These are certainly uncertain times. That fact is reflected in the daily “will they or won’t they” surrounding college football’s status for the fall. While some conferences such as the Ivy League, the Big Sky, the Mountain West, the MAC and the Missouri Valley Football Conference have delayed seasons until the fall, rumors abound about the Power 5 conferences. On Monday it was first reported that the Big Ten was about to push the fall season into the spring, but later in the day contradictory reporting indicated that no decisions had been made and if anything another delay to the start of football was in the works.

All this uncertainty has crept into the draft evaluation world. In normal times, #DraftTwitter would be abuzz with discussions about the top players at each position, potential risers and fallers, and the daily mock drafts posted in various corners of the internet. Instead we are left to wonder about how this draft cycle might look.

Interestingly enough, a player that fit the riser mold from last year’s draft, rising all the way to the first overall selection, touched off a discussion after posting this on social media:

I feel for all college athletes right now. I hope their voices are heard by the decision makers. If this happened a year ago I may be looking for a job right now.

— Joey Burrow (@JoeyB) August 10, 2020

Burrow is exactly right. This time last season, he was viewed as a fringe draftable selection, even though some were in his corner. Without his final year at LSU, he never would have blossomed into the guy coming off the board with the first pick in the draft.

This spurred Thor Nystrom, who covers football for Rotoworld, to ask this question on social media:

Who’s the 2021 NFL Draft prospect with the most to lose by the season not being played?

— Thor Nystrom (@thorku) August 10, 2020

Here are some potential answers to that question.

Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

We begin with the quarterback position, which has generated a number of draft risers over the past few cycles. Before Burrow there was Kyler Murray, and Baker Mayfield, and Mitchell Trubisky, and Patrick Mahomes, and Robert Griffin III, and the list goes on. Because of the importance of the position, and the fact that some college quarterbacks have to wait their turn to start, this position provides many players the chance to turn a solid season into the rocketship up the board.

Trey Lance faces a difficult proposition at the moment. A rising redshirt sophomore, Lance was lumped in with quarterbacks such as Justin Fields and Trevor Lawrence immediately upon the completion of the 2020 NFL Draft, and with good reason. In his first year as a starter he threw for 28 touchdowns without a single interception, and led the Bison to a third-straight FCS National Championship, following in the wake of QBs such as Carson Wentz and Easton Stick before him.

That had many, including Mel Kiper Jr., the godfather of draft coverage, to put Lance atop their “way too early” rankings back in early May. With a solid redshirt sophomore season, could Lance decide to enter the draft? He would be tested early, with a game at Oregon to start the year.

But now? The MVFC pushed their season to the spring, and Lance faces a dilemma. Does he opt-out of the season and prepare for the draft now, hoping one good year of film is enough? Does he try and transfer? There are some good options, but what happens if those schools do not have football in the fall? Or does he simply remain at NDSU and look to the 2020 spring season, and then enter the draft for 2021?

Lance was in a great position entering this fall. Now he has some decisions to make.