Two Miami Hurricanes Makes Mel Kiper Jr.'s Top-25 NFL Draft Big Board
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Miami Hurricanes football have enjoyed ten regular season wins on the backs of NFL talent.
Beyond the bigger names expected to go high in the first round there are future and late NFL draft talent on both sides of this Miami Hurricanes football team. Senior pass rusher Akheem Mesidor and defensive back Keionte Scott are notable Hurricanes who have had extremely impressive seasons, but haven't received the national spotlight like pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr. and offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa.
ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. is expecting Bain and Mauigoa to be off the board early in the NFL Draft.
Francis Mauigoa is top-5
Junior offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa has been three-year starter since arriving in Coral Gables. He's been a massive reason why Hurricanes quarterbacks and running backs have enjoyed the success they have since 2023.
"Here's a true mauler. Mauigoa is fun to watch for the way he just destroys pass rushers at the point of attack. He has more than 2,400 snaps at right tackle and has the pass protection skill to stick there, but he could absolutely slide inside and become a Pro Bowl-caliber guard at the next level. Mauigoa has allowed one sack and blown only nine run blocks since the start of last season."ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr.
Mauigoa has routinely ranked high in weekly PFF grading as well. Mark Fletcher Jr. has ran freely and quarterback Carson Beck has been able to throw comfortably behind Mauigoa's efforts. Mauigoa is the highest ranked offensive lineman on the big board. He's sandwiched in between Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese at No. 4 and Texas Tech linebacker David Bailey at No. 6.
Rueben Bain Jr. ranked at No. 19
Hurricanes junior pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr. has 49 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 50 pressures, one forced fumble, and a single interception. The pass rusher slipped four spots from Kiper's previous big board.
"Bain is powerful and has really strong hands. He routinely gets the best of some very good offensive tackles, often with his dominant rip move, and he knows every trick in the book in getting home to the QB. Bain also shows speed and bend off the edge, and he takes good angles. Plus, he can hold the edge against the run and get off blocks to chase down ball carriers. His tape is just filled with disruption."ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr.
While Bain's versatility and the various ways he can attack a quarterback will be what stands out most to scouts initially, there's a specific trait Bain has that will be what separates his first round projection from many others' second and third round projections.
"But even with all those A-level traits, it's actually Bain's hustle that really stands out to me. He never takes a play off and fires at the ball on every play. His arms are shorter than most scouts prefer, but there's so much to like with his game. Opponents have to account for him in their game plans, and he can keep them guessing even then with his inside-outside flexibility."ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr.
Watch the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes face the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies December 20 at 12:00pm Eastern on ABC. DraftKings Sportsbook has the spread for this game set at -3.5 points. This means a bet on the Texas A&M Aggies would mean the Aggies have to win the game by more than 3.5 points for the bet to cash.
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