The NFL draft is coming up in a few days, and it is packed with talent. Four the first time in a while, the UNLV Rebels have some prospects that could be drafted this year. The last player drafted out of UNLV was guard Joe Hawley, who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2010 draft by the Atlanta Falcons.
Javin White Safety
Javin White is versatile; for the Rebels, he lined up at linebacker, safety, and cornerback this season. White is 6’2 211 pounds, with good speed and tackling ability.
White played four years at UNLV. He has played safety and linebacker in his time as a Rebel. In his senior year at UNLV, White showed off his versatility with 1.5 sacks, 8.5 tackles for a loss, three interceptions, and 11 pass breakups.
Javin White will probably be a day three guy. White will be a developmental project at safety, but with his speed and tackling ability he will be able to contribute on special teams right away. White is one of my sleepers in this draft; i think he will develop to be a quality NFL player.
Gabe McCoy LB
Gabe McCoy is a versatile linebacker who would be suitable as a weakside linebacker. He has good speed at the linebacker position. As senior, McCoy had 32 tackles, eight tackles for a loss, and two sacks. McCoy will need to work on his game to be a quality player at the NFL level.
Justin Polu G
Polu has definite NFL size at 6’5 335; he is strong and athletic for his size. Polu’s strong point is his run blocking, but he is also effective in the pass blocking game. He tends to struggle with the quicker pass rushers.
Polu was a four-year starter as a Rebel and made Honorable Mention All-Mountain West in his last two seasons. Polu would be outstanding, and in power run games schemes but could be successful in zone schemes as well because of his quickness. The one thing Polu needs to do is fine-tune his fundamentals at the next level.
Jericho Flowers CB
Jericho Flowers, like White, was one of the Rebel’s best players on defense. As a senior, he had 12 passes defended and four interceptions. Flowers is an athletic, scrappy cornerback who will battle. He is ballhawk like corner who has a nose for the ball, but he is undersized at 5-10 180 lbs.
Even at his size, Flowers will step up and make a tackle. At Flowers size, he projects to be a slot corner on the NFL level.
Rayshad Jackson OLB
Rayshad Jackson is a very physical linebacker who is outstanding against the run; he transferred to UNLV from Florida. In 2019 at UNLV, Jackson racked up 99 tackles and 14 tackles for loss. Jackson was also decent against the pass; he had four passes defended as well.
Jackson is a strong side linebacker who has no problem taking on an offensive lineman. The UNLV linebacker would be a good fit in 4-3 defense looking for an outside strong side linebacker for depth and development.
