It has not been a terrific year for Washington Huskies quarterback Jake Locker.
After turning down the opportunity to usurp Sam Bradford as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, Locker returned to Washington for his senior season facing huge expectations. The Huskies are 5-6, Locker has seen statistical slips in critical areas (most notably completion percentage), and the rising star of Stanford's Andrew Luck makes it a virtual certainty that Locker won't be the first overall pick next April. He might not even sneak into the Top 10.
Still, it's not all bad. Locker is an incredibly gifted athlete, and that natural talent is still likely to get him drafted in the first round of next April's NFL Draft. You can do a lot worse in life than being a first-round draft pick in the NFL.
Locker and Washington will wrap up their regular season schedule tonight when they take on rival Washington State. It's your last chance to do a little couch scouting of Locker, whose season, while disappointing, has hardly been awful. You can catch this game on Versus at 7:00 PM.
Today's viewing schedule - which obviously includes much more important games - lies after the jump.
#2 Oregon vs. Oregon State: 3:30 PM, ABC
Oregon needs one more win to cruise into the national title game, while Oregon State, at 5-6, seeks one more win to become bowl eligible. Oregon is a really fun team to watch, but if there's one NFL Draft prospect you need to be paying attention to in this contest, it's Oregon State senior defensive tackle Stephen Paea. With 42 tackles and six sacks this season, the disruptive 6'1", 311-pound Paea has cemented himself as a first-round pick.
#1 Auburn vs. #19 South Carolina - 4:00 PM, CBS
The SEC Championship game features the best player in the amateur ranks, Auburn QB Cameron Newton, as well as the best true freshman in the amateur ranks, South Carolina RB Marcus Lattimore. It's highly likely that we'll get to see Newton in the national championship game, but this is a great opportunity to do a little evaluating on Newton as a passer.
#21 Florida State vs. #15 Virginia Tech - 7:45 PM, ESPN
The ACC Championship game probably won't be all that exciting (apologies, FSU and VT fans/alumni). It's been a slightly disappointing senior season for Christian Ponder, as well, but leading FSU to an ACC championship after going just 4-5 as the starter in 2009 would look mighty impressive on his résumé.
#9 Oklahoma vs. #13 Nebraska - 8:00 PM, ABC
The Big 12 Championship game features perhaps the best individual matchup of the day, with top-flight Huskers cornerback Prince Amukamara charged with covering ultra-productive junior receiver Ryan Broyles. Broyles has flown under the radar all season; Amukamara has not. This should be a really fun matchup to keep track of.