The SEC is making plenty of noise this week at the Senior Bowl, as 22 players are representing 10 of the 14 member shools in Mobile, Ala.

Alabama, the defending national champion, naturally leads the conference with five participants. A handful of other programs have multiple attendees: Georgia (four), Arkansas (three), LSU (three) and Missouri (two). Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State and South Carolina have one alumnus each suiting up for the South team.

Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt were shut out this year.

However, there are several other prospects from the league with a legitimate chance of being drafted who did not receive an invitation for one reason or another. While the Senior Bowl is indeed an all-star game — college football’s most prestigious, as a matter of fact — getting an opportunity to practice in front of and interview with NFL scouts, coaches and GMs is much more important than the game itself.

Here are five players in particular who should be getting snaps Saturday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium but will be forced to watch from home instead.

Ole Miss S Trae Elston

A former three-star recruit from Oxford (Ala.) High School, the 5-foot-11, 195-pounder recorded 70 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 4 interceptions, 14 pass breakups and 14 passes defensed this past season for the Rebels.

According to CBSSports.com, Elston is the No. 9 strong safety available and projected to go in Round 6 or 7.

“Elston entered the year graded as a street free agent in large part due to poor size/speed numbers, but his instincts and playmaking ability could help him capture a spot in the late rounds for a team needing a ninth defensive back/special teams player.” — Tony Pauline, TFY Draft Insider

The four safeties on the South team are Middle Tennessee’s Kevin Byard, Duke’s Jeremy Cash, Maryland’s Sean Davis and William & Mary’s DeAndre Houston-Carson. Cash is considered the top strong safety in the draft — probably a second-round pick. Houston-Carson is a quality free safety prospect and worthy of a selection in Round 3.

Byard and Davis, however, don’t have discernibly higher grades than Elston.

Ole Miss CB Mike Hilton

A former three-star recruit from Tyrone (Ga.) Sandy Creek High School, the 5-foot-9, 184-pounder registered 70 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 13 pass breakups, 15 passes defensed, 1 quarterback hit and 1 forced fumble this past season for the Rebels.

According to CBSSports.com, Hilton is the No. 25 cornerback available and projected to go in Round 5 or 6.

“Hilton, the 2015 recipient of the Chucky Mullins Courage Award, earned at least one start at every position in the defensive secondary in his Ole Miss career. He appeared in 49 games, logging 226 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, 4 forced fumbles, 26 pass break-ups and 6 interceptions. Hilton was named to the All-SEC second team, was a Jim Thorpe Award semifinalist and was named Ole Miss’ Most Valuable Senior by the Jackson Touchdown Club.” — Ole Miss Sports

The five corners on the South team are Samford’s James Bradberry, Southeast Louisiana’s Harlan Miller, Alabama’s Cyrus Jones, Auburn’s Jonathan Jones and LSU’s Jalen Mills — three SEC alums among them. Mills is actually viewed as a safety by most draftniks, and a good one at that, probably a second- or third-round choice. Miller and Cyrus Jones look like fourth-rounders, with Jones aided by his skills as a return man.

But with Jonathan Jones slated for Round 6 and Bradberry a candidate for Round 7, either could have been bumped to make room for Hilton.

Alabama DE D.J. Pettway

A former four-star recruit from Pensacola (Fla.) Catholic High School, the 6-foot-2, 270-pounder was credited with 18 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 pass breakups, 2 passes defensed, 2 quarterback hits and 2 blocked kicks this past season for the Crimson Tide.

According to CBSSports.com, Pettway is the No. 15 defensive end available and projected to go in Round 4 or 5.

“While Pettway has been primarily a backup and rotational player the last two years, he made several big plays (in the national championship game) against Clemson. He had a tackle for a loss, the blocked field goal and two pass deflections.” — Matt Zenitz, AL.com

The seven defensive ends on the South team are BYU’s Bronson Kaufusi, Virginia Tech’s Dadi Nicolas, Baylor’s Shawn Oakman, Louisville’s Sheldon Rankins, Alabama teammate Jarran Reed, Eastern Kentucky’s Noah Spence and Oklahoma’s Charles Tapper. Kaufusi, Oakman and Tapper seem like second, third- or fourth-round choices.

Rankins and Reed are tackle prospects at the next level. Both are in the mix for Round 1, too. Spence and Nicolas are most likely outside linebackers in the NFL, with Spence a potential first-rounder and Nicolas a fifth-rounder or so.

With so many players classified at “defensive end” despite fitting best elsewhere — plus five names from ‘Bama on the invite list already — Pettway appears to have simply been a victim of the numbers.

Vanderbilt TE Steven Scheu

A former three-star recruit from Evansville (Ind.) Reitz Memorial High School, the 6-foot-5, 253-pounder caught 27 passes for 240 yards and 1 touchdown this past season for the Commodores.

According to CBSSports.com, Scheu is the No. 15 tight end available and projected to go in Round 7.

“He’s quick and agile enough to gain a quick release off the line of scrimmage and is a massive target. Scheu’s best attribute may be his soft hands and body control as a receiver. Sound, detailed route-runner with the flexibility to make tough catches look easy. Due to his height, long arms and flexibility, Scheu offers a huge catch radius and he shows impressive hand-eye coordination to make touch catches outside of his frame.” — Dane Brugler, CBSSports.com

The three tight ends on the South team are South Carolina’s Jerell Adams, Arkansas State’s Darion Griswold and Kansas State’s Glenn Gronkowski. Adams is believed to be a high-upside candidate for Round 4 or 5. Gronkowski is listed as the top fullback prospect in the draft by most services, although he’s getting consideration at tight end since older brother Rob Gronkowski is an All-Pro at that spot.

Griswold, on the other hand, is an undrafted free agent at best and has no business being in Mobile ahead of Scheu, who was handicapped by poor quarterback play in Nashville.

Auburn WR D’haquille Williams

A great high school player and an otherworldly performer at the JUCO ranks, the 6-foot-2, 224-pounder was dismissed from the Tigers on Oct. 6 for an undisclosed violation of team rules.

It was later reported that Williams was the instigator of a nasty bar fight. He finished his Auburn career with 57 receptions for 877 yards and 6 touchdowns — not to mention a lot of what-ifs — in 15 games.

According to CBSSports.com, Williams is the No. 33 receiver available and projected to go in Round 7. But at one point, ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper said Williams was “the elite guy” at the position leading up to the 2016 draft. To say the least, his character has been questioned.

“For us, it’s just tough for us to take players that are not in good standing or dismissed from their college team because, first and foremost, the Reese’s Senior Bowl is still a college all-star game. But it also doubles as a pre-draft event.” — Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage, courtesy of AL.com

Even if Williams has more ability than any of the six wideouts on the South team, including Georgia’s Malcolm Mitchell, it doesn’t sound as if a trip to Mobile was ever on the table.