Senior Bowl’s Jim Nagy lauds Texas’ Christian Jones, T’Vondre Sweat, Byron Murphy
The future of a handful of Texas players, namely offensive tackle Christian Jones and defensive tackles T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy, was a topic of conversation on Andy Staples’ podcast with guest Jim Nagy on Wednesday.
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Nagy, the executive director of the Reese’s Senior Bowl, talked to Staples about the prospects of the Texas players going forward through the postseason and beyond.
Jones, a senior who’s arguably been the Longhorns’ best offensive lineman this season as No. 7 Texas gets set to play No. 18 Oklahoma State on Saturday in the Big 12 Championship game in Arlington, got high marks from Nagy for his size, his footwork and his year-to-year improvement.
“You can see that soccer background and his feet,” Nagy said about Jones. “He a mountain of a man now. I mean all these offensive linemen are big guys but when you get up on Christian Jones he is even bigger than most off these offensive linemen. To start the season, most teams had him as a late round guy, probably a sixth- or seventh-round pick. He’s made a nice jump.
“I think right now Jones has safely positioned position himself in that fourth-round area. He is a guy that teams could see as a starting right tackle in the league or maybe even a swing tackle. So yeah, he’s had a great year. He’s went out there and earned it this year.”
Sweat, who on Wednesday was voted the Big 12’s Defensive Player of the Year, and Murphy, the league’s defensive lineman of the year, have also committed to playing in the Senior Bowl.
“We got Sweat as well,” Nagy said. “That’s a big, big inside combo. I mean, you could argue that they’re the best interior defensive tackle duo in the country this year. There is such a contrast and body types of play styles between the two that you would not want to be a center or a guard playing against Texas because both those guys give you something completely different to guard against.
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Nagy said an NFL source compared Murphy to Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, who played collegiately at Clemson.
“Jarrett is one of my favorite players I’ve ever scouted – I mean, I loved Grady Jarrett coming out of Clemson,” Nagy said. “And when he said that I’m like, ‘yep, I see that – just really active, athletic, urgent.’ Murphy is a player who has some violence to him. I mean he’s gonna tear it up Senior Bowl week. The week is created for a guy that’s that disruptive and plays that hard. He’s gonna get everyone’s attention for sure.”
Other Texas players who have been invited to the Senior Bowl are defensive tackle Alfred Collins, linebacker Jaylan Ford and defensive back Jahdae Barron.
The 2024 75th Annual Reese’s Senior Bowl, to be played on Feb. 3 in Mobile, Alabama, is the preeminent and longest continually running and widely regarded college football all-star game and an important stage in the NFL Draft process.
