NFL Draft Profile: Darius Rush, Cornerback, South Carolina Gamecocks
Darius Rush
South Carolina Gamecocks
#28
Pos: CB
Ht: 6020
Wt: 198
Hand: 0948
Arm: 3338
Wing: 7958
40: 4.36
DOB: 2/22/2000
Hometown: Kingstree, SC
High School: C.E. Murray
Eligibility: 2023
One-Liner:
A traits dominant corner with the size and fluidity to be a tenured NFL defensive back.
Evaluation:
Long-legged corner with quick feet and fluid pedal. The team will align him in press technique with a middle-of-the-field safety, essentially placing him on an island. Lots of reps in cover 1 and country cover 3. Good press technique with active feet, proper lean, and advantageous leverage. Not afraid to get physical and will put hands on receivers at the line of scrimmage. Easy athleticism that transfers from speed turn to hip flip and smooth cross-over runs. Seems like multiple perimeter runs come to his side, with teams exploiting him in the run game. Plays with eyes in the backfield. Too much peaking going on, even when it allocates tackles on screens. He can be caught flat-footed and give receivers the ability to run away from his leverage when playing the slot. May lack high-level awareness or instincts. Rush has some NFL traits in terms of size and athleticism, with the ability to play sticky-man coverage in single-high schemes. To become a complete corner, he needs to play the run better and develop his football instincts. If he does that, expect a fruitful career in the league for Rush.
Grade:
3rd Round
Background:
Originally from Kingstree, South Carolina. Attended C.E. Murray High School and was rated as a three-star prospect by 247Sports. Played at the University of South Carolina. He decided to redshirt his first year. As a redshirt freshman, he played twelve games, mainly on special teams. During redshirt's sophomore season, he played eight games and suffered an injury that kept him out for part of the season. As a redshirt junior, he played in all thirteen games at cornerback, totaling twenty-five tackles, one sack, and one interception. During the redshirt senior season, he played in ten games, totaling twenty-eight tackles and two interceptions. He declared for the 2023 NFL Draft.
