Steelers Draft Prospect Faces Key Matchup vs CFB's Top Team

With the Pittsburgh Steelers on bye, it's time to look into another key college football matchup.

The marquee matchup of Week 10's college football slate features two undefeated programs, Georgia and Tennessee, both with championship aspirations. But it's the battle within the battle that NFL Draft fans should be paying close attention to. Georgia's secondary is led by Kelee Ringo, a redshirt sophomore from Tacoma, Washington.

On the other side of the line of scrimmage, Tennessee's high-powered offense revolves around Junior wide receiver, Jalin Hyatt, whose unbelievable start to the season has him in the running for the Heisman Trophy. To make matters more difficult Ringo and the Bulldogs secondary, the Vols offense has a more well-known NFL Draft prospect on the other side in Cedric Tillman, who's finally back to full strength after dealing with some injury issues so far this season.

Ringo garnered a lot of hype in the summer scouting period after he started the final 12 games of his redshirt freshman season for the defense that propelled Georgia to its first National Championship since 1980. If you recall, it was Ringo who picked off Alabama's Bryce Young late in the waning moments of last year's National title game. He didn't just pick it off, he took it back to the house for a 79-yard score which sealed the deal for Georgia.

Ringo's physical profile is everything you would ideally wish for at the cornerback position, standing 6'2 and weighing in at 210 pounds. As if that's not enticing enough for NFL scouts, Ringo also possesses legitimate track star speed at the position. The Athletic's Bruce Feldman listed Ringo as the number six overall prospect in his annual Feldman's Freaks list stating that the phenom has been clocked in the high-22 MPH range on the GPS.

Because of his build, Ringo brings a different element of physicality to the position. He likes to bring the fight to the wide receiver, whether it's using jabs in press coverage at the line of scrimmage or remaining physical through the route to outmuscle opponents off their path. That physicality also shows up in the run game as he's a willing participant capable of fitting the run and stopping ball carriers in their tracks. Ringo's plus length help him stack and shed off potential blockers on the boundary.

Kelee Ringo is an interesting player: redshirt soph who's got really nice size, listed at 6-2, 205. The physicality is something I'm taking note of.

Bump rep here, forces his man to the sideline. As the WR attempts the throwby, he's able to latch on and play through the hands. pic.twitter.com/6wwNXLCxYf
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) May 1, 2022

If you're going to be a press corner, especially in a loaded conference such as the SEC, you better be able to run. Ringo doesn't simply run, he flies. Even when tasked with playing at the line of scrimmage, he's capable of running with pretty much anyone stride for stride down the sideline. He's a twitched-up athlete who has special movement skills for the position and can close distances in a hurry.

There are some technical issues that need to be cleaned up but he's got the recovery speed to overcome some of those deficiencies at the moment.

He better have his track shoes laced up as Tennessee's Jalin Hyatt can really scoot with a speed profile reminiscent of a Will Fuller or Mike Wallace.

There aren't more than a handful of NFL Draft eligible prospects who have done more for themselves so far this season as Hyatt's went from complete unknown to a legitimate potential first-round candidate. Hyatt's already caught a whopping 14 touchdowns from Hendon Hooker this season which leads the NCAA by a wide margin, with second place being Marvin Harrison Jr. and Nathaniel Dell with ten.

Cedric Tillman on the other hand received plenty of buzz over the summer thanks to his massive frame (6-3, 215 pounds) and impressive ball skills which aid him in contested catch opportunities. Coming off a 1,000-yard season in 2021 and now fully healthy, Georgia and the rest of the defenses on their remaining schedule have a "pick your poison" type of scenario where you have two NFL-caliber receivers to try and defend at the same time. While also effective working on a vertical plane, Tillman wins with more physicality making him a nice compliment to Hyatt's breathtaking speed.

Ringo has his work cut out for him against a Volunteer's offense that really runs through their passing game, where their extremely talented quarterback Hendon Hooker spreads the ball around to a myriad of weapons. These matchups against other high-end NFL-caliber prospects are what can really boost or drop a player's grade from scouts during the evaluation process.

Through the first eight games of the season, Ringo's allowed 14 catches for 213 yards according to PFF. He got off to a bit of a slow start and while he's settled down for the most part, there are still a few too many instances of him allowing big plays down the field. That's a big reason this matchup against two of the better vertical threats in the conference matters so much to his evaluation.

UAB tried to get him on a double move (Terrible route + no fake from the QB) but he's disciplined and does a nice job staying on top. You like to see him highpoint that football in the air, too. That interception looked pretty natural for him. pic.twitter.com/LWBM7lA2QP
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) May 1, 2022

Ringo has all of the necessary physical tools that you could possibly wish for but it's about him rounding out the more technical aspects of his game such as his press technique and more consistency in locating the football when in flight. It's important to keep in mind that Ringo is far from a finished product as he won't turn 21 years of age until a couple of months after being drafted should he declare.

Ringo comes equipped with limitless potential which is what makes him so intriguing as a prospect. This matchup featuring several elite athletes and prospects is must-see-TV for any NFL Draft fanatic.

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