Best in HBCU football named to Reeses Senior Bowl Watchlist

The Reese’s Senior Bowl is considered the preeminent college football all-star game and the first stage in the NFL Draft process. Among the “best of the best” in college football, 11 HBCU football players have been named to the 2025 Reeses Senior Bowl Watchlist heading into the start of the 2024 College Football season.

As the longest continual-running all-star game in college football, the Reese’s Senior Bowl has taken place in Mobile, Alabama for the past 75 years. With more than 900 NFL personnel, including key decision-makers from all 32 teams evaluating talent the 2024 game produced a record 110 total picks, with first-round selections representing 43 percent of the NFL draft.

While HBCU football didn’t have any players selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, Willie Drew of Virginia State was the lone HBCU player who made a final Senior Bowl roster and was signed by the Carolina Panthers as a free agent after the draft.

The Senior Bowl released the 2025 watchlist on Aug 21 stating:

Our scouting team has been working since last February to identify the “best of the best” draft prospects at every level of college football for the 2025 NFL Draft.

It takes professional evaluators to identify future professional players and this year’s Senior Bowl staff will be comprised of thirteen scouts with over 200 years of NFL experience.  Our staff will rely on decades worth of relationships at the college and NFL levels to stay on top of all the risers, career backup late-bloomers, and transfers taking advantage of opportunities in their final seasons.

One of our goals each year is to get live game exposures on as many prospects as possible so our Senior Bowl scouts will be at stadiums across the country every week this college season.

To all players not listed, please know this is just a starting point.  Film is the most important criteria in our selection process and every player will be re-evaluated based on their tape this fall.  We know how hard you all have worked since last season, so we owe it to you to stay open-minded and exhaustive in our process.

Good luck and we hope your draft starts in Mobile!

Below is a list of the HBCU players on the 2025 Reeses Senior Bowl Watchlist and you can click here to see the full list .

Carson Vinson, OL, Alabama A&M

James Burgess, DB, Alabama State

Kendall Bohler, DB, FAMU

Jeremiah Pruitte, TE, FAMU

Kenny Gallop Jr., DB, Howard

Jarett Hunter, RB, Howard

Robert McDaniel, DB, Jackson State

Erick Hunter, LB, Morgan State

Elijah Williams, DL, Morgan State

Aaron Smith, LB, SC State

Nick Taiste, OL, SC State

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