching this week.

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Charleston Rambo (WR – Miami): 6’0″, 180 lbs  

Rambo reinvented himself after transferring from Oklahoma to Miami last season. Rambo had 79 receptions for 1,172 yards and seven touchdowns. He smashed his career highs in every category, and his seventy-nine receptions were the most in program history. Rambo excels down the field, and his route running is the best part of his game. His release off the line also puts him ahead of other prospects in this class. If he gets a clean release, it’s almost unstoppable. He is a big-play threat. The issues with Rambo come from his lack of strength and his drops. He can have some frustrating concentration drops, which is a significant area of concern. The Shrine game could be his chance to quiet those concerns and move up draft boards. 

Jaivon Heiligh (WR – Coastal Carolina): 6’0″, 200 lbs  

Heiligh was listed at 6’2″ while at Coastal Carolina, but officially measurements now have him at 6″0″. While not a death sentence by any means, it does hurt his stock a bit heading into draft season. He had his best season in 2022, having sixty-six receptions for 1,128 yards and seven touchdowns. He averaged just over seventeen yards per catch and was Grayson McCall‘s favorite weapon in the passing game. Heiligh was used all over the field at Coastal playing the X, flanker, and slot. He’s a versatile athlete that possesses good enough ball skills to make it in the NFL. He also finds open zones against zone schemes and could make a living off that skill. The biggest question is his play strength and if it will translate to the NFL. Playing at a non-power five school also hurts his stock. For me, he’s protected as a late-day-three pick. 

Pierre Strong Jr. (RB – South Dakota State): 5’11”, 202 lbs  

You may not know who Pierre Strong Jr. is, but you should quickly familiarize yourself with that name. Strong recently completed his fourth season for South Dakota State, leading the nation (FCS) in rushing with 1,686 yards to go with 18 rushing touchdowns. He also had 22 receptions and for 150 yards. For his career, he rushed for 4,527 yards. He went over 1,000 yards in three of his four seasons and is a promising small school prospect. Strong is an athletic and natural runner who fits NFL-style schemes. He’ll never be someone who can hit top-end speeds but could project as a power back in the NFL. He’ll need to prove he can withstand top-level competition after only playing against FCS schools, but there is a lot to like about the young RB. 

Ronnie Rivers (RB – Fresno State): 5’7″, 195 lbs  

Ronnie Rivers is a prospect who I have been watching since he was a freshman at Fresno State. As a season ticket holder, I have watched him develop into one of college football’s best small-school running backs. Rivers left Fresno State as a record holder in career touchdowns scored (52), rushing touchdowns (40), receiving touchdowns by a running back (12), receiving yards by a running back (1,417), and pass receptions by a running back (150). The NFL is always looking for weapons with speed to put on the field. Rivers is a weapon and has speed. Rivers can be a change of pace RB that plays special teams and fills in for teams when they have an injury. But the one thing that has always stood out about him is his work ethic, and that’s a skill that can’t be measured through stats. He checks all the boxes in terms of his intangibles. Rivers is someone that you should be keeping an eye on as a sleeper prospect.  

Keontay Ingram (RB – USC): 5’11”, 210 lbs  

The former four-star recruit had an up and down career as a Longhorn that saw him lead the team in rushing in 2019 with 853 yards and seven touchdowns, including twenty-nine receptions for 242 yards and three touchdowns. But Ingram couldn’t stay healthy in 2020 and eventually was overtaken by freshman phenom Bijan Robinson, which led him to transfer to USC. At USC, he rushed for 911 yards on 156 carries and scored five touchdowns. He also added 156 yards receiving on twenty-two receptions. When healthy, Ingram has the size and strength you look for in a running back. He has a quick first step and can accelerate through traffic. He may also be the best receiving back in this class, which excites me when looking for sleeper prospects. He can get on the field for third-down scenarios. 

Tyquan Thornton (WR – Baylor): 6’2″, 177 lbs  

Tyquan Thornton completely changed his career outlook last season with Baylor. After a disappointing junior season, he bounced back in 2021 and had sixty-two receptions for 948 yards and ten touchdowns. He was Baylor’s big-play threat each time he touched the ball and lived up to the lofty expectations he had as a recruit. As a receiver, Thornton uses his frame well in contested catch situations and has reasonably good lateral agility in the open field. He can consistently make defenders miss and can stretch the defense vertically. Baylor liked to use him on shallow crossing routes and double moves throughout the season. Like most receivers in this game, play strength is the biggest concern.

Leddie Brown (RB – WVU): 6’0″, 215 lbs  

Since his freshman season, Brown has been one of my favorite running backs in the Big 12. His 2020 season was his coming out year, as he rushed for 1,010 yards on 199 attempts scoring nine touchdowns. He also added 202 yards receiving on 31 receptions scoring two touchdowns. He added on another 1,000-yard season in 2021 while also scoring thirteen touchdowns on the ground. Brown does a lot of things well as a runner. He is explosive at the line of scrimmage and has excellent vision. While scouting running backs, I look for guys who can read their blocks and have the vision needed for big gains. Brown exhibits both of those qualities. He’s also a physical back with three-down potential. He has improved his receiving ability each season, which bolsters his stock. One big area of concern for Brown is his fumbling. He fumbled six times last season, and he’ll need to show growth there. 

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Kevin Coleman is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Kevin, check out his archive and follow him @Daboys_22.

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