News: BTB: NFL Draft prospect to know: Arizona State’s N’Keal Harry has WR1 potential

Get to know one of the more interesting wide receiver prospects in the upcoming draft

Blogging The Boys will take a look at some of the NFL Draft prospects that will be in the 2018 NFL Draft class. This early in the season, it’s impossible to know the Cowboys draft position, so we’ll look at a variety of prospects.

We continue looking at potential 2019 NFL Draft prospects. A week ago, we took a look at TCU defensive end Ben Banogu, who finished with three tackles against the Ohio State Buckeyes in AT&T Stadium last Saturday. With all of the talent along the defensive line — specifically the ends — will the Cowboys look at grabbing another next April? It is obviously way too early to say for sure.

One position, however, that does have a lot of question marks at the moment is the wide receivers position. After opting for a linebacker and offensive guard over a pass catcher in the first two rounds in 2018, will Dallas want to go ahead and grab a playmaker on the outside for Dak Prescott next spring?

If so, here is one name to keep an eye on during this college football season.

N’Keal Harry — wide receiver, Arizona State Sun Devils

6-foot-4
213
Junior

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Arizona State plays #10 Washington tonight at 10:30 PM ET on ESPN.


If there is one big concern regarding the wide receivers on the Cowboys roster, it is the lack of big, playmaking targets. Allen Hurns is big, but is he a playmaker? Tavon Austin and Cole Beasley can make plays, but they aren’t exactly big enough to catch a jump ball.

N’Keal Harry possesses both qualities.

Harry, an Arizona native and a top-60 player in the 2016 recruiting class, has been a star for the Sun Devils since stepping foot on campus in Tempe as a true freshman. The big bodied wide receiver immediately made his presence felt in the Pac 12, catching 58 passes for 659 yards and five touchdowns during his first season on the collegiate level. Harry also added two scores on three rushing attempts in 2016. Averaging over 11 yards per touch from scrimmage, Harry was a big play waiting to happen from the start.

Surely defenders and defensive coordinators would game plan to take him away, right? Well, it certainly did not matter. Harry’s production was even more impressive as a true-sophomore, posting stats of 82 receptions, 1,142 yards, and eight touchdowns. Averaging 14 yards per reception and reaching the end zone three more times, Harry grew into even more of a nightmare in 2017. Harry’s first season saw him earn Freshman All-American honors; his second landed him on the Pac 12’s first team.

Harry, along with the likes of AJ Brown from Ole Miss and Anthony Johnson out of Buffalo, entered the 2018 campaign as one of the favorites to be the first wideout taken in 2019. So far, he has shown us why. Through three games, Harry has hauled in 21 catches for 315 yards and four scores already, including a six-catch, 89-yard, and one-touchdown performance in a big win over the Michigan State Spartans in week two.

This week, Harry and his Sun Devils prepare for battle against top-10 ranked Washington on the road. Huskies defensive back Jordan Miller had some high praise for the elite receiver:


This is a matchup to keep an eye on. Can Harry do damage against arguably the conference’s best defensive unit? If so, he will only rise up boards in the eyes of scouts.

Three Plays


Here are three plays that display why N’Keal Harry is one of the elite wide receiver prospects in the upcoming draft class.

On this first play, Arizona State is playing an in-divisional game against the UCLA Bruins. The Sun Devils are looking to put the ball in the end zone, so who do they look to? You already know. Harry, lined up on the top of the screen, gets himself open in the back of the end zone behind the defense — and he gets both feet in bounds!


This next clip is Harry doing things that cannot be taught. The 6-foot-4 target simply knows how to go up and get the football, and he displays his special ability to do just that on his this poor Oregon Ducks defender — on a fourth down, nonetheless! He finished the game with a modest stat-line of 7/170/1.


This third and final play is, like the one above, self-explanatory. Throw the ball in the area of no. 1, and Harry will find a way to come down with it. He is a playmaker and it shows week-in and week-out. Harry torched N.C. State to the tune of nine catches for 142 yards and a score.

Two Traits

• Elite size
• Strong hands

One Sentence


N’Keal Harry is not going to blow you away with elite speed, but his ideal 6-foot-4 frame, strong hands, and playmaking ability all give him a chance to become the best wide receiver prospect in this draft class before it is all said and done.


*All stats gathered from sports-reference.com

• NFL Draft prospect to know: TCU’s Ben Banogu

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you never can tell how a guy will translate to the NFL until he's drafted and plays.Means very little right now. I will say this,you can't coach size and naturally good hands.