Five lesser-hyped Pac-12 players with strong NFL draft grades

Not surprisingly, the early 2023 NFL mock drafts have been full of players such as Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, Crimson Tide linebacker Will Anderson and Georgia defensive lineman Jalen Carter.

But there are plenty of other top prospects who aren’t getting much, if any, love in those early mock drafts and top prospect lists. To help get you up to speed, On3 will go conference-by-conference and identify some lesser-hyped NFL draft prospects who currently have early-round grades from scouts.

Today, we look at five players from the Pac-12. We already detailed six such players from the SEC, five from the Big 12, six from the Big Ten and five from the ACC. The players are listed alphabetically.

Oregon junior DL Brandon Dorlus

The buzz: Brandon Dorlus was third on the Ducks last season, behind New York Giants first-round draft pick Kayvon Thibodeaux and star LB Noah Sewell, with seven tackles for loss. He also had 25 tackles and 2.5 sacks. One of the scouting services used by NFL teams has Dorlus (6 feet 3, 289 pounds) with a Day 2 draft grade.

Oregon sophomore CB Christian Gonzalez

The buzz: Christian Gonzalez, a transfer from Colorado, is expected to be one of Oregon’s top players. Gonzalez (6-2, 200) was a starter at Colorado in each of the past two seasons; he was an honorable mention All-Pac 12 selection in 2021. Gonzalez, heading into his third college season, already is on the radar for some scouts as a potential early-round player.

Stanford senior WR Elijah Higgins

The buzz: Stanford has at least three players with a shot at going in the early rounds of next year’s draft – TE Benjamin Yurosek, CB Kyu Blu Kelly and Elijah Higgins. After posting just 15 catches in his first two seasons with the Cardinal, Higgins (6-3, 235) had a team-high 44 catches for 502 yards and four touchdowns last season. The NFL feedback gathered by On3 on Higgins has been in the Day 2 range.

UCLA senior LB Darius Muasau

The buzz: Darius Muasau, a Hawaii transfer, was a first-team All-Mountain West selection in each of the past two seasons. In 22 games for the Rainbow Warriors the last two years, Muasau (6-1, 230) had 213 tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks. He tied for fourth nationally last season with five forced fumbles. One scout mentioned Muasau as an early Day 3 type of player.

Oregon State junior TE Luke Musgrave

The buzz: Luke Musgrave had just 12 catches and no touchdowns through Oregon State’s first 11 games last season, but he ended the season on a strong note with a combined 10 catches, 129 yards and a touchdown against Oregon and Utah State. Scouts view Musgrave (6-6, 250) as a Day 2 possibility. Musgrave is the nephew of current California OC and longtime NFL assistant Bill Musgrave.