Currently Jackson State is the class of the conference, undefeated and dominating so far this season. Statistically speaking, they have players at or near the top of all the categories, and it shows on the field. Strong offense, opportunistic defense and a complete team led by Coach Prime.
For reference, the SWAC is made up of the following schools:
SWAC – East:
|
Jackson St. |
| Alabama St. |
| Florida A&M |
| Bethune-Cookman |
| Mississippi Val. |
| Alabama A&M |
SWAC – West:
| Prairie View |
| Southern U. |
| Ark.-Pine Bluff |
| Alcorn |
| Texas Southern |
| Grambling |
Jackson State – Offensive Stars
Shedeur Sanders (Yep coach Prime’s son) leads this high-powered offense, to the tune of:
| 108 Attempts | 80 Completions | 74.1 PCT | 956 Yards | 10 TDS |
And when you watch Sanders, you see solid arm strength and ability to move the pocket or get out if need be. The one thing I’ve seen that needs some fine-tuning is the ball placement, making his receivers have to work for the catch. There’s enough arm strength and smarts to make all the throws so far. Sanders also has enough juice to take the ball in on the ground as well (2 TDS through 3 games).Â
Sy’veon Wilkerson is a fast, physical back that has no problem going between the tackles (see Grambling State) or bouncing outside to make a big play. So far this season he’s averaging 5.8YPC, 272 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns.
Dallas Daniels and Shane Hooks are Sanders’ top targets, Hooks being the bigger of the two but both have big play ability. After those two, Sanders has been spreading the ball around really well to multiple options.
This offense is built to score from anywhere on the field, I’ve seen them move the ball quickly down field or in just a couple plays. This team offensively is one that is hard to keep up with and outside of Tennessee state slowing them down, most teams are getting blown out.
Jackson State – Defensive Stars
James Houston became the 100th Jackson State player drafted in the NFL, so the odds aren’t necessarily in their favor but I never bet against Prime! This defense can get after the QB, as 10 players have at least one sack and Nyles Gaddy currently has 4.5 sacks so far this season.Â
Linebacker Aubrey Miller Jr. leads the team in tackles and has a good size/speed combo that could have him following Houston to the NFL. In terms of takeaways, there are four different players with an interception and four forced fumbles. You can see coach Prime’s influence on this team, 11 different players have at least one pass breakup and 7 players have 2 or more (19 total for the team).Â
Jackson State – Final Thoughts
This team’s built around Sanders, Wilkerson and Miller Jr. but there is no shortage of young talent Coach Sanders has to work with, and I don’t anticipate this team being de-throned as the class of the conference anytime soon! This team currently has 16 freshman and this teams getting better in terms of recruiting, so my biggest question is how long until Coach takes a new job.
When it comes to NFL prospects, Miller has all the tools of a player taken in the 4th round. Miller’s a vocal leader and a player that’s one of those “first player in, last player out” because he’s a hard worker. I’m sure Sanders will be a player people keep an eye on. If he takes the next steps in his growth, he’ll be on the NFL’s radar.
Any questions or just want to keep the conversation going, hit me up on Twitter Feel free to @ me or DM me and we can talk more about him and the rest of the 2023 NFL Draft, and don’t forget to check out our Mock Draft’s here on Draft Countdown!