Mel Kiper throws massive curveball involving Big Ten player in first mock draft

ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper is as high as can be on Penn State defensive end Arnold Ebiketie in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.

“I’m going to go a little bit of a curveball here,” Kiper said on ESPN Wednesday, during the airing of Mel Kiper’s Draft 1.0 Special. “I don’t think Todd has him in his mock one. Arnold Ebiketie from Penn State, loved the way he was flying off the edge for Penn State.”

On ESPN’s first Mock Draft Special on Wednesday, Kiper projected Ebiketie to get picked in the first round, with the 16th-overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft — meaning he wouldn’t go far from Penn State at all, considering that the Philadelphia Eagles hold that selection.

Ebiketie had his most productive season to date with Penn State this year, logging 62 total tackles (34 solo stops), while leading the Big Ten in tackles for loss with 18. His 9.5 sacks and seven quarterback hurries paced all Penn State defenders; furthermore, Ebiketie showed his versatility, contributing on special teams to the tune of two blocked kicks.

However, many mock drafts have the 6-foot-3, 256-pound native of Silver Spring, Maryland, as a particularly late first-round pick — and, in some cases, a mid-second-round pick. Kiper refutes the nation that he should stay on the board that long.

“Came over from Temple. Dynamic presence for the Nittany Lions all year. Great kid. Hard worker. This is an organization that loves drafting pass rushers, having those guys they can rotate in there,” Kiper said. “Arnold Ebiketie from Penn State. Keep an eye on him. I put him in there. It was no stunt Todd. I know what you’re going to say. It was another Kiper stunt. It was no stunt. I’m hearing Ebiketie in round one pretty much guaranteed.”

As Kiper noted, Ebiketie transferred into Penn State this season. He spent his four last seasons at Temple; after redshirting the 2017 season, he went on to play one season as a reserve, logging just four tackles in 2018, before working his way up in 2019 before erupting in 2020. In Ebiketie’s fourth and final season at Temple, he had 42 tackles in the COVID-19 abbreviated season, including 28 solo stops, and he notched four sacks, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. His performance made him an All-AAC second-team honoree.

Ebiketie was a three-star recruit heading into Temple according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Furthermore, he ranked as the No. 131 EDGE and No. 27 overall recruit in Maryland in the class of 2017.