With the 2024 NFL Draft coming up next week, ESPN released a new mock draft on Monday (subscription required), with draft analysts Mel Kiper Jr. and Field Yates alternating picks for the first 100 selections (first three rounds).
Two Clemson products — cornerback Nate Wiggins and defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro — were taken in the mock draft, with Kiper selecting both of the former Tiger standouts.
Wiggins went 27th overall in the first round to the Arizona Cardinals.
“Arizona would be thrilled to land a starting corner this late in Round 1,” Kiper wrote regarding the pick. “Wiggins has length, outstanding speed and smooth hips in coverage.”
Orhorhoro, meanwhile, was Kiper’s pick for the Atlanta Falcons in the third round with the 79th overall selection.
“The 294-pound Orhorhoro has the positional flexibility to play anywhere along the defensive line,” Kiper wrote. “After Field gave the Falcons edge rusher Dallas Turner in Round 1, we can get them help along the interior on Day 2. They had the league’s worst pass rush in 2023.”
If Atlanta drafted Orhorhoro, he would join a Falcons roster that already features several former Clemson players in defensive lineman Grady Jarrett, cornerback A.J. Terrell, receiver/return specialist Ray-Ray McCloud and punter Bradley Pinion.
The 2024 NFL Draft is set to take place from April 25-27 in Detroit.
Wiggins earned first-team All-ACC honors as a junior in 2023, when he tallied 25 tackles (one for loss), a team-high nine pass breakups, two forced fumbles, one sack and two interceptions (one of which he returned 46 yards for his second career touchdown) over 10 games (seven starts).
In his career at Clemson from 2021-23, Wiggins recorded 50 tackles (3.0 for loss), 24 pass breakups, three interceptions (including two returned for touchdowns), two forced fumbles, a sack and a blocked field goal over 34 games (18 starts).
Orhorhoro was a third-team All-ACC selection this past season, when he tallied 22 tackles (8.0 for loss), a career-high 5.0 sacks and a pass breakup across 12 games (all starts).
Along with a dozen career sacks, Orhorhoro was credited with 97 tackles (25.5 for loss), nine pass breakups and two fumble recoveries over 53 games (30 starts) from 2019-23.
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