2027 NFL Draft Risers: P4 Conference Players Who Could Shake Up the Class

Kevin looks at potential 2027 class disruptors in every Power 4 conference.

Every draft class has the obvious names. The former five-stars. The early devy favorites. The players who have been circled since they stepped on campus.

That is not what this article is about. This is about the Power Four Conference players who can still change the shape of the 2027 NFL Draft class. Some already have the recruiting profile. Some already have the production. Some are coming off injuries. Some are transfers stepping into better situations. Some just need the role to finally match the talent.

That is where these draft conversations get fun. The NFL Draft is never just about who is ranked highest two years out. It is about who takes the next step, who earns the bigger role, who proves the traits are real, and who forces scouts to go back to the tape. These players are already on the big stage. Now they need the season that makes the NFL, devy managers, C2C players, and early rookie-draft sickos adjust.

They may not all become top-50 picks. That is not the point. The point is finding the players who can rise before everyone else starts talking about them. The names who can go from “interesting college player” to “real draft prospect” in one season. Those are the players we are chasing here.

SEC

Texas A&M RB Rueben Owens II (5’11” 215 lbs)

We talked about Rueben Owens II on our recent 2027 running back scouting show, and he is one of the names I keep coming back to in this class. I had him around the back end of my top ten, somewhere near RB9, but I could absolutely see him rising if the role finally matches the talent.

That is really the whole conversation with Owens. He came into Texas A&M as a five-star back. The pedigree was never the question. The flashes were never the question. The issue has been whether we were ever going to see him get a clean runway. Injuries, offensive line issues, quarterback instability, and a crowded backfield have all played a part in keeping him from becoming the player people expected when he first got to College Station.

Now the setup looks different. Owens is reportedly up to 215 pounds, and that matters. He has always had the lateral quickness, the jump cut, the spin move, and the ability to make defenders miss without completely shutting things down. The next step is adding more physicality to that profile. He cannot just be a space runner. If he wants to move up this 2027 running back class, he has to create more when the blocking is not perfect.

The career production is solid, but it has not popped yet. Across his Texas A&M career, Owens has 236 carries for 1,090 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging 4.6 yards per carry. In 2025, he took a step forward with 119 carries for 639 yards, five touchdowns, and 5.4 yards per carry. That was the first real sign of him starting to turn the corner.

The underlying profile is where it gets interesting. For his career, he has 633 yards after contact, 2.68 yards after contact per attempt, 37 missed tackles forced, 25 runs of 10-plus yards, a 30.7% breakaway rate, and a 45.0 elusive rating. Those numbers tell you there is juice here, but they also tell you there is still another level he has to reach.

That is why 2026 is such a big year for him. The Aggies need him to be more than a change-of-pace piece. With Le’Veon Moss gone and multiple offensive linemen leaving for the NFL, Owens is going to have to carry more of the offense. We could be looking at the biggest workload of his career, potentially 15-plus touches per game, and that is where the draft-riser case comes in.

The receiving profile also helps. Owens has soft hands and enough comfort in space to give him third-down value, but the pass protection has to keep improving. That is usually what separates a talented college back from a back coaches actually trust in every situation. If the spring reports are real and he is better at identifying pressure, meeting rushers earlier, and staying attached in protection, that changes the way Texas A&M can use him.

The high school version of Owens was a monster. He ran for 1,785 yards and 25 touchdowns as a senior after putting up nearly 3,000 yards and 46 scores as a junior. He was not just a recruiting ranking. He was a legit Texas high school football star. Now we need to see that player show up consistently at the college level.

For me, Owens is not a locked-in top-five back in the 2027 class right now. He has not earned that yet. But he is exactly the type of back who can make a jump. Former five-star profile. Better size. More touches coming. Receiving ability. Lateral quickness. Enough production to believe there is more in there. If the added weight turns him into a more physical runner and the pass protection improvement keeps him on the field, Owens can climb fast. He is not just a name from the past recruiting cycle. He is a real 2027 draft riser candidate.

Oklahoma Edge Danny Okeye (6’3” 260 lbs)

Danny Okoye is exactly the type of defensive name I want to bet on in this kind of article. He is not a finished product. He is not coming off some massive production season. That is why he fits. We are looking for players who can move the 2027 NFL Draft conversation, and Okoye has the type of profile that can change fast if the role finally opens up. The nickname at Oklahoma is “Coyote,” and it fits. There is a different type of energy to his game. He is 6’3”, 258 pounds, and he brings real twitch, length, and violence off the edge. He was a former four-star out of Tulsa, but his development was always going to take a little time. He came from a smaller high school environment, redshirted early, and had to adjust to the speed, size, and detail of SEC football.

Now he is entering that Year 3 window, and that matters at Oklahoma. Under Brent Venables, we have seen defensive players take a real jump once the system starts slowing down. R Mason Thomas had that type of breakout in 2024 with nine sacks, 12.5 tackles for loss, and 35 pressures. Taylor Wein followed with seven sacks, 15 tackles for loss, and 36 pressures. Okoye could be the next one in that line. The production has been limited so far, but the flashes are there. Last season, he played 107 snaps across 11 games and finished with six tackles, two sacks, and six total pressures. That is not enough to push him into real draft conversations yet, but it is enough to make you pause when you add the context.

He was stuck behind a deep edge rotation. Thomas and Marvin Jones Jr. were ahead of him. Wein was ahead of him. Adepoju Adebawore was in that mix too. Okoye was more of a situational piece than a featured player. That should change. With Thomas and Jones gone, Oklahoma needs someone to step into a bigger role off the edge. Okoye got first-team reps this spring, added weight in the offseason, and was one of the defensive standouts in the spring game. He had four tackles, two tackles for loss, and a pressure. That is the kind of spring buzz that actually matters because it connects to a real depth chart opening.

The traits are what make him interesting. Okoye has the first-step burst to win early in reps. He reportedly has run in the 4.5s, and you can see that explosion show up when he converts speed to power. He has the length to keep tackles off his frame, and when he plays with the right pad level, he can create movement through contact. There is some nastiness to the way he finishes too. He plays with the kind of edge energy that defensive coaches love.

The next step is becoming more than a traits player. Early in his career, Okoye could get by with athleticism. That does not work every snap in the SEC. He still has to keep developing his hands, counters, run fits, and overall discipline. He has the physical tools, but the technical side has to keep catching up. That is usually the difference between a fun rotational pass rusher and a real draft riser.

That is why 2026 is so big. If Okoye becomes a starting-level player in this Oklahoma defense, the conversation changes quickly. The league is always going to care about explosive edge rushers with size, length, and juice. He does not need to become a finished product overnight, but he does need to turn those flashes into weekly disruption. For me, Okoye is not a household name yet. That is the point. He is one of those defensive players who could go from “interesting Oklahoma depth piece” to “legit 2027 NFL Draft riser” with one strong season. The tools are there. The role is opening. The development curve makes sense.

Big Ten

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