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The University of Mississippi Athletics
NFL DRAFT: What They’re Saying About Ole Miss Draftees
4/28/2025 | Football
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Ole Miss football had a historic showing at the 2025 NFL Draft last week with eight Rebel selections, the most in the seven-round era of the draft (since 1994) and the second-most in the modern era of the NFL since the AFL-NFL merger (since 1967).
Those eight Rebel draftees rank Ole Miss fifth nationally this season, trailing only Ohio State (14), Georgia (13), Texas (12) and Oregon (10).
Ole Miss Rebels who heard their name called in Green Bay last week were: defensive tackle Walter Nolen to the Arizona Cardinals (Round 1, Pick 16), quarterback Jaxson Dart to the New York Giants (Round 1, Pick 25), wide receiver Tre Harris to the Los Angeles Chargers (Round 2, Pick 55), cornerback Trey Amos to the Washington Commanders (Round 2, Pick 61), defensive end Princely Umanmielen to the Carolina Panthers (Round 3, Pick 77), wide receiver Jordan Watkins to the San Francisco 49ers (Round 4, Pick 138), linebacker Chris Paul Jr. to the Los Angeles Rams (Round 5, Pick 172) and defensive tackle JJ Pegues to the Las Vegas Raiders (Round 6, Pick 180).
Rebels who earned undrafted rookie free agent contracts were: running back Ulysses Bentley IV (Indianapolis Colts), kicker Caden Davis (New York Jets), defensive end Jared Ivey (Seattle Seahawks), offensive lineman Nate Kalepo (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), tight end Caden Prieskorn (Detroit Lions), safety John Saunders Jr. (Miami Dolphins), offensive lineman Gerquan Scott (Buffalo Bills), cornerback Brandon Turnage (Kansas City Chiefs), safety Trey Washington (Indianapolis Colts) and wide receiver Antwane Wells Jr. (New York Giants). Earning invites to minicamps were cornerback Isaiah Hamilton (Seattle Seahawks) and offensive lineman Jeremy James (Las Vegas Raiders).
Read below to see what coaches, general managers and media personalities had to say on the Rebel draftees, as well as links to our full coverage as the picks rolled in.
OLE MISS REBELS IN THE 2025 NFL DRAFT
Round 1, Pick 16 – Walter Nolen, DT, Arizona Cardinals – Recap | Highlights
Round 1, Pick 25 – Jaxson Dart, QB, New York Giants – Recap | Highlights
Round 2, Pick 55 – Tre Harris, WR, Los Angeles Chargers – Recap | Highlights
Round 2, Pick 61 – Trey Amos, CB, Washington Commanders – Recap | Highlights
Round 3, Pick 77 – Princely Umanmielen, DE, Carolina Panthers – Recap | Highlights
Round 4, Pick 138 – Jordan Watkins, WR, San Francisco 49ers – Recap | Highlights
Round 5, Pick 172 – Chris Paul Jr., LB, Los Angeles Rams – Recap | Highlights
Round 6, Pick 180 – JJ Pegues, DT, Las Vegas Raiders – Recap | Highlights
UNDRAFTED FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
Ulysses Bentley IV, RB – Indianapolis Colts
Caden Davis, K – New York Jets
Jared Ivey, DE – Seattle Seahawks
Nate Kalepo, OL – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Caden Prieskorn, TE – Detroit Lions
John Saunders Jr., S – Miami Dolphins
Gerquan Scott, OL – Buffalo Bills
Brandon Turnage, CB – Kansas City Chiefs
Trey Washington, S – Indianapolis Colts
Antwane Wells Jr., WR – New York Giants
MINICAMP INVITES
Isaiah Hamilton, CB – Seattle Seahawks
Jeremy James, OL – Las Vegas Raiders
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
Walter Nolen • Round 1, Pick 16 • Arizona Cardinals
Quotes courtesy of AZCardinals.com
General Manager Monti Ossenfort: "Excited to add Walter Nolen from Ole Miss, a guy we did a lot of work on, scouts through the fall, and through the Senior Bowl, and through the Combine, and then brought (Nolen) in for a visit. He impressed us the whole way. The tape spoke for itself. Violent, disruptive, high-motor, tenacious three-down player. Hard to find those guys that can affect the pocket from the interior of the formation."
General Manager Monti Ossenfort: "We wanted to have a more disruptive defensive unit. We think we've added players that can help us do that. And again, when we find players that can affect the middle of the pocket, it puts a lot of stress on the offense. And so Walter is another guy that we think can do that, can help us do that."
Head Coach Jonathan Gannon: "He's got a huge heart. It was awesome in the pre-draft process, getting to know him."
Jaxson Dart • Round 1, Pick 25 • New York Giants
Quotes courtesy of Giants.com
Head Coach Brian Daboll: "I think (Dart's) got a lot of qualities you look for in a good quarterback. He's tough, makes good decisions with the football, pushes the ball down the field, has athletic ability, played in a really tough conference, started there at USC as a young guy. But did a really good job throughout this process of our meetings, board work, workouts and the tape that we liked. Look forward to working with him. Glad he's here, and we'll get started as soon as we can."
Head Coach Brian Daboll: "I like the way (Dart) plays. I like his competitive fire. I like his accuracy. I like his ability, again, to push the ball down the field. His athletic ability to run with the football. I know the system that they ran down there at Ole Miss is similar to the one we had at Alabama, so there's some carryover on some of these things. But I think this guy has gotten better every year he's played. He's a leader. He was smart. He has the attributes that we were looking for."
General Manager Joe Schoen: "(Dart's) an outgoing kid from our meetings with him. He's personable. We've had multiple dinners with him. We met with him at the Senior Bowl. On the field he's fiery. You see him, like we're going to probably have to teach him how to slide. You watch him, he's trying to run people over, in the Senior Bowl, too. It's like, dude, you're in an all-star game, you probably shouldn't trying to be run that linebacker over, and he did that in the game. He's tough. He's competitive. You see the leadership, seeing him in games, seeing him live. He's not afraid to get on guys.
General Manager Joe Schoen: "(Dart) broke all (of Eli's) records, but Eli likes him. Big fan. Archie, as well. Yeah, so the family, they obviously -- Ole Miss through and through and follow him and watch a lot of their games, so they were definitely fans of Jaxson."
General Manager Joe Schoen: "I went to the Egg Bowl this year. We went from Dallas, we stayed over after the Dallas game on Thanksgiving, went to the Egg Bowl and then the Iron Bowl. Again, we had been studying him, and to me, the accuracy -- a lot of stuff that Daboll talked about, accuracy, anticipation, there's athleticism, he's not a statue in the pocket. Again, the ability to throw the deep ball, intermediate throws, short throws, a lot of RPO stuff. But again, he's in a really good spot where he can come in and he can sit behind a couple of veteran quarterbacks and learn and doesn't have to be thrown out there right away. I think from a developmental standpoint and the ability to grow, I think it's a perfect situation for a young quarterback.
Tre Harris • Round 2, Pick 55 • Los Angeles Chargers
Quotes courtesy of Chargers.com
Head Coach Jim Harbaugh: "Tre, in particular, is strong, tough, really good route runner. Scores the ball … Weapon for (starting quarterback) Justin (Herbert) to get the ball to."
General Manager Joe Horitz: "Fun player to watch. Former quarterback, very smart. We didn't get a chance to interview these guys, and he was one of the ones we interviewed at the Combine. He walks in the room, you feel his presence in the room. I can't say that about everybody, but just the confidence, the presence, the size. What really stood out, aside from the film, was how smart he was. You could tell he thinks like a quarterback, and that is such a valuable thing."
General Manager Joe Horitz: "With Tre, they kept showing Jaxson Dart highlights yesterday and it's like 'oh my god, he's in every one of these highlights.' … You see so much of the vertical plays, the big plays, the run-after catch, working off of contact, the physicality he plays with."
Trey Amos • Round 2, Pick 61 • Washington Commanders
Quotes courtesy of SI.com
General Manager Adam Peters: "[Amos] is a big strong dude and he's a competitor. And you said there's a lot of good players on that team [Ole Miss]. We didn't have him on a 30-visit, but we had Tre Harris on a 30-visit who was a big strong dude too. And he talked about how they battled every day in practice. It's iron sharpening iron, so to speak. And so, he's played against a lot of really good players and he doesn't back down to anybody. And it's almost like he relishes it."
Princely Umanmielen • Round 3, Pick 77 • Carolina Panthers
Quotes courtesy of Panthers.com
General Manager Dan Morgan: "You can tell on tape, you know, he got better and better as a pass rusher in terms of using his hands and kind of developing a toolbox. He bends about as good as any rusher that I've watched this year, so to get him, you know, the speed that he brings off the edge, his ability to bend, he's got a wicked spin move, he's got a long arm, he can do a lot of cool things, so, you know, I think he's just going to get better and better."
Jordan Watkins • Round 4, Pick 138 • San Francisco 49ers
Quotes courtesy of 49ers.com
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan: "Love his speed. First thing you notice when you see a guy for the first time, you see his 40 [yard] time. Then you watch his routes at the Combine, I thought he was one of the better route runners at the Combine, just with natural receiver skills and everything. You watch his hands, he was our best graded-out guy going through the gauntlet. I watched his one-on-ones at the Senior Bowl and how he played at Ole Miss, talking to [head coach] Lane [Kiffin]. Just the whole package. Love the guy, think he's got a great skillset to add to the group."
Chris Paul Jr. • Round 5, Pick 172 • Los Angeles Rams
Quotes courtesy of TheRams.com
General Manager Les Snead: "[Taking Paul] was definitely [a] thumbs up. In the way we do the process, each phase there are different people that interact. They interact with the players in an independent silo per se. You like to compare what is coming back. If there is any dissent or noise amongst the information that you're getting back, do you take it a step further to see if you can continue trying to answer the question or make as clear a decision as possible. [Paul] is definitely someone, through the vetting process, there were a lot of thumbs up throughout. He was at [The University of] Arkansas. He transferred to Ole Miss. There were a lot of thumbs up
for him as a person and as a football player along the way."
JJ Pegues • Round 6, Pick 180 • Las Vegas Raiders
Quotes courtesy of The Athletic
Dane Brugler, The Athletic: "The Raiders needed to address the interior of the defensive line, and Pegues will bring immediate competition alongside Christian Wilkins. Along with his versatility on the line, he also can give the Raiders a short-yardage option on offense."
Those eight Rebel draftees rank Ole Miss fifth nationally this season, trailing only Ohio State (14), Georgia (13), Texas (12) and Oregon (10).
Ole Miss Rebels who heard their name called in Green Bay last week were: defensive tackle Walter Nolen to the Arizona Cardinals (Round 1, Pick 16), quarterback Jaxson Dart to the New York Giants (Round 1, Pick 25), wide receiver Tre Harris to the Los Angeles Chargers (Round 2, Pick 55), cornerback Trey Amos to the Washington Commanders (Round 2, Pick 61), defensive end Princely Umanmielen to the Carolina Panthers (Round 3, Pick 77), wide receiver Jordan Watkins to the San Francisco 49ers (Round 4, Pick 138), linebacker Chris Paul Jr. to the Los Angeles Rams (Round 5, Pick 172) and defensive tackle JJ Pegues to the Las Vegas Raiders (Round 6, Pick 180).
Rebels who earned undrafted rookie free agent contracts were: running back Ulysses Bentley IV (Indianapolis Colts), kicker Caden Davis (New York Jets), defensive end Jared Ivey (Seattle Seahawks), offensive lineman Nate Kalepo (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), tight end Caden Prieskorn (Detroit Lions), safety John Saunders Jr. (Miami Dolphins), offensive lineman Gerquan Scott (Buffalo Bills), cornerback Brandon Turnage (Kansas City Chiefs), safety Trey Washington (Indianapolis Colts) and wide receiver Antwane Wells Jr. (New York Giants). Earning invites to minicamps were cornerback Isaiah Hamilton (Seattle Seahawks) and offensive lineman Jeremy James (Las Vegas Raiders).
Read below to see what coaches, general managers and media personalities had to say on the Rebel draftees, as well as links to our full coverage as the picks rolled in.
OLE MISS REBELS IN THE 2025 NFL DRAFT
Round 1, Pick 16 – Walter Nolen, DT, Arizona Cardinals – Recap | Highlights
Round 1, Pick 25 – Jaxson Dart, QB, New York Giants – Recap | Highlights
Round 2, Pick 55 – Tre Harris, WR, Los Angeles Chargers – Recap | Highlights
Round 2, Pick 61 – Trey Amos, CB, Washington Commanders – Recap | Highlights
Round 3, Pick 77 – Princely Umanmielen, DE, Carolina Panthers – Recap | Highlights
Round 4, Pick 138 – Jordan Watkins, WR, San Francisco 49ers – Recap | Highlights
Round 5, Pick 172 – Chris Paul Jr., LB, Los Angeles Rams – Recap | Highlights
Round 6, Pick 180 – JJ Pegues, DT, Las Vegas Raiders – Recap | Highlights
UNDRAFTED FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
Ulysses Bentley IV, RB – Indianapolis Colts
Caden Davis, K – New York Jets
Jared Ivey, DE – Seattle Seahawks
Nate Kalepo, OL – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Caden Prieskorn, TE – Detroit Lions
John Saunders Jr., S – Miami Dolphins
Gerquan Scott, OL – Buffalo Bills
Brandon Turnage, CB – Kansas City Chiefs
Trey Washington, S – Indianapolis Colts
Antwane Wells Jr., WR – New York Giants
MINICAMP INVITES
Isaiah Hamilton, CB – Seattle Seahawks
Jeremy James, OL – Las Vegas Raiders
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
Walter Nolen • Round 1, Pick 16 • Arizona Cardinals
Quotes courtesy of AZCardinals.com
General Manager Monti Ossenfort: "Excited to add Walter Nolen from Ole Miss, a guy we did a lot of work on, scouts through the fall, and through the Senior Bowl, and through the Combine, and then brought (Nolen) in for a visit. He impressed us the whole way. The tape spoke for itself. Violent, disruptive, high-motor, tenacious three-down player. Hard to find those guys that can affect the pocket from the interior of the formation."
General Manager Monti Ossenfort: "We wanted to have a more disruptive defensive unit. We think we've added players that can help us do that. And again, when we find players that can affect the middle of the pocket, it puts a lot of stress on the offense. And so Walter is another guy that we think can do that, can help us do that."
Head Coach Jonathan Gannon: "He's got a huge heart. It was awesome in the pre-draft process, getting to know him."
Jaxson Dart • Round 1, Pick 25 • New York Giants
Quotes courtesy of Giants.com
Head Coach Brian Daboll: "I think (Dart's) got a lot of qualities you look for in a good quarterback. He's tough, makes good decisions with the football, pushes the ball down the field, has athletic ability, played in a really tough conference, started there at USC as a young guy. But did a really good job throughout this process of our meetings, board work, workouts and the tape that we liked. Look forward to working with him. Glad he's here, and we'll get started as soon as we can."
Head Coach Brian Daboll: "I like the way (Dart) plays. I like his competitive fire. I like his accuracy. I like his ability, again, to push the ball down the field. His athletic ability to run with the football. I know the system that they ran down there at Ole Miss is similar to the one we had at Alabama, so there's some carryover on some of these things. But I think this guy has gotten better every year he's played. He's a leader. He was smart. He has the attributes that we were looking for."
General Manager Joe Schoen: "(Dart's) an outgoing kid from our meetings with him. He's personable. We've had multiple dinners with him. We met with him at the Senior Bowl. On the field he's fiery. You see him, like we're going to probably have to teach him how to slide. You watch him, he's trying to run people over, in the Senior Bowl, too. It's like, dude, you're in an all-star game, you probably shouldn't trying to be run that linebacker over, and he did that in the game. He's tough. He's competitive. You see the leadership, seeing him in games, seeing him live. He's not afraid to get on guys.
General Manager Joe Schoen: "(Dart) broke all (of Eli's) records, but Eli likes him. Big fan. Archie, as well. Yeah, so the family, they obviously -- Ole Miss through and through and follow him and watch a lot of their games, so they were definitely fans of Jaxson."
General Manager Joe Schoen: "I went to the Egg Bowl this year. We went from Dallas, we stayed over after the Dallas game on Thanksgiving, went to the Egg Bowl and then the Iron Bowl. Again, we had been studying him, and to me, the accuracy -- a lot of stuff that Daboll talked about, accuracy, anticipation, there's athleticism, he's not a statue in the pocket. Again, the ability to throw the deep ball, intermediate throws, short throws, a lot of RPO stuff. But again, he's in a really good spot where he can come in and he can sit behind a couple of veteran quarterbacks and learn and doesn't have to be thrown out there right away. I think from a developmental standpoint and the ability to grow, I think it's a perfect situation for a young quarterback.
Tre Harris • Round 2, Pick 55 • Los Angeles Chargers
Quotes courtesy of Chargers.com
Head Coach Jim Harbaugh: "Tre, in particular, is strong, tough, really good route runner. Scores the ball … Weapon for (starting quarterback) Justin (Herbert) to get the ball to."
General Manager Joe Horitz: "Fun player to watch. Former quarterback, very smart. We didn't get a chance to interview these guys, and he was one of the ones we interviewed at the Combine. He walks in the room, you feel his presence in the room. I can't say that about everybody, but just the confidence, the presence, the size. What really stood out, aside from the film, was how smart he was. You could tell he thinks like a quarterback, and that is such a valuable thing."
General Manager Joe Horitz: "With Tre, they kept showing Jaxson Dart highlights yesterday and it's like 'oh my god, he's in every one of these highlights.' … You see so much of the vertical plays, the big plays, the run-after catch, working off of contact, the physicality he plays with."
Trey Amos • Round 2, Pick 61 • Washington Commanders
Quotes courtesy of SI.com
General Manager Adam Peters: "[Amos] is a big strong dude and he's a competitor. And you said there's a lot of good players on that team [Ole Miss]. We didn't have him on a 30-visit, but we had Tre Harris on a 30-visit who was a big strong dude too. And he talked about how they battled every day in practice. It's iron sharpening iron, so to speak. And so, he's played against a lot of really good players and he doesn't back down to anybody. And it's almost like he relishes it."
Princely Umanmielen • Round 3, Pick 77 • Carolina Panthers
Quotes courtesy of Panthers.com
General Manager Dan Morgan: "You can tell on tape, you know, he got better and better as a pass rusher in terms of using his hands and kind of developing a toolbox. He bends about as good as any rusher that I've watched this year, so to get him, you know, the speed that he brings off the edge, his ability to bend, he's got a wicked spin move, he's got a long arm, he can do a lot of cool things, so, you know, I think he's just going to get better and better."
Jordan Watkins • Round 4, Pick 138 • San Francisco 49ers
Quotes courtesy of 49ers.com
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan: "Love his speed. First thing you notice when you see a guy for the first time, you see his 40 [yard] time. Then you watch his routes at the Combine, I thought he was one of the better route runners at the Combine, just with natural receiver skills and everything. You watch his hands, he was our best graded-out guy going through the gauntlet. I watched his one-on-ones at the Senior Bowl and how he played at Ole Miss, talking to [head coach] Lane [Kiffin]. Just the whole package. Love the guy, think he's got a great skillset to add to the group."
Chris Paul Jr. • Round 5, Pick 172 • Los Angeles Rams
Quotes courtesy of TheRams.com
General Manager Les Snead: "[Taking Paul] was definitely [a] thumbs up. In the way we do the process, each phase there are different people that interact. They interact with the players in an independent silo per se. You like to compare what is coming back. If there is any dissent or noise amongst the information that you're getting back, do you take it a step further to see if you can continue trying to answer the question or make as clear a decision as possible. [Paul] is definitely someone, through the vetting process, there were a lot of thumbs up throughout. He was at [The University of] Arkansas. He transferred to Ole Miss. There were a lot of thumbs up
for him as a person and as a football player along the way."
JJ Pegues • Round 6, Pick 180 • Las Vegas Raiders
Quotes courtesy of The Athletic
Dane Brugler, The Athletic: "The Raiders needed to address the interior of the defensive line, and Pegues will bring immediate competition alongside Christian Wilkins. Along with his versatility on the line, he also can give the Raiders a short-yardage option on offense."
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