Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Practice Top Performers

MOBILE, Ala. – Many top 2025 prospects from Alabama and Mississippi are in Mobile, Alabama to participate in the 38th annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game.

The game will be played on Saturday, December 14, at South Alabama’s Hancock Whitney Stadium. Practices began on Tuesday night and continued in cold and windy conditions on Wednesday. On3 was on hand for the first two practices, and several touted prospects turned in good showings.

It’s also worth noting two of the expected headliners for the Mississippi team: Mississippi State quarterback signee KaMario Taylor and Ole Miss wide receiver signee Caleb Cunningham

With that said, here are On3’s Top Performers from the first two days in Mobile.

On3 MVP OT Carde Smith – Colorado

Carde Smith showed high-end traits while working at right tackle during Alabama-Mississippi practices. At over 6-foot-6 with plus length, Smith has the best tackle frame in attendance. Of all the offensive linemen on hand, the Mobile (Ala.) Williamson product was also clearly the most comfortable in pass protection. Smith had a strong practice session on Wednesday morning. He locked horns with Zion Grady in 1-on-1’s and held up well against the On300 pass rusher. Smith showed outstanding quickness in his pass set, in addition to encouraging play strength and anchor. The Colorado signee got better and better as the practice wore on. Smith pitched a clean sheet in the team portion, surrendering no pressures from his right tackle spot. While he’s still a bit lean at this point in time, Smith has the frame to fill out to well over 300 pounds, while maintaining his athleticism. The No. 140 overall prospect in the On300 looks to be a high upside get for Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes.

2. EDGE Jared Smith – Auburn

The Alabama team sports a loaded defensive front with multiple blue-chip, Power 4 signees. No player on the front made more plays behind the line of scrimmage than Jared Smith. The Auburn signee was highly active off the edge. The 6-foot-6.5, 235-pounder used his plus length to create issues at the point of attack for opposing offensive linemen. The combination of length and quickness allowed him to close distance quickly. Smith particularly stood out in tracking down plays from the backside. On a defensive front that consistently overmatched the Alabama offensive line, the Alabaster (Ala.) Thompson standout created the most disruption.

3. EDGE Zion Grady – Ohio State

Zion Grady showed the best bend among pass rushers at Alabama-Mississippi practice. The 6-foot-4, 225-pounder is a flexible athlete with a natural understanding of leverage and angles. He also appears to be ahead of the curve from a technical standpoint. Grady was a standout in 1-on-1’s, using his bend and quick hands to give offensive linemen issues. The prolific high school pass rusher should see a spike in his development once in the Buckeyes’ strength and conditioning program.

4. LB Tyler Lockhart – Mississippi State

Fresh off a wild Wednesday that saw him flip twice between two in-state rivals, Tyler Lockhart showed why he is such a coveted prospect in Mississippi. The 6-foot-2, 205-pounder has outstanding length and a large frame that should easily fill out. He is a twitchy mover and showed considerable range working at linebacker for the Mississippi team. We also saw Lockhart disrupt as a pass rusher and blitzer off the edge.

5. QB Deuce Knight – Auburn

Deuce Knight is the top-ranked signal caller on hand in Mobile. The 6-foot-4.5, 208-pounder continued to show the elite physical tools that give him one of the highest upsides in the 2025 cycle. Knight showed the strongest arm in attendance, by an order of magnitude. He easily generated velocity and made some nice far hash and downfield throws. The Auburn signee will need to continue honing his mechanics in order to progress from an accuracy and consistency standpoint. With that said, he’s made encouraging strides on that front over the past year. Saturday’s game should provide the opportunity for Knight to make plays against an aggressive defensive front.

6. LB Jakaleb Faulk – Auburn

Jakaleb Faulk might get the nod as the ‘first off the bus’ prospect in Mobile. Relative to their respective position, no prospect on hand is more well-built than the Auburn signee. Faulk is a rock-solid 6-foot-3.5, 230 pounds with very long arms. He lined up all over the front seven for Alabama, working as an off-ball linebacker and rushing off the edge. The body type and versatility gives Faulk multiple avenues to success on The Plains.

7. DL Malik Autry – Auburn

Malik Autry is the most physically imposing defensive lineman for the Alabama team. The 6-foot-5.5, 320-pounder had some dominant moments over the first two practices. Autry was disruptive when he timed up his get-off and stayed low. The Auburn signee played multiple spots along the front, particularly shining as an interior pass rusher. He will need to continue improving the consistency on a snap-to-snap basis, but the upside was on display in Mobile.

8. RB Anthony Rogers – Ohio State

Anthony Rogers lived up to his nickname: Turbo. The 5-foot-8, 195-pounder was the quickest player, not just running back, at Alabama-Mississippi practices. While all-star practices don’t typically provide the best setting to evaluate a running back’s full skill set, Rogers’ explosiveness was easy to see. The Ohio State commit showed eye-catching burst as a ballcarrier and was able to make defensive linemen miss in the backfield. Rogers spent much of his senior season at Montgomery (Ala.) Carver working as a wide receiver and has greatly improved his ball skills. He’s now a plus pass-catcher out of the backfield and showed the versatility in Mobile.

9. CB Cortez Thomas – Ole Miss

Cortez Thomas was a standout at defensive back for Mississippi. The 6-foot, 170-pounder lined up at corner and safety in practice and made several plays on the ball. Thomas had little trouble staying in-phase with receivers while working in man coverage at corner.

10. DL Antonio Coleman – Auburn

Antonio Coleman is one of four Auburn signees along the defensive line for the Alabama team. Alabama-Mississippi was our first opportunity to see the Saraland (Ala.) High product in person. Coleman looks like the quickest defensive lineman in practices. He’s a cat-quick mover with an outstanding first step – something that consistently shows up on his high school film. Coleman was active throughout practice, particularly during inside drills. He looks to be around 6-foot-1 and in the 250-260 pound range. It goes without saying that he’ll need to add mass and strength once he gets to Auburn. With that said, the get-off and ability to shoot gaps was impressive.

Additional Notes

+ Five-Star Plus+ Oregon cornerback signee Na’eem Offord and Tennessee safety signee Timothy Merritt arrived on Wednesday. While it was their first practice of the week, both showed well. Offord is a twitchy, fluid mover with a nice frame. Merritt impressed with his ball-tracking skills in drills.

+ Auburn signees Anquon Fegans and Eric Winters each had their moments in the secondary. Fegans came down with an interception in 7-on-7, showing his high-end anticipatory skills. Winters had a pass break-up from his strong safety spot. We wouldn’t be surprised if he grows into a box defender at the next level.

+ Miami wide receiver signee Daylyn Upshaw, and Auburn athlete signee Derick Smith were the top receiving targets for the Alabama team. Upshaw showed good ball skills and was able to finish through contact, while Smith made adjustments to a few underthrown passes. Auburn signee Alvin Henderson gives the Alabama team a strong backfield along with Rogers. The record-setting high school rusher ran hard in practice.

+ Tyler Miller (LSU), Micah DeBose (Alabama), Mario Nash (Florida State) and Mal Waldrep (Alabama) are four more offensive linemen of note. Miller and DeBose are two big, long blockers who could end up sliding inside in college. Miller worked at left tackle for Mississippi, while DeBose worked at tackle and guard for Alabama. Nash showed good movement skills at right tackle for Mississippi. We like his upside as a center at the next level. Waldrep primarily worked at left tackle for Alabama, but projects inside long-term. He’s physically developed with strong base.

+ Ole Miss signee Andrew Maddox and Auburn signee Jourdin Crawford were two more defensive linemen who caught our eye.

+ Texas signee K.J. Lacey and Louisville signee Mason Mims are working at quarterback for Alabama. Both showed the ability to deliver with timing to the short and intermediate areas of the field, despite facing a bunch of pressure.

+ Alabama-Mississippi is always good for uncovering a few sleepers. Northern Alabama cornerback signee Zytavien Boddie had a great few practices. The Florence (Ala.) High product came down with multiple interceptions. Central Arkansas tight end commit Maddox Lynch has good size and showed very good ball skills. He made an impressive adjustment on a fade pass and came down with an excellent grab down the seam.