Tiawan Mullen is headed to Los Angeles.
The former Indiana cornerback signed with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent Saturday night.
Mullen, a 5-foot-10, 181-pound cornerback, was a four-year starter at Indiana. He joined the Hoosiers after participating in the 2019 All-American Bowl as a four-star recruit out of Coconut Creek High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
In 2019, Mullen was tied for 11th in the country and second among all freshmen with 13 pass breakups. He broke up four passes against Michigan State and Purdue on his way to being named Indiana's Defensive Newcomer of the Year. Mullen earned first-team freshman All-American honors by The Athletic and 247Sports and an All-Big Ten honorable mention, helping Indiana reach the 2019 Gator Bowl.
Mullen continued his strong play in 2020, becoming the first Indiana cornerback to earn first-team All-America honors. Across eight games, he made 38 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, four pass breakups, 3.5 sacks, three interceptions, one forced fumble and one quarterback hurry. Mullen helped the Hoosiers defeat Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State and Wisconsin in the same season for the first time in program history on their way to the 2020 Gator Bowl.
Mullen's 2021 season was marred by an ankle injury that limited him to four starts. He played limited minutes in three additional games, but wasn't the same player. Per Pro Football Focus, Mullen was rated as the top Big Ten defensive back against Western Kentucky, when he suffered the injury.
Following his third season at Indiana, Mullen had the option to declare for the NFL Draft, but he chose to return for his senior season to play with his younger brother Trevell, a four-star recruit who recently entered the transfer portal. In 2022, Mullen started all 12 games, posting 58 tackles and eight pass breakups. His two interceptions came at Cincinnati and against Penn State, and Mullen totaled a season-high eight tackles against Michigan State and Penn State. He received an All-Big Ten honorable mention in 2022.
On Tuesday, Mullen received the G. Frederick Glass Director’s Award, which is presented to two student-athletes who best represent The Spirit of Indiana: 24 Sports, 1 Team. Mullen was often seen attending other Indiana athletics events and supporting fellow student athletes.
Mullen was not invited to the NFL Draft combine, but he posted a 4.42 40-yard dash, 4.41 20-yard shuttle, 32-inch vertical jump, 19 bench press reps at 225 pounds and seven-second three-cone drill time, according to FanDuel.
Here are Mullen's strengths, according to NFLDraftBuzz.com:
- A very quick and very confident cover corner plays bigger than his listed size when lined up in press coverage, delivering quick, surprisingly powerful punches and using his natural quickness and change-of-direction ability to mirror on underneath routes.
- Plays with the natural balance and ultra-quick feet to mirror underneath, and he’s tremendous at reading routes and reading quarterbacks.
- Shows the click-and-close ability to backpedal and the ball skills to make plays. Mullen has loose hips to go along with good top-end speed, and Mullen can flip around to turn and run in coverage.
- His ball skills are very good. Mullen tracks the ball well downfield and has the hands and coordination to come away with interceptions even when he isn’t targeted often.
- Can get up on the line of scrimmage and deliver a solid punch early in routes, then use that quickness to shadow, or back off and close quickly when the ball comes out
Here are Mullen's weaknesses, according to NFLDraftBuzz.com:
- Size is the obvious drawback, as Mullen isn’t going to hold up as a boundary corner. He’s often simply outmuscled by bigger receivers inside.
- Works hard in run support, but he is going to be walled off often and is more of a grab-and-hold-on tackler when taking on running backs.
- NFL quarterbacks may take advantage of his aggressiveness in man and zone to eye up short routes and go over the top
- Short with a small frame and will struggle against size at the next level.
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