2026 college football players to watch in Week 1 for the NY Giants

Happy Saturday and welcome to Week 1 of the 2026 College Football Season. We're actually already into the action of the 2026 college season, with Week 0 giving us some good games and surprising outcomes. But the real meat of the season starts today, and we have a full slate of honest-to-goodness football action in store. So grab some snacks, pull up a seat, and let's enjoy.

As usual, we'll be viewing the college game through the lens of the NFL Draft and focusing on games featuring prospects that could appeal to the Giants. I want to take that a step further this year and focus on prospects at positions of perceived need for the Giants. Right now, the positions I'm concentrating on are:

Of course, we'll be updating our focus as the Giants' season progresses. Needs can and will change as we wind our way through the season, with players stepping up or falling short of expectations. We'll also get a much better idea of what the Giants' offensive and defensive schemes look like, and what kinds of players they want.

Ordinarily, this game wouldn't draw much attention, though people will be turning in for Arch Manning. I don't really expect it to be much of a competition, though I think Texas struggling would raise some red flags.

Instead, I want to shine a light on a Texas wide receiver we may want to follow throughout the year. No, not Cam Coleman. If the Giants are in a position to draft Coleman, something has gone terribly wrong with either the Giants or Coleman.

I want to point out Texas' other receiver who's garnering first round buzz: Ryan Wingo. Wingo is a big-bodied receiver at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds with a huge catch radius as well as impressive body control and ball skills. Wingo also has the potential to be a deep threat on the outside, with a background in track and (reported) 4.4 speed.

As with a lot of the positions we'll be focusing on this year, the Giants have real questions at wide receiver going forward. We don't know what the future holds for Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin, or Odell Beckham Jr. Likewise, we don't know if Malachi Fields will live up to his training camp hype once teams start game planning for the Giants' offense.

Wide receiver could be fine, or it could be a real issue heading into the 2027 off-season.

Dashawn Spears, S, LSU / Ashton Hampton, CB, Clemson

I'm going to save some time and use one game to highlight two players — That's the advantage of having two big programs play each other. This is the marquee game of the weekend, with a ton of drama and storylines. Will Clemson recover after a disastrous 2025 campaign or will Dabo be on the hot seat? What will LSU look like under Lane Kiffin?

It's early, but it feels like this game could determine if either has a shot at the College Football Playoffs.

The Giants might be fine, or even good, in the secondary for 2026. But they also have long term questions that they'll need to answer.

Starting with the cornerback position, Deonte Banks and Greg Newsome II are on one-year deals. Paulson Adebo, meanwhile, could be a cap casualty. Likewise, the team will need to make a decision on SLOT/STAR Dru Phillips. That's where Clemson cornerback Ashton Hampton comes in.

Hampton has (potential) first-round traits as a big and long corner at roughly 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, and he plays up to his size. He also appears to have foot quickness and fluidity to stick in phase with receivers as a man corner. The Giants likely want to run an aggressive match quarters system and Hampton could be a player to watch if they feel the need to add a "number one" corner.

Flipping over to the LSU side of things we have Dashawn Spears. Spears is (likewise) a big safety at roughly 6-foot-3, 210 pounds. In fact, Spears looks like the kind of player who teams might have encouraged to grow into a WILL linebacker in an earlier era. Now, however, he has a niche waiting as a downhill safety who's a plus run defender while also having solid instincts and ball skills.

The Giants also have a decision to make on Tyler Nubin while Ar'Darius Washington and Jason Pinnock are on one-year deals.

One thing to keep in mind is that the "Ravens 2.0" school of defense loves to have a big and versatile safeties (such as Kyle Hamilton, Nick Emmanwori, and Derwin James) to change looks and dictate to the offense.

This game isn't until Sunday night, taking advantage of the break between the NFL's preseason and regular season. But it's a good thing that it has some room on the schedule to shine — after all, this is the only game between ranked teams on the schedule this week.

The big story of the game will be the return of Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who fought to return to college football rather than go to the NFL. Chambliss is a much more advanced quarterback than many give him credit, and he should be a real factor in the 2027 Draft.

But for our purposes, I want to look to the defensive side of the ball and defensive tackle Will Echoles.

Echoles is a good-sized defensive tackle at roughly 6-foot-3, 315 pounds with great thickness in his upper and lower halves. He has traits and tools for days with obvious power, great explosiveness, and surprising movement skills for a big man. That said, he's also only just scratching the surface of what he can become at just 20 years old (his birthday is August 7th).

Echoles needs to refine his technique as his body continues to mature, but he's already a difference maker on the Ole Miss defensive line. He's a stout run defender who plays with great strength and motor, as well as a disruptor in the passing game. He finished last year with 5.0 sacks and also understands when to get his hands up to clog passing lanes if he can't get to the QB.

This looks like a great year for defensive tackles, and Echoles could earn a place among the best in the class.