The Reese’s Senior Bowl released their official watchlist for the 2024 season on Wednesday morning with nine different Tar Heels being named.
Of the nine, five are on the offensive side of the ball headlined by junior running back Omarion Hampton. Hampton, a first team All-ACC member and second team All-American last year, enters his junior season looking to improve upon one of the best seasons from a running back in Tar Heel football history. The Doak Walker award finalist from a year ago ran for 1,504 yards and 15 touchdowns, while also catching 29 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown.
Junior tight end Bryson Nesbit is on the list and should be with him being the program’s top NFL Draft prospect for next year and rightfully so after back-to-back productive seasons. He improved upon his numbers from 2022 (35 rec, 507 yds, 4 TD), catching 41 passes for 585 yards and five touchdowns, the latter of which led the team. Expect to build on those numbers this year, especially with the team needing to replace the production from Tez Walker and the redzone ability of Kamari Morales.
Senior offensive guard Willie Lampkin, a preseason All-ACC first teamer, is another member of this watchlist that deserves the recognition after a tremendous first season with the Tar Heels. He graded out as the team’s best run blocker (77.3), pass blocker (83.9) and overall blocker (76.2) according to PFF and there is no reason to think he won’t be able to produce similar or better numbers this season.
Senior wide receiver J.J. Jones, who broke out last season on his way to leading the team in receiving, was also named to the watchlist. He finished with team highs in both receptions (46) and receiving yards (711) and found the endzone three times, all of which took place in the season’s final five games. This season could be an even bigger year for him with Tez Walker now in the NFL and the search for a No. 1 passing option underway.
Senior quarterback Max Johnson, who is competing with Conner Harrell for the starting job after transferring in from Texas A&M, is the biggest longshot on this list heading into the season. In 22 career starts, Johnson has posted a 12-10 record while throwing for 5,852 yards and boasting a 47-12 touchdown-interception ratio, but he will have to take a significant step forward this year if he wants to be in Mobile in January.
On the defensive side of the football, senior Kaimon Rucker is the headliner of the four that landed on the list after his explosion onto the national scene as a junior. His 60 quarterback pressures are the third most of any player returning to college football this season and his 15.0 tackles for loss were the most by a Tar Heel since 2013. Rucker also posted the most sacks in a season (8.5) since Tomon Fox back in 2021.
Senior linebacker Power Echols is another guy who has good NFL draft stock heading into the season. He is coming off two strong years alongside Cedric Gray, totaling 206 total tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, three forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, two interceptions and three passes defensed over that span. He had some struggles with missed tackles that must be cleaned up and needs to take another step in coverage, but he should be a steady force for Geoff Collins's first defense in Chapel Hill.
Junior Marcus Allen is also on the watchlist after playing a big role for the team last year. Last year, Allen played the most snaps of anyone on the defensive side for the Tar Heels with 915. He was very solid, racking up 49 total tackles, one interception and seven pass breakups, but he was very hit and miss at times, allowing a 64.6% completion rate, a 106.1 quarterback rating and four touchdowns. The team needs him to take the next step and limit what he allows, especially the explosive plays, but there is reason to be confident that he can do that.
Senior Des Evans rounds out the group. He is coming off the best season of his career, though, where he finished with 33 total tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks and 29 quarterback pressures, the latter of which was the second most on the team a year ago. He needs to be more impactful on a down-to-down basis, especially in the run game, to give the Tar Heels a legitimate edge rusher tandem for the first time since the early days of Larry Fedora.
It was a bit shocking to see Alijah Huzzie not amongst the defensive backs, especially after the season that he put together last year in the slot. Another strong showing, this time on the outside, should get him on these all-star game radars. Senior tight end John Copenhaver is another guy who should have been included because of his ability as a blocker and the upside that he has shown as a receiver.
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