Montez Sweat, a former Stephenson High School standout, will get a chance to firm up his draft status as a top pick at the NFL scouting combine, which starts Tuesday and runs through Monday in Indianapolis.
Sweat, who started his career at Michigan State before getting suspended and transferring to Mississippi State, is considered one of the top pass rushers in the draft.
“He is tall, long and explosive,” NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said on Monday. “We got a chance to see him up close at the Senior Bowl. He’s got unique ability to be able to bend and (rush the quarterback).”
The 6-foot-6 and 241-pound speed rusher had 19 quarterback sacks over the past two seasons. He is expected to be the first player from Georgia selected in the NFL draft, which will be held April 25-27 in Nashville.
“You can watch the Auburn game and he completely takes it over in terms of abusing that tackle,” said Jeremiah, a former NFL scout. “He’s got big-time get-off and burst. I wish he would get a little bit stronger. In the run game, he can get too high at times and can get pushed around.”
Georgia’s representation of 24 players is tied for third most with California and trails Florida (51) and Texas (31), according to NFL.com. Ohio is next with 20. There are 338 invitees overall.
Here are the bios on the players from Georgia, who’ll participate in the combine:
Bryson Allen-Williams, South Carolina, 6-foot-1, 230 pounds, LB, Cedar Grove, Ellenwood. He was recruited by Steve Spurrier's staff and started right away. A string of injuries stunted his growth. He finished with 176 tackles, 25 tackles for losses, 6.5 sacks and four interceptions over 43 games.
Blace Brown, Troy, 6-0, 186, CB, Cherokee, Canton. Earned All-Sun Belt conference third-team after returning from an ACL injury in the final regular-season game of 2017. Ranked second among active FBS players with 12 career interceptions. His Uncle is former NFL and Georgia running back Herschel Walker, according to his Troy bio.
Austin Bryant, Clemson, 6-6, 280, DE, Thomas County Central, Pavo. Played in Clemson's defensive line rotation his entire career. He finished with 153 tackles, 35 tackles for losses, 20 sacks, 32 quarterback pressures over 1,807 defensive snaps in 51 career games.
Chuma Edoga, USC, 6-3, 303, OL, McEachern, Powder Springs. He started at right tackle for the Trojans the past two seasons. He had a solid senior season and put forth a strong showing at the Senior Bowl as director Jim Nagy named Edgoa as the overall player of the week.
Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State, 6-5, 230, QB, Richmond Hill. Some team looking to create a role like New Orleans did with Taysom Hill may be interested in Fitzgerald. He was a dual-threat quarterback for the Bulldogs.
Terry Godwin, Georgia, 5-11, 185, WR, Callaway, Hogansville. He caught 23 passes for 385 yards and three touchdowns last season for the Bulldogs. He played inside and outside at the East-West Shrine Bowl and was named the offensive most valuable player.
Donnell Greene, Minnesota, 6-7, 320, OL, Kell, Marietta. He played the past three seasons for the Golden Gophers after starting his career at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College. He played in 11 games last season and made 10 starts at left tackle.
Terez Hall, Missouri, 6-2, 230, LB, M.L. King, Lithonia. He had 23.5 tackles for loss over his career as he played weakside linebacker for the Tigers. He played in 36 games and had six sacks and one interception.
Mecole Hardman, 5-11, 183, WR, Georgia, Elbert County. Caught 60 passes for 961 yards and 11 touchdowns over his career. He also had 13 rushes for 97 yards and two touchdowns. He's also a dangerous returner.
Montre Hartage, 6-0, 195, CB, Northwestern, Crisp County, Cordele. Played in 12 games as a senior and made 51 tackles, had 15 pass breakups and two interceptions. He was named first-team All-Big Ten by the media and third-team by the coaches.
Elijah Holyfield, 5-11, 215, RB, Georgia, Woodward Academy, College Park. Played in 27 games over three seasons. Rushed 215 times for 1,340 yards and nine touchdowns. He was one of four permanent captains in 2018.
Mitch Hyatt, 6-5, 310, OL, Clemson, North Gwinnett, Suwanee. He was a four-year starter for the Tigers and two-time All-American. He played a school-record 3,754 snaps over 58 games, including 57 starts. He was a four-time All-ACC selection.
Darryl Johnson, 6-6, 240, DE, North Carolina A&T, Camden County. He was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's defensive player of the year. Johnson is a speed rusher who finished tied for eighth in the nation with 10.5 sacks and ninth with 19 tackles for losses.
Tyler Hall-Jones, 6-3, 306, OL, N.C. State, Stephenson, Stone Mountain. He played left tackle for the Wolfpack, but projects as a guard in the NFL. He was suspended for his role in a post-game fight after the North Carolina game.
Tre Lamar, 6-4, 255, LB, Clemson, Roswell. Completed his Clemson career with 159 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, eight sacks, 11 quarterback pressures, three pass breakups, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception he returned for 43 yards in 998 snaps over 39 games (22 starts).
Jonathan Ledbetter, 6-4, 280, DE, Georgia, Tucker. After a bumpy start to his career in Athens he turned things around and was named a permanent captain as a senior. Ledbetter started 13 of 14 games at defensive end and had 56 total tackles, tops among down linemen and fourth-best among all defenders. He was second on the team in tackles for loss with 6.5.
Jakobi Meyers, 6-2, 203, WR, N. C. State, Arabia Mountain. Converted quarterback who turned into one of the school's top receivers. He caught a single-second school-record 92 passes for 1,047 yards and four touchdowns last season. In 2017, he caught 63 passes for 727 yards and five touchdowns.
Isaac Nauta, 6-4, 240, TE, Georgia, Buford (graduated from IMG Academy, Florida). Played in all 14 games and made 13 starts last season. He was the Bulldogs fourth-leading receiver, with 30 catches for 430 yards and three touchdowns.
Dontavius Russell, 6-3, 320, DT, Auburn, Carrollton. He played in 52 games and made 49 starts for the Tigers. He finished with 154 career tackles. He's a strong run defender who can anchor the defensive line.
Darius Slayton, 6-2, 190, WR, Auburn, Greater Atlanta Christian. He caught 35 passes for 670 yards and five touchdowns last season. He finished his career with 79 catches for 1,605 yards and 11 touchdowns. "Outside guy who does a nice job of getting off the line of scrimmage," Jeremiah said. "Has a nice stutter (step and) release. He does a nice job of adjusting to the ball on his back shoulder."
Credit: KENT D. JOHNSON/AJC
Credit: KENT D. JOHNSON/AJC
Montez Sweat, 6-6, 241, DE, Mississippi State, Stephenson. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper has projected that he'll go fifth overall to Tampa Bay. "Montez Sweat is a pass rusher," Kiper said. "He showed that early on."
D'Andre Walker, 6-3, 245, LB, Georgia, Langston Hughes. He started 13 games and finished with 45 tackles, along with 11.0 tackles for loss, 7.5 quarterback sacks and 14 quarterback pressures.
Ken Webster, 5-11, 194, DB, Mississippi, Stockbridge. He intercepted two passes, had five pass breakups and made 30 tackles for the Rebels last season. He missed all of the 2016 season because of a left knee injury. Combine testing will be important for Webster and his medical examine will be scrutinized. He'll also have to explain his arrest on a shoplifting charge to NFL teams during the interview process.
Rock Ya-Sin, 6-2, 190 Temple, Southwest DeKalb. Started his career at Presbyterian. When the school stopped being a scholarship program, Ya-Sin was looking for a college and Temple coach Geoff Collins signed him after Presbyterian's running backs coach Mitch Hall, who played under Collins at Western Carolina, got him to look at Ya-Sin's tape. He was awarded a coveted single-digit jersey in the summer. Temple awards single-digits to the nine toughest players on the team.
Subscribe to "The Bow Tie Chronicles" podcast with the AJC's D. Orlando Ledbetter on iTunes or on the new AJC sports podcasts page.
