This could be Coastal Carolina’s biggest NFL Draft. Where Chants are projected to go
The earliest a Coastal Carolina player has been selected in the NFL draft was Jerome Simpson in the second round in 2008 with the 46th overall pick.
Might that standard be eclipsed by tight end Isaiah Likely in this year’s draft?
Coastal has had seven players drafted in the program’s 19-year history and had two selected in the same year once, in 2014 when running back Lorenzo Taliaferro and receiver Matt Hazel were taken in the fourth and sixth rounds.
Will the Chanticleers match or surpass the program high for players selected in a single draft?
CCU is set up to possibly have the program’s most successful draft, with four players receiving significant attention from NFL teams, highlighted by Likely, who is considered one of the top tight ends in the draft class.
Outside linebacker Jeffrey Gunter, wide receiver Jaivon Heiligh and running back Shermari Jones are all considered potential draft picks, as well.
The first round begins at 8 p.m. Thursday, the second and third rounds are Friday beginning at 7 p.m., and the remaining four rounds are Saturday starting at noon. The draft is in Las Vegas and will be broadcast on ESPN, ABC and NFL Network.
The Draft Network ranks Likely as the draft’s No. 65 prospect, and has Heiligh at 254 and Gunter at 274. There will be 262 players picked across the seven rounds.
A recent mock draft projection by CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso had Likely going to the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round at No. 83 overall, Gunter going to the New York Jets in the fourth round at No. 117, and Heiligh going to the Houston Texans in the seventh round at No. 207.
ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller’s mock draft released Tuesday has Likely going to the Jacksonville Jaguars with the first pick of the fourth round (No. 106) and Gunter going to the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round (219).
Though he is generally not on mock draft boards, Jones had a pair of top-30 visits with the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs, and had a third one scheduled with the Cincinnati Bengals that was canceled due to travel complications.
Each team is allowed to bring up to 30 players to its facility for interviews, meetings and physicals. Likely has had at least six top-30 visits with the Jets, Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, Las Vegas Raiders, New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts, according to reports. Heiligh had a visit with the Bengals.
Both Likely and Gunter showcased their athletic ability at the NFL Combine, and representatives from all 32 NFL teams, and some Canadian Football League teams, attended CCU’s Pro Day on March 18.
The number of draft eligible players has increased this year with so many players taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility afforded by the NCAA due to COVID’s disruption to the 2020 season.
Isaiah Likely
Likely (6-foot-4, 245 pounds) is easily the most prolific tight end in school history with 133 receptions for 2,048 yards and 27 TDs in his career.
In 2021, Likely hauled in 59 receptions for 912 yards, both of which were second on the team, and led the Sun Belt Conference with 12 receiving touchdowns. His receiving yards and touchdowns both ranked second among all tight ends in FBS, and he averaged an explosive 15.5 yards per catch.
At Arkansas State on Oct. 7, Likely had career highs with eight receptions for 232 yards — the third-most receiving yards in a single game in Sun Belt history — and a CCU single-game record four receiving touchdowns.
“Isaiah Likely is going to show everybody that not only are you getting the most versatile, movable chess piece at the tight end position in this draft, but you’re also getting a player that’s going to connect with the team and community both on and off the field,” Likely told Justin Melo of The Draft Network. “You’re going to get a leader that’s going to show up to work and practice early. I’ll stay in the meeting room, I’ll stay in the film room.”
At the combine, Likely showcased a 36-inch vertical leap, which was the best among this year’s draft class at the position.
Over the last two years, Likely was named a second-team All-American by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Pro Football Network (PFN) and College Football All-SIS.
He was also named a 2021 John Mackey Award semifinalist and was a two-time first-team All-Sun Belt pick (2020 and 2021).
“I think from just his physical tools, being as big as he is and he can really, really run, and his ball skills are second to none,” CCU coach Jamey Chadwell said. “He’s such a matchup nightmare, especially in our league, the way he can run and just catch the football. ... But I think what really made him turn into a special player was ... he really wanted to win and whatever it took to win is what he cared about more than anything.”
Jeffrey Gunter
At the combine, Gunter (6-4, 260) posted top-10 showings among edge rushers in five drills — including the fifth-fastest shuttle run (4.35 seconds) and 3-cone drill (7.21 seconds). He also posted a 35.5-inch vertical and 4.70-second time in the 40-yard dash. At CCUs Pro Day, he bench-pressed 225 pounds 30 times.
He was a three-time All-Sun Belt selection, earning first-team honors in 2018 and 2020 and second-team last season. His 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks both ranked in the top 10 in the Sun Belt in the regular season.
He also had two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, five quarterback hurries, a pass break-up and a blocked kick.
“You talk about Jeff and just the ability for him to get off the edge and rush the passer, but also be a great run stopper,” Chadwell said. “He’s a complete player. ... He’s capable of getting after the quarterback and also dropping into pass coverage, and so I think that’s what makes him unique with his size and length.”
The Durham, N.C., native transferred to N.C. State prior to his junior season in 2019 in part for family reasons but returned to CCU for the past two seasons.
Gunter’s agent, Jerard Roggio of Sportstars, said Gunter has had “in-depth conversations” with every NFL team, and believes his knowledge of the game, passion for the game, personality and character makes him more attractive to teams.
“I’ve been doing this quite a while, and he is one of the most refreshing athletes that I’ve had the pleasure of working with and teaming up with in quite a while,” Roggio said. “I think everybody knows what kind of a kid Jeffrey is and how great of a mother Jennifer is. ... He’s a special guy. He’s a kid that has just constantly preached team, constantly been selfless in a very selfish business. It’s a pleasure to work with him and I look forward to being his agent for the next 10 to 15 years in the NFL and everything after football as well.”
Jaivon Heiligh
Heiligh (6-2, 200), a Florida native, owns multiple CCU receiving records.
He owns program marks for career receptions (191) and receiving yards (2,825) and single-season receiving yards (1,127), which he set in 2021 when he recorded 66 catches and seven receiving touchdowns and averaged 17.5 yards per catch.
He owns Cure Bowl records for catches (13) and receiving yards (178), set in 2000, and was quarterback Grayson McCall’s favorite target in both 2020 and ’21.
“(Heiligh) was arguably the most productive receiver in the history of our program, and we’ve had some really good receivers that played in the NFL for a while,” Chadwell said. “What made him so special is that you knew on third down, you knew where he was going to be. You could trust him to make a big play in a big moment.”
He is trying to become the third CCU wide receiver to be drafted and play for an NFL team, joining Jerome Simpson and Matt Hazel. He and Simpson are the only Chants to record 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
Heiligh was also CCU’s primary punt returner in 2021, and at CCU’s Pro Day he recorded a time of 4.63 seconds in the 40-yard dash and a 36-inch vertical.
Nicholas Linta, Heiligh’s co-agent with his father, Joe Linta of JL Sports Agency, said they have been in consistent contact with ‘a handful of other teams’ in addition to the Bengals.
“He’s definitely got a good chance of getting drafted,” Linta said. “He’s obviously a super, super productive receiver who has shown he can do it at a very high level. Some teams are getting spooked by his 40 time a little bit, but he plays faster than he ran the 40 so I think a lot of teams are identifying that. . . . He’s definitely got a lot of love. If he’s not drafted he’ll get signed for pretty good money right after the draft, worst case scenario.”
Shermari Jones
Jones (6-1, 215) led the Sun Belt in rushing yards per game at 94.5 in 2021. He finished the season with 1,040 yards, 13 touchdowns and a 6.5 yards-per-carry average over 11 games despite playing much of the season with a foot injury.
He registered four 100-yard rushing games, including a career-high 211 yards in a win at South Alabama on Nov. 26, the second-most in a single game in CCU history behind only Mike Tolbert’s 244 rushing yards in 2007 at VMI.
Jones’ agent, Randy Fisher of Ascend Athletics, said he knows of numerous teams that have him graded between the fifth and seventh rounds.
“It’s a really good sign that he had those three top-30 visits,” Fisher said. “We feel really good about his opportunities, we’re feeling really good about his chances of being drafted. . . . I think there is enough interest from multiple teams that have a mid-round grade on him that should drive his value up and he should be drafted.”
Jones, a Florida native, played two seasons at Coastal after transferring from a junior college.
At CCU’s Pro Day, he recorded a a 33.5-inch vertical and time of 4.55 seconds in the 40, though Fisher said he was running about 4.45 in training.
“I think the type of back he is, is important,” Fisher said. “He’s a big, strong, powerful running back, and there’s only a handful of guys in this year’s draft that have his size, height, weight, speed and quickness, and that’s why we feel pretty good about him.”
CCU players selected in the NFL Draft
| Year | Player | Position | Team | Round/pick |
| 2007 | Tyler Thigpen | QB | Minnesota | 7th/217th |
| 2008 | Jerome Simpson | WR | Cincinnati | 2nd/46th |
| 2012 | Josh Norman | CB | Carolina | 5th/143rd |
| 2014 | Lorenzo Taliaferro | RB | Baltimore | 4th/138th |
| 2014 | Matt Hazel | WR | Miami | 6th/190th |
| 2017 | De’Angelo Henderson | RB | Denver | 6th/203rd |
| 2021 | Tarron Jackson | DE | Philadelphia | 6th/191st |
This story was originally published April 28, 2022 at 6:55 AM.
