Tulane Green Wave Star Defender Lands With Las Vegas Raiders in Recent NFL Mock Draft

Despite the 2024 college football season ending on a low note for the Tulane Green Wave, as they lost their final three games of the campaign, it was a successful one overall.

For the third consecutive year they won at least nine games and played for the American Athletic Conference championship. Unfortunately for the second time in as many seasons, they were defeated, this time by the Army West Point Black Knights.

With the transfer portal ravaging the team’s roster and depth, headlined by quarterback Darian Mensah’s decision to leave for the Duke Blue Devils, they were defeated by the Florida Gators in the Gasparilla Bowl.

While the late-season swoon was certainly disappointing, there were a lot of positives to come out of Jon Sumrall’s first year as the team’s head coach.

Among them was the performance of the team’s defense, which ranked 24th in the nation allowing only 20.6 points per game.

There was incredible depth at every level of the Green Wave defense as the coaching staff made sure everyone was prepared and capable of contributing. It was a major asset for the team late in games as their defense remained strong for all four quarters.

One of the standout performers on that side of the ball was defensive tackle Patrick Jenkins.

In his third year at Tulane, he remained a disruptive force in the middle of their defense. Across 13 games played, he recorded 33 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, with 4.5 sacks and two passes defended.

It capped off a very solid stretch with the Green Wave in which he appeared in 41 games, recording 107 total tackles, 28 tackles for loss, 13 sacks, two passes defended, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble.

That performance was enough for him to garner some attention from pro scouts, as he has a chance to be playing on Sundays in 2025.

Who could he be playing with?

Dalton Miller of Pro Football Network recently put together a seven-round mock draft and has projected Jenkins to land with the Las Vegas Raiders near the top of the seventh round as the No. 223 overall.

He is the only Tulane player that was selected in the mock draft, but there are several other intriguing prospects eligible for the draft, such as wide receiver Mario Williams, who could eventually find their way onto a roster or practice squad at the next level even if they aren’t picked.