These 10 college football defensive stars can enhance their 2025 NFL Draft stock with standout 2024 seasons

The 2024 NFL Draft noticed a file-shattering 23 offensive avid gamers taken within the well-known spherical, including 14 consecutive picks on that aspect of the ball to open April’s event. Five of the head-10 picks had been quarterbacks. Oregon’s Bo Nix made it six total signal-callers off the board within the well-known 32 decisions when the Denver Broncos drafted him 12th overall. 

UCLA edge rusher Laitu Latu needed to lend a hand nearly two hours sooner than the Indianapolis Colts took him off the board at No. 15, breaking the historic creep of utterly different quarterbacks, extensive receivers and offensive linemen. 

While the head of the 2024 cut become stuffed with avid gamers whose predominant arrangement is to rating the football, the 2025 class is highlighted by an elite neighborhood of fellows with the sole cause of forestalling them. Add in what looks cherish a quite outdated neighborhood of quarterbacks and — as of this writing — no superstars (judge Marvin Harrison Jr. level) on the skill positions, 2025 looks to be high-heavy with defenders. 

Loads of avid gamers at every level of defense would possibly per chance well well also salvage into Day 1 picks. Call it the yr of the defender, a resurgence of the normally unheralded unit in football on the least the glitz of 2024. Listed below are some defensive stars that will per chance well also dominate the 2025 NFL Draft. 

James Pearce Jr., EDGE, Tennessee

Snoop on Pearce’s title, because you would possibly per chance per chance also hear it known as first next April. The dilapidated unheralded recruit out of Charlotte, North Carolina has immediate emerged as idea to be one of the well-known absolute most realistic avid gamers in all of college football — no subject utter. He tied for the SEC lead with 10 sacks final season and accumulated successfully over 40 pressures whereas singlehandedly wrecking opposing backfields. Though his 6-foot-5 and 242-pound frame would possibly per chance well well also discover itsy-bitsy in opposition to SEC offensive tackles, Pearce has fake vitality and packs a punch on the purpose of attack. He additionally jumps out of his stance to speed previous offensive linemen and has a deep ranking of walk-fade instruments. If Pearce continues to salvage, NFL groups will seemingly be tripping over themselves in pursuit of his skill. 

Nic Scourton, EDGE, Texas A&M 

Scourton, who ranks as the No. 15 overall participant and No. 1 edge rusher in 247Sports actions’ Switch Rankings, become a huge salvage for first-yr Texas A&M coach Mike Elko. Scourton led the Mountainous Ten with 10 sacks final season whereas starring with Purdue. He had two in opposition to Michigan, which boasted idea to be one of the well-known nation’s absolute most realistic offensive traces all through its fade to a 15-0 season. Scourton registered a minimum of a half sack in eight of 11 appearances and performed the yr with 42 pressures, averaging nearly four per game. At 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds, he comes with an NFL-ready frame. A sturdy season with the Aggies will vault him up NFL Draft boards. 

Deone Walker, DL, Kentucky 

Or no longer it’s roughly freaky how successfully Walker strikes given his colossal frame. A 6-foot-6 and 348-pound behemoth, he’s Kentucky’s absolute most realistic walk rusher despite frequently drawing double groups on the internal. He paced the Wildcats with 7.5 sacks final season and tallied successfully over 50 pressures. That roughly manufacturing from a true nostril form out-kind participant is quite extraordinary, notably when struggling with within the SEC trenches. He’s obviously an efficient hole stuffer and speed-stopper on high of his skill to disrupt. Walker is the overall equipment, and it would possibly per chance per chance per chance no longer private cessation him long to acclimate to the legit level. 

Mason Graham, DL, Michigan 

It didn’t private cessation long for Graham to originate an impact on Michigan’s coaches. He earned a key rotational characteristic as a freshman in 2022 despite the presence of diverse dilapidated avid gamers forward of him and parlayed that staunch into a starting different in 2023. He flourished within the spotlight, ending the yr with 30 generated pressures, 7.5 tackles for loss and three sacks whereas helping the Wolverines their first nationwide title since 1997. 

Walter Nolen, DL, Ole Omit 

Ole Omit struggled in opposition to the speed as soon as in a while final season. In its two losses in opposition to Alabama and Georgia, it gave up a blended 431 yards and 6 touchdowns on the bottom. Nolen will walk a super distance in opposition to fixing that wretchedness. The No. 2 overall prospect within the 2022 class and the No. 3 participant in 247Sports actions’ Switch Rankings, Nolen is a monster in opposition to the speed. He strikes successfully laterally and fills gaps along with his 6-foot-4 frame, clogging working lanes and stopping working backs from getting home. That translated to eight.5 tackles for loss at Texas A&M in 2023. Nolen has suffered through some hurt points within the previous, and he needs to work on consistency sooner than he can hit that next level. However when he’s on, few internal defenders compare. 

Harold Perkins, LB, LSU 

LSU has moved Perkins all over the sphere all over his quite transient collegiate profession. He flourished staunch into a starting characteristic as a freshman, where he performed essentially off the threshold and registered 7.5 sacks. The workers tinkered with him at internal linebacker early within the 2023 season sooner than transferring him wait on toward the dual carriageway of scrimmage. Amid the transition, his manufacturing dropped off a minute. Now he’s wait on within the sphere with the hopes that he can settle in as a playmaker within the course of the sphere. Perkins completely has the athletic traits to flourish as a sideline-to-sideline tackling machine. Or no longer it’s no longer a inappropriate idea to appropriate turn him loose and let him walk after the ball. 

Travis Hunter, ATH, Colorado 

Hunter is an athlete within the purest sense of the discover. He excels at each cornerback and extensive receiver and the return game. The jury is unruffled out on where he’ll win a rental within the NFL but, at worst, Hunter is a ball of clay that can also be molded into appropriate about any characteristic. If groups ponder to make articulate of him as a defensive wait on, no person would possibly per chance well well also fault them. Hunter is a sticky nook with magnificent ball skills resulting from his offensive journey. Though restricted to appropriate 9 video games resulting from hurt final season, he unruffled managed three interceptions and five walk breakups whereas taking part in more snaps than appropriate about any non-quarterback within the nation. He can take care of that load, though he’ll nearly completely settle into one utter within the NFL. 

Will Johnson, CB, Michigan 

A dilapidated high-40 prospect out of Grosse Point, Michigan, Johnson started five video games for the Wolverines in 2022 as a true freshman sooner than entering staunch into a more permanent characteristic final season. He become a fixture on the defense that spearheaded Michigan’s speed to its nationwide title and earned first-team All-American honors after tallying four interceptions and four walk breakups. On high of that, he become named the Defensive MVP of the College Soccer Playoff Nationwide Championship after logging an interception off of 2024 first-spherical capture Michael Penix Jr. to open the second half. The 6-foot-2 Johnson has magnificent dimension at boundary nook and become clocked at 20 miles per hour all over a capture-six return in opposition to Minnesota. He’s additionally a willing tackler, a trait that NFL entrance offices fancy from their cornerbacks. 

Benjamin Morrison, CB, Notre Dame 

Morrison has been idea to be one of Notre Dame’s high defenders from the second he stepped foot on campus. He straight nabbed a starting job in 2022 and earned 247Sports actions Freshman All-American honors after logging six interceptions, which led the Fighting Irish and tied for seventh nationally. He added three more interceptions to his profession total in 2023 whereas additionally main his team with 10 walk breakups. Opponents are slowly studying that making an are attempting out Morrison is no longer a intellectual option, which appropriate makes it more uncomplicated for him to totally lock down his aspect of the sphere. 

Malaki Starks, S, Georgia 

This become Starks’ first profession interception, in his very first quarter on the collegiate level: 

That characteristic the tone for idea to be one of the well-known most prolific careers we now private got seen from a safety in quite a whereas. Starks performed his first yr as a finalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the one year Award after pacing the Bulldogs with seven walk breakups and intercepting two passes. In 2023, Starks become a 2023 CBS Sports actions First Personnel All-American and a finalist for each the Bronko Nagurski and Jim Thorpe Awards whereas collecting three interceptions and seven walk breakups. Starks is the appropriate up-to-the-minute safety: he can switch cherish a extensive receiver in birth home, has magnificent ball skills and is no longer undoubtedly afraid to salvage down into the sphere and play speed strengthen.