The 2025 college football season is over, but all-star bowls will be occurring over the next few weeks. The most prominent of these bowls are the Hula Bowl, the American Bowl, the East-West Shrine Bowl, and the Senior Bowl. This post will focus on the Senior Bowl.
These events are used primarily as camps with a game at the end. Invited players get officially measured and weighed upon checking in. Then, there are a few days of practice with NFL coaches. The practice time for players is really at the heart of these events.
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This is due to the time players and coaches can spend together honing their craft collaboratively. It gives players a chance to be evaluated by coaches who know the NFL game. What better way to understand where and how to improve than to hear it from the source? Receiving this feedback can give the players an edge as they head into their training for the NFL Combine or their respective Pro Day.
Finally, this gives players a chance to stand out. If a player was overshadowed on his team by other talented individuals, wasn’t featured in his offense, or, in the case of those in this article, played in a Group of 5 conference, they have the opportunity to open the eyes of the coaches with their play and jump onto the radar before draft time. While the combine and pro days are also good opportunities for this, the more chances coaches have to see one play and compete, the better position they put themselves in.
This year, one lone player from the Mountain West is participating in the Senior Bowl. Below, we will provide a brief description of each player and illustrate what kind of showing they need to improve their draft stock.
Note: Sometimes players are not on initial rosters and pop up during practices or the game. Due to this, some players may be on the roster but are not featured here. We relied on player or team accounts to announce their participation. They will be featured in the stock report following the game.
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East-West Shrine Bowl Schedule:
Saturday, January 31, 2026
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1:30 pm (Central time) The NFL Network
The Players:
OL Kage Casey (Boise State)
A former three-star out of Clackamas, Oregon, Kage Casey usurped most reasonable expectations during his tenure in Boise. As a redshirt freshman, he started 14 games at left tackle and never relinquished the role as the preeminent anchor of the offense for the rest of his collegiate career. After the 2024 season, Casey was bestowed numerous recognitions from a bevy of media outlets, including The Athletic, Phil Steele, College Football Network, and Sports Illustrated. It may seem like a shock on the surface that he was collectively celebrated despite still being just a sophomore, but Pro Football Focus gushed over him as they ranked the left tackle 3rd in the country at pass blocking (among fellow tackles), 15th in overall offense, and 7th in blocking. The hype around Casey was drawn to a simmer this year due to Boise State’s up-and-down season, but with his floor being an early day three pick in the NFL Draft, it feels as though with an impressive Senior Bowl performance and a solid NFL Combine outing, he could climb into the early stages of the 3rd or, potentially, 2nd round. The biggest nitpick that some have is that he is a bit rigid and stiff in the lower half of his body when dealing with defenders on the edge. But as a relatively polished prospect, that shouldn’t serve as a dealbreaker for most general managers and coaches.
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DB Chris Johnson (San Diego State)
Chris Johnson was named a second-team All-America by the Sporting News for his accomplishments during the 2025 season. This is in addition to first-team selection by Pro Football Focus, Bleacher Report, and Sports Info Solutions. He also has additional second-team status from Pro Football and Sports Network.
Johnson enjoyed a stellar season with the Aztecs, totaling 49 tackles (36 solo), four interceptions with 146 return yards and two touchdowns, nine pass breakups, three tackles for loss, two quarterback hurries, and a forced fumble. He was also a semi-finalist for the Jim Thorpe award, given annually to the best defensive back in the country. He was also the Mountain West co-defensive player of the year. Johnson helped lead the Aztecs to an overall 9-4 record, a sharp improvement over last season’s 3-9 mark. The 6-0, 195 senior is one of the best cornerbacks in the country and is considered a draft pick for a team looking for a zone-based defender with high instincts for quickly moving to the ball. He will get a chance to showcase his talents in Mobile, Alabama.
Note: The weaknesses or questions describing each player below aren’t necessarily the views of the contributors or the site, but rather what could be questions or concerns NFL scouts, talent evaluators, or the media have about them, which are still worth discussing, as they can have ramifications.
