The 2025 college football season is coming to a close, with the remainder of bowl season and the remainder of the College Football Playoff standing as the only games separating us from a long offseason. Then, we’ll wait for the 2026 season to begin in late-August. However, many players are finished playing college football after this season. Whether they’ve exhausted their eligibility, or they’ve decided to go pro early, their collegiate careers have come to an end.
However, for some, it means that their NFL careers are set to begin, with the 2026 NFL Draft set to take place in late-April. While the NFL Scouting Combine and college pro days are the two most notable ways to build up draft stock after the playing season is over, there is another way to do so, and it comes in live game action.
College football all-star games offer these prospects a great opportunity to impress NFL clubs, while going up against other hopeful draftees that those same franchises might also be considering. It’s a way for unheralded players, or players who went to smaller schools to get noticed by NFL scouts, head coaches, general managers, or owners.
There are six all-star games scheduled to follow up the 2025 collegiate season, featuring draft-eligible players trying to make their mark.
FCS Bowl: American Team vs. National Team in Daytona Beach, Florida. Postponed from original date to an unknown later date due to “unforseen circumstances”. Further updates from the bowl will be shared soon.Hula Bowl: Team Aina vs. Team Kai in Orlando, Florida on January 10th at 11:00 a.m. CTTropical Bowl: American Team vs. National Team in Orlando, Florida on January 18th at 10:00 a.m. CTEast-West Shrine Bowl: East Team vs. West Team in Frisco, Texas on January 27th at 7:00 p.m. CTSenior Bowl: American Team vs. National Team in Mobile, Alabama on January 31st at 1:30 p.m. CTHBCU Legacy Bowl: Team Robinson vs. Team Gaither in New Orleans, Louisiana on February 21st at 3:00 p.m. CT
For the Oklahoma Sooners, after having just two players drafted last year in linebacker Danny Stutsman and defensive back Billy Bowman Jr., they’re in position to greatly exceed that number in 2026.
On offense, seniors Jaydn Ott, Jaren Kanak, Deion Burks, Keontez Lewis, Febechi Nwaiwu, Derek Simmons, Will Huggins and Major Melson all have exhausted their collegiate eligibility by playing in more than four games in 2025. Defensively, the same goes for seniors Robert Spears-Jennings, R Mason Thomas, Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton, Marvin Jones Jr. and Kendal Daniels. Many of those players have at least a chance to hear their name called in April, and some have accepted invitations to play in one of the all-star games listed above.
After a run to the College Football Playoff in 2025, the Sooners will have a lot of veteran leadership and production to replace, as they look to make a return CFP trip in 2026. For those veterans that are moving on, the all-star opportunities offer a chance to build up their draft stock, and give them a chance to stick on an NFL roster.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X@Aaron_Gelvin.