MOBILE, Ala. — Utah State wide receiver Jalen Royals, who played at Hillgrove High and Georgia Military College, was under-recruited coming out of high school.
But after two dynamic seasons for the Aggies, he’s considered a late bloomer with NFL potential. He’s one of the local players the Falcons will scout in the Senior Bowl, which is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Whitney Hancock Stadium.
Royals, who will play for the American team Saturday, is back up to speed after he suffered a torn deltoid in his right foot last season.
“Utah State was definitely a great experience being out West,” Royals told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Definitely different from Georgia. The offense is a lot different. It’s kind of similar to Tennessee if you’ve seen them play. It was fun playing in a heavy-pass offense. It was fun being out there.”
Royals caught 71 passes for 1,080 yards (15.2 yards per catch) and led the nation with 15 touchdowns catches in 2023. He was off to strong start last season before the injury. In seven games, he had 55 catches for 834 yards (15.2 yard per catch) and six touchdowns.
He made the most of his Senior Bowl week of practice.
“Just prove that I belong in the league and show everybody else that I’m just as talented as everybody else coming from (Utah State),” Royals said.
Royals, who’s 5-foot-11 3/8 and 210 pounds, is hoping to follow fellow Hillgrove alums Evan Engram, Myles Murphy, Bradley Chubb and Chigoziem Okonkwo into the NFL. He’s represented by the Priority Sports, which also represented Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins.
“Trying to put on for Hillgrove and show them that in Powder Springs, we have a lot of good players out there,” Royals said.
Royals believes he can play in the slot or outside in the NFL. He wants to get better with his down-the-field blocking. His favorite players are wide receiver Davante Adams and former running back Adrian Peterson.
Quarterback Jordan Love, the Packers' starting quarterback, was the most recent Utah State player to be drafted. He was taken in the first round (26th overall) of the 2020 draft.
“I’m just looking to go to any time,” Royals said.
Running back Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks is from Carver-Atlanta High and played at Mississippi State and USC.
“I would say that the Big Ten was amazing,” Marks told the AJC. “Compared to the SEC. Everybody flies around, they have good players on offense and defense, too.”
Marks was set to interview with the Falcons on Thursday.
Here are other players from state for the Falcons to scout:
Ryan Fitzgerald, PK, Florida State/Colquitt County HS
Senior Bowl official measurements: 5-foot-11 5/8 and 195 pounds.
After a shaky season by Younghoe Koo, the Falcons are looking at kickers. Koo ended the season on injured reserve with a right hip injury. The Falcons had the most missed field goal in the league. Fitzgerald made his career long 59-yard field goal against Georgia Tech last season. He was 58 of 74 over his 56-game career. He was 13 of 13 last season and 19 of 21 in 2023.
Jo’Quavious Marks, RB, Mississippi State and USC/Carver-Atlanta
Senior Bowl official measurements: 5-10, 215.
He played at Mississippi State (2020-23) and rushed 410 times for 1,883 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also caught 214 passes for 1,225 yards and five touchdowns. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology at Mississippi State. The Falcons are set at running back, but Tyler Allgeier will be in the last year of his rookie contract and can become an free agent after next season. “Just going out there and playing with USC was amazing,” Marks told the AJC. “Just running the ball and still catching the ball out of the backfield.” He started playing at age five for the South Atlanta Seminoles.
Jared Ivey, Edge, Georgia Tech and Ole Miss/North Gwinnett
Senior Bowl official measurements: 6-5⅝, 283
He finished his Ole Miss career with 125 total tackles, 26.5 tackles for loss, 16 sacks and 17 quarterback hurries over 38 games and 30 starts. Combined with his time at Georgia Tech (2020-21), he has a total of 165 tackles, 33.5 tackles for losses, 17.5 sacks and 22 quarterback hurries over 58 games. He could help the Falcons get bigger along the front line.
Kyle Kennard, Edge, Georgia Tech and South Carolina/Riverwood
Senior Bowl official measurements: 6-3¾, 248.
Played at Georgia Tech (2020-23) before transferring. He was named the SEC’s defensive player of the year and an All-American. Kennard finished his career with 32 starts in 54 total contests and 24 sacks with 37 tackles for loss.
Brandon Adams, CB, Central Florida/Arabia Mountain
Senior Bowl official measurements: 6-1⅜, 186:
The Falcons, like most teams, are always in the market for more cornerbacks. Adams played a lot of press man-to-man coverage and can hold up at the point of attack. He also has experience playing on special teams. He played cornerback, free safety, quarterback, running back and wide receiver in high school.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
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