The Miami Hurricanes pulled off the upset against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs. They dominated in the trenches. It is not a coincidence that is where some of the best prospects in this game reside.
Rueben Bain Jr. has been flat-out dominant in the first two games of the playoffs. He has 16 total pressures and 4 sacks in those two games. Bain isn’t just a pass rush specialist either. At 277 pounds, he is a monster against the run. There is a lot of discourse about his short arms for the next level, the tape says don’t overthink this one. Bain is a top 5 talent in this upcoming class.
If he falls to pick 10, the Bengals should absolutely sprint to the podium to make the selection.
Bain’s teammate Akheem Mesidor has been just as dominant through two games. Mesidor is unlikely to be a first round draft selection though for a couple of reasons. One being is that he has an extensive injury history. The majority of those issues have been recurring problems with his feet. Due to those injuries, Mesidor is going to be a 25-year-old rookie. He is still a tremendous prospect based on his flat-out dominance in the trenches this season. The age and injuries will likely drop him to being a day two draft selection. Someone will end up with a dominant pass rusher.
The Bengals could use some help on the interior defensive line when it comes to getting pressure on the quarterback. This game should feature a player for each team who can do so. Ahmad Moten Sr. left the game versus Ohio State injured this week.
Hopefully, he will be healthy enough to play on Thursday night. Moten has been one of the better interior pass rushers this season. He has over a 20% win rate on true pass sets during the season with 4.5 sacks from the interior defensive line.
For Ole Miss, they have the mammoth Zxavian Harris at defensive tackle. Harris is listed at around 6’8” and 330 pounds. He uses that size to clog rushing lanes, bat down field goals and extra points, and has some surprising juice as a pass rusher at that size. Harris is a player that should be on the Bengals’ radar for the mid-rounds in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Miami’s Keionte Scott would be an excellent addition to play slot cornerback for the Bengals. He has versatility to play in several spots, is a physical tackler in run support, and had the play of the game interception against the Buckeyes. Scott has been critical in both of Miami’s playoff wins so far, and I expect that to continue for them on Thursday.
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