If there's another Dak Prescott coming through the college ranks, NFL clubs would be well-advised to snap him up before the fourth round of the draft this time.
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, who is preparing to face Texas Tech star quarterback Patrick Mahomes on Saturday, sees some similarities between Mahomes and the Dallas Cowboys rookie. But he's not so sure Mahomes will be sitting around until the last day of the draft the way Prescott did.
"I think he's a potential first-round pick. He reminds me a lot of Dak Prescott, when we played Dak and Mississippi State when he was younger," Gundy said of Mahomes in his Monday news conference. "The style of play, body, strength, speed, ability to throw in different positions, it reminds me a lot of him."
Gundy had a chance to see Prescott in person during his college days. Prescott was only a sophomore when Oklahoma State defeated Mississippi State, 21-3, in 2013, and didn't even start the game. MSU's Tyler Russell suffered a concussion, and Prescott came off the bench to complete 7 of 17 passes for 89 yards with an interception. Although he wasn't particularly productive against Oklahoma State, it was that game that began Prescott's takeover of the starting role at MSU. Gundy certainly had a chance to watch Prescott develop from afar over the following two years, though the 2013 matchup was the only time Gundy faced him.
As for Mahomes, he's similar in size (6-foot-3, 215 pounds) to Prescott (6-2, 225 at MSU), and has some of the same elusiveness that Prescott used to frustrate pass rushers and extend plays at the college level. And there is certainly no arguing with his production. He should pass the 4,000-yard passing mark for the season against Oklahoma State on Saturday, and has a TD-INT ratio of 31-8. Mahomes is a junior, so it remains to be seen whether he's available for the draft in 2017 or 2018. Underclassmen like Mahomes have until a Jan. 16 deadline to apply for early draft eligibility. As Prescott did, Mahomes will face the same questions about whether or not he can transition to a pro-style offense.
But if he's anything like Prescott, as Gundy suggests, that might not be a problem.
*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread*.
