Bryant’s Beehive: Five Under the Radar Cornerbacks

Chandon Sullivan, Georgia State (5’11, 195, Sr.)

Sullivan presents a physical presence at the LOS, making it difficult for receivers to get an easy release out into their routes. While he will not over-excite in the interception stat column, his run support ability will be something NFL teams take note of in the upcoming draft. Aside from his on-the-field attributes, Sullivan performs extremely well in the classroom. He currently carries a 3.84 GPA and recently became the first ever Georgia State football player to be recognized as a National Scholar-Athlete by the National Football Foundation.

D’Montre Wade, Murray State (6’0, 200, Sr.)

Wade could perhaps be one of the best bump-and-run cornerbacks in this year’s draft class. He is patient and physical at the LOS, but covers enough ground to play his man and other receivers working in his areas.  He’s good at expanding his zone and attacking the football in the 50/50 battles. He’s shown physicality and technique when making tackles. Wade intercepted six passes in 2017 to cap off his career.

Blace Brown, Troy (6’0, 186, RS-Jr.)

Brown has not had trouble finding the football in his hands over the last two seasons. The former walk-on has recorded 11 interceptions the last two seasons, including the game-winning interception versus No. 16 LSU this year.  Brown plays a lot of bail technique and does a good job of baiting quarterbacks when either playing man coverage or a loose cover two zone.  Brown has good bloodlines, as he is the nephew of former University of Georgia Heisman Trophy winner and NFL Pro Bowl running back Herschel Walker.

Tremon Smith, Central Arkansas (5’11, 190, Sr.)

Passion and aggression are just two of the many words that can be used to describe Central Arkansas cornerback Tremon Smith. Smith immediately jumps out on film due to how competitive he is from the start of a play to the end of the down.  Although he doesn’t appear to be a leaper, he places his body in position between the ball and receiver to make it difficult for receivers to bring the ball into their bodies.  He ended his career with 53 passes defended and 15 interceptions.

Ryan Carter, Clemson (5’9, 180, Sr.)

Carter may be one of the shorter corners in the 2018 NFL draft class, but for Clemson he’s the big man on the back end of one of the nation’s best defenses. His pick-six versus South Carolina this season was an example of his football IQ.  The Georgia native has really good feet, which is why you can find him lining up or stemming over the slot receiver in DC Brent Venables’ sub-packages. Carter will look to keep the DB draft tradition alive in 2018.