Insider notes on Pittsburgh & SMU: Draft grades for top prospects ft. Ryan Baer, T.J. Harden, and more

The Pittsburgh Panthers are a solid, middle-of-the-road program in the ACC. More times than not they finish the season with a winning record, participate in a minor bowl game and then have several players selected in the draft. After making a late entry into the ACC last summer with terms that are favorable to the conference, SMU promptly went on to play in the College Football Playoff, and big things are expected in 2025.

Pittsburgh Panthers

The Panthers have a long history of placing quality offensive linemen into the NFL Draft, and they could have the best blocker from the program in almost two decades enter next April.

Offensive tackle Ryan Baer is a lineman on the rise. The two-year starter who lined up primarily on the right side has built a buzz for himself inside league circles, with some believing he’ll eventually end up in the first round. Fundamentally sound, he displays terrific run-blocking strength, turns defenders from the action and works to bury them into the turf. Baer moves well on his feet, quickly gets to the second level and seals defenders from the action. He needs to improve his skills in pass protection, specifically his footwork, yet Baer possesses terrific size, growth potential and upside.

Growth potential is something Lyndon Cooper lacks, as the center measures under 6-foot-2, yet he’s incredibly quick, mobile and tough. Cooper possesses great blocking vision, awareness and skill on the second level. He also blocks with terrific fundamentals and could start in the right system on Sundays.

Pittsburgh Prospects
Grade	Rnd	Pos	Full Name	Yr	#
3.85	2nd	T	Ryan Baer	4Jr	70
3.31	6th	C	Lyndon Cooper	5Sr	56
3.28	7th	RB	Desmond Reid	4Sr	0
3.19	FA	T	Jeff Persi	5Sr	78
3.11	FA	T	Jackson Brown	4Jr	77
3.02	FA	TE	Jake Overman	4Jr	81

SMU Mustangs

The Mustangs made an impact their first season in the ACC, reaching the conference title game then being selected for the 12 team College Football Playoff. Yet despite that, they had just a pair of players selected in the late rounds. The quantity and quality are slightly better looking towards 2026, though the board is all Day 3 prospects.

After a disappointing season at UCLA, running back T.J. Harden transferred to SMU, where he’ll now compete for playing time. Harden is a nice-sized back with decent speed and an explosive style. He’s most effective running on the inside and displays the ability to power through defenders or make them miss altogether.

RJ Maryland is a move tight end prospect who shows a lot of athleticism on the field and catches the ball well. He was on his way to a career season last year before being sidelined with a knee injury. He’s a smaller player at the position with decent speed, and he must show no ill effects from the injury this season, which was deemed serious when he went down.

SMU brings in a pair of interesting transfers who started their college careers with the Miami Hurricanes.

Quarterback Tyler Van Dyke was dubbed as a potential first-round pick after his redshirt freshman season before faltering the following two years and transferring to Wisconsin in 2024. He started hot last season before going down with a knee injury in the third game that ended his year. He’s now on the SMU depth chart, yet the team always has an established starter in Kevin Jennings, the redshirt junior who led SMU last season. Unless Jennings is injured or plays terribly, Van Dyke likely won’t see much playing time this year.

Zion Nelson was also a highly rated prospect after two outstanding seasons with the Hurricanes as a freshman and sophomore. Yet a devastating knee injury two games into the 2022 season kept the offensive lineman on the sidelines for the past three years. Little is expected from Nelson this season but given the promise he displayed four years ago, never say never.

SMU Prospects
Grade	Rnd	Pos	Full Name	Yr	#
3.54	4th	RB	T.J. Harden	4Jr	25
3.37	6th	TE	RJ Maryland	4Sr	82
3.35	6th	S	Ahmaad Moses	4Sr	3
3.34	6th	S	Isaiah Nwokobia	4Jr	12
3.06	FA	WR	Jordan Hudson	4Sr	8
3.05	FA	QB	Tyler Van Dyke	5Sr	10
3.03	FA	TE	Matthew Hibner	6Sr	88
2.92	FA	T	Zion Nelson	6Sr	60