College Football Week 5 – Saturday Scouting: Jarrett Patterson (C, Notre Dame) and games to watch

Scouting one of the best centers in the country

Good morning New York Giants fans!

Happy Saturday and welcome to Week 5 of the college football season. Last week we took a look at one of the top guards in the upcoming draft with the Giants’ interior offensive line issues in mind. With the news that Nick Gates’ injury could be career threatening, we had to stay on the offensive line.

This week we’re looking at one of the top center prospects in the country in Notre Dame center Jarrett Patterson. Patterson isn’t the massive, mauling lineman the Giants have favored in recent years, but he is an athletic, fundamentally sound, and “pro ready” offensive lineman.

We also have a solid slate of games this week, featuring a number of great matchups against ranked opponents.

Prospect spotlight: Jarrett Patterson, OC, Notre Dame

Background

Jarrett Patterson came to Notre Dame as four-star offensive tackle recruit and part of a talented 2018 recruiting class. Though he ultimately redshirted his freshman season, it didn’t take long for Patterson to find his way onto the field.

In 2019, the Notre Dame coaching staff decided to transition Patterson from offensive tackle to center, and he quickly became a stalwart. He started all 13 games at center as a red-shirt freshman and has excelled at the position ever since. Listed at 6-foot-4, 305 pounds, Patterson doesn’t have exceptional size, but he more than makes up for that with very good athleticism and technique.

He is quick out of his stance, easily getting the ball snapped and his hands on the opposing defensive tackle. Patterson plays with good leverage, keeping a wide base, his hips and pads low, and seeking inside leverage with his hands. As we should expect from a converted tackle, Patterson is an easy mover on the inside. He is easily able to adjust and cut off defenders’ angles into the backfield, as well as picking up stunts and twists. His athleticism also makes him an effective reach blocker, a technique which can give less athletic interior linemen trouble executing.

Patterson is at his best in zone blocking schemes, where his movement skills and football IQ can shine, but he is also a capable pulling center in man-gap schemes.

Patterson also shows a keen football mind and great awareness. He quickly identifies games along the defensive front, pressure packages, and delayed blitzes. Likewise, he understands his limitations as a blocker and uses his athleticism and technique to compensate. He frequently makes great use of half-man leverage to defeat defensive tackles who can outweigh him by 30 or 50 pounds.

And while he might not be a steamroller of an interior offensive lineman, he shows plenty of competitive toughness. Patterson is constantly looking for work and makes a point of sustaining his blocks through the echo of the whistle.

Pros

• Very athletic blocker.
• Stout and dependable in pass pro
• Good anchor – Wide base, plays with good leverage
• Moves well
• Solid awareness
• Looks for work
• Good hand usage
• Makes good use of half-man leverage
• Good reach blocker
• Capable pulling center

Cons

• Not truly scheme diverse – best in a zone blocking scheme
• Blocks can be inaccurate in space

Games to watch

(8) Arkansas at (2) Georgia

ESPN – noon

I don’t know if the CFB schedule makers anticipated it, but it’s always nice to have a heavyweight matchup as one of the first games of the day.

The big question here is whether Arkansas wide receiver Treylon Burks will play after he was spotted in a walking boot after the Razorbacks’ win over Texas A&M last week. Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said that Burks should be good to go for this game, and they have to hope so. Burks already has 19 catches for 373 yards and 2 touchdowns this year, including a mammoth 6 catch, 167 yard, 1 td game last week.

As far as Georgia is concerned, they’re firmly entrenched as one of the teams where my best advice is to just enjoy the game. They are stacked with NFL talent on both sides of the ball, so sit back and take note of any player who particularly shines.

Players to watch

Arkansas

• Treylon Burks (WR)
• Ricky Stromberg (OC)
• Myron Cunningham (OT)
• Ty Clary (OG)
• Jalen Catalon (S)

Georgia

• J.T. Daniels (QB)
• Jaramee Salyer (OG)
• Darnell Washington (TE)
• Derion Kendrick (CB)
• Adam Anderson (EDGE)
• Jordan Davis (iDL)
• Nakobe Dean (LB)
• Nolan Smith (LB)
• Tykee Smith (S)

(7) Cincinnati at (9) Notre Dame

NBC – 2:30 p.m.

The most surprising top-10 team in the country? That has to be the Cincinnati Bearcats.

I kinda hate that this game is at 2:30 and not 3:30, because we can’t not watch this showdown, but I also don’t want to miss the end of the Arkansas-Georgia game. But that’s what the “recall” button on the remote is for.

We’ll obviously be watching Notre Dame center Jarrett Patterson (profiled above), as well as safety Kyle Hamilton.

But Cincinnati definitely players of their own worth watching.

The most obvious is Desmond Ridder, who looks to be one of the top QBs in the upcoming draft. Ridder is a big red-shirt senior with plenty of athleticism and a live arm. He needs to play with more consistency and precision, but he has the tools teams look for in a modern QB. Cornerback Ahmad Gardner looks like a first round pick, with length, athleticism, versatility, and physicality to be a starting NFL cornerback.

Players to watch

Cincinnati

• Desmond Ridder (QB)
• Ahmad Gardners (CB)
• Myjai Sanders (EDGE)
• Josh Whyle (TE)
• Alec Pierce (WR)
• Jerome Ford (RB)

Notre Dame

• Kyle Hamilton (S)
• Kyren Williams (RB)
• Jarrett Patterson (OC)
• Isaiah Foskey (DL)
• Jayson Ademilola (iDL)

(21) Baylor at (19) Oklahoma State

ESPN2 – 7:00 p.m.

At first blush, the primetime game to highlight is Auburn at LSU. But we’ve already talked about Auburn this year and LSU cornerback Derek Stingley seems unlikely to play (as of this writing).

But it’s not a terrible thing when you default to a ranked matchup between conference rivals.

Unfortunately, Oklahoma State lost EDGE Trace Ford to a torn ACL, as he probably would have been the player to watch in this game. Instead we might want to keep an eye on the battles in the trenches. In particular, Oklahoma State interior linemen Josh Sills and Danny Godlevske will have to contend with 350 pound LSU transfer nose tackle Siaki Ika as they try to open holes for RB Dezmon Jackson.

This game should also feature some interesting second-level players in Baylor LB Terrel Bernard and S/LB Jalen Pitre, as well was OSU LB Malcolm Rodriguez and S Tre Sterling.

Players to watch

Baylor

• Xavier Newman-Johnson (iOL)
• Siaki Ika (iDL)
• Terrel Bernard (LB)
• Jalen Pitre (S/LB)
• JT Woods (S)

Oklahoma State

• Dezmon Jackson (RB)
• Josh Sills (iOL)
• Danny Godlevske (OC)
• Malcolm Rodriguez (LB)
• Tre Sterling (S)
• Kolby Harvey-Peel (S)

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