NFL scouting combine has 33 players from Georgia

Former Ohio State cornerback Caleb Downs will be a part of the group of 33 players with Georgia connections participating in the NFL scouting combine, which starts Monday, Feb. 23 and runs through March 2 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

There were 319 players invited, including 18 who played at Georgia high schools, 10 from the University of Georgia, four from Georgia Tech and one from Georgia State.

The players will perform physical and mental tests in front of NFL coaches, general managers and scouts, with the goal of improving their status for the draft, which will be held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.

Downs, who played at Mill Creek High, won the Jim Thorpe Award — given to the nation’s top defensive back — last season. He’s a two-time All-America selection, as named by The Associated Press. His range, positional flexibility and high football IQ is highly coveted by NFL teams.

He’s projected to go to the Bengals with the 10th overall pick in Mel Kiper’s latest mock draft on ESPN.com.

NFL Network and NFL+ will have exclusive coverage of the combine each day, beginning on Feb. 26.

Last season, there were 41 players with Georgia connections invited to the combine.

Here’s a list of the players from Georgia high schools (who didn’t play at UGA, Tech or Georgia State) who were invited to participate in the scouting combine:

Georgia high schools

Name, position, college, height, weight, high school:

Marcus Allen, CB, North Carolina, (6-foot-2, 190 pounds, Walton High): He started all 12 games last season and made 36 tackles. Led the Tar Heels with eight pass breakups.

Cameron Ball, DT, Arkansas (6-5, 323, Tri-Cities): Made 11 starts last season for the Razorbacks and made 27 tackles, including 4½ tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries.

C.J. Daniels, WR, Miami (6-2, 205, Parkview): Started his career at Liberty (2020-23) and also played at LSU (’24). He caught 106 passes for 1,959 yards with 21 touchdowns in his time with Flames. He caught 42 passes for 480 yards with the Tigers while playing in 11 games and making 10 starts. He helped the Hurricanes reach the national championship game by catching 50 passes for 557 yards and seven touchdowns last season.

Caleb Downs, CB, Ohio State, (6-0, 205, Mill Creek): He is the sixth two-time, unanimous All-America selection at Ohio State, following WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (2022-23), OT Orlando Pace (1995-96), RB Archie Griffin (1974-75), FB Bob Ferguson (1960-61) and RB Howard “Hopalong” Cassady (1954-55). He’s the son of Gary and Tanya Downs. His father played running back in the NFL for the Giants (1994, ’96), Broncos (’95) and Falcons (1997-98, 2000) and his brother Josh Downs (North Gwinnett High and North Carolina) plays for the Colts.

Jalen Farmer, OL, Kentucky, (6-5, 317, Covington Eastside): Started at right guard last season for the Wildcats. He graded at 84% with only two missed assignments, two penalties, two quarterback sacks and two pressures allowed in a team-high 831 snaps.

Romello Height, OLB, Texas Tech, (6-3, 240, Dublin): Finished second on the Red Raiders with nine sacks last season. Had a sack in eight of the 13 games he played, Height is the fourth-highest-rated defensive player in the country according to profootballfocus.com. Went to Texas Tech after playing at Auburn (2020-21), USC (2022-23) and Georgia Tech (’24).

Colton Hood, DB, Tennessee (6-0, 190, Eagle’s Landing Christian): He played at Auburn (2023), Colorado (’24) and Tennessee (’25). He played in 29 games and had 77 tackles and three interceptions.

Joshua Josephs, OLB, Tennessee, (6-3, 240, North Cobb): He started 11 games and tied for 13th in the FBS and third in the SEC with three forced fumbles entering the postseason. He had a 90.0 pass rush grade according to PFF, ranked third in the SEC and 19th in the FBS (min. 150 pass rush snaps).

Jalon Kilgore, DB, South Carolina (6-1, 207, Putnam County): A three-year starter for the Gamecocks, he was named All-America and All-SEC as a freshman. He was a second-team All-SEC pick by the league’s coaches last season. He played in 36 of 37 games over his three seasons, with 33 starts. He primarily played nickel back, but also can play safety.

Conner Lew, C, Auburn (6-3, 303, Kennesaw Mountain High: He took over at center in 2023 for the Tigers. He was a former AJC Super 11 selection.

Kayden McDonald, DT, Ohio State, (6-3, 326, North Gwinnett): He played in just two games after suffering a foot injury last season. Considered one of the top defensive tackles in the draft. McDonald had 68 tackles, 13 sacks and 40 tackles for losses in 12 games as a senior at North Gwinnett under coach Bill Stewart.

LT Overton, DL, Alabama (6-5, 278, Milton): Overton played in 13 games and made 12 starts last season. He finished with 42 tackles, six tackles for losses and four sacks. Overton also added four quarterback pressures and a pass breakup. He started his career at Texas A&M.

VJ Payne, DB, Kansas State, (6-3, 208, Buford): He played for the Wildcats from 2022-25. Payne, of Gainesville, played in 52 career games to rank 11th in school history, while he started 42 total games with a streak of 41 starts to close out his career. He was a two-time All-Big 12 pick and had 207 career tackles with 10½ tackles for loss, a sack, 14 passes defended — including four interceptions, four forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

Avery Smith, CB, Toledo, (5-10, 185, Riverwood): Smith, of East Point, was a second-team All-Mid-American Conference selection. He was third in the MAC with 12 passes defended (11 pass breakups, one interception.)

Avieon Terrell, CB, Clemson (5-11, 180, Westlake): Younger brother of Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell, he made 128 tackles (9.0 for loss), 30 pass breakups, three interceptions, four sacks, eight forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries in 1,834 career defensive snaps over 39 games (31 starts) from 2023-25.

Noah Whittingham, RB, Oregon (5-8, 203, Peach County): Started out at Western Kentucky, where he played two seasons. He played four seasons with the Ducks. He played in 68 games and rushed 523 times for 2,950 yards and 21 touchdowns. He also caught 90 passes for 544 yards and four TDs.

Dae’Quan Wright, TE, Mississippi (6-4, 255, Perry): He started his career at Virginia Tech, where he appeared in 19 games and made eight starts in the 2022 and ’23 seasons. He played in 28 games for the Rebels in ’24 and ’25. Wright played tight end for coach Kevin Smith. Perry went 11-2 during the ’21 fall season. He led Perry in receiving with 60 receptions for 1,205 yards with 14 TDs.

Zion Young, DE, Missouri, (6-5, 262, Westlake High): He made an impact with the Tigers after transferring from Michigan State. He started all 13 games and made 23 tackles, including 9½ for losses and a team-high nine sacks. He also had an interception.

Here’s a list of the players from UGA, Tech or Georgia State.

GEORGIA STATE

Ted Hurst, WR, 6-3, 207, Savannah Sol. C. Johnson High: He caught 71 passes for 1,004 yards and six touchdowns last season for the Panthers.

GEORGIA TECH

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

Haynes King, QB, 6-3, 215: He played at Tech (2023-25) and Texas A&M (2020-22). He played in 46 games and completed 802 of 1,223 passes (65.6%) for 9,486 yards, 85 touchdowns and 34 interceptions. He led the nation with 16 interceptions in 2023. He cut them down to two in 2024 and six in ’25. Tough runner who also rushed for 2,427 yards and 37 touchdowns.

Eric Rivers, WR, 5-11, 180: He played at Memphis and Florida International before finishing up at Tech. He played in 43 games and has 140 catches for 2,200 yards (15.7 per catch) and 16 touchdowns.

Keylan Rutledge, OL, 6-4, 330, Franklin County: Ranked as one of the top guards in the draft. He played some center during Senior Bowl week.

Ahmari Harvey, CB, 6-0, 195: He played in 43 games, made four interceptions and had 12 pass breakups for the Yellow Jackets. He started his career at Auburn.

GEORGIA

Credit: Christina Matacotta

Colbie Young, WR, Georgia, 6-4, 215: He played and started in seven games before injury cut his regular season short. He had 23 catches for 336 yards and a TD.

Zachariah Branch, WR, 5-10, 180: He played in 13 games and made 10 starts. He was named second-team All-SEC as a receiver and third-team as an all-purpose player by the league’s coaches.

Dillon Bell, WR, 6-1, 210: He played in 56 games over his career. He caught 119 passes for 1,269 yards and 11 TDs.

Oscar Delp, TE, 6-5, 245, West Forsyth: He played and started 14 games last season. He had 19 catches for 245 yards and a TD.

Monroe Freeling, OL, 6-7, 315: He played in 13 games and made 12 starts last season was named to the All-SEC second team by the league’s coaches. He helped the offense to average 31.9 points, 186.6 rushing yards and 220.3 passing yards per game.

Micah Morris, OL, 6-4, 330, Camden County: He started all 13 games last season. He played in 12 games and made five starts in 2024. Was an AJC Super 11 selection in ’20.

Christen Miller, DL, 6-4, 310, Cedar Grove: Played in 13 games (all as a starter) last season. He finished with 20 tackles, 1½ sacks and three tackles for losses and two quarterback hits.

CJ Allen, LB, 6-1, 235, Lamar County: He was named first-team All-America by The Associated Press. He started in 12 games and ranked first on the team in tackles with 85. He also led the team in tackles for losses with eight for 22 yards.

Daylen Everette, CB, 6-1, 193: He played in 13 games and made 12 starts last season. Was named third-team All-SEC by the league’s coaches. Had a solid week of practice at the Senior Bowl while showing that he can also play inside at nickel back.

Brett Thorson, P, 6-2, 235: The native of Melbourne, Australia was named second-team All-America by The Associated Press. He had a strong showing at the Senior Bowl.

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