Pro Football Focus released their early 2022 NFL Draft safety rankings and class overview list, which evaluates the top defensive players all around the country. PFF projected the top safety prospects who could emerge as leaders during the 2022 NFL Draft, as well as college football players to 'watch' this season.
USC safety Isaiah Pola-Mao graced PFF's list under the 'prospects to watch' category.
"The 2022 class is chocked full of tall safeties, and the 6-foot-4 Pola-Mao certainly qualifies as one of them," PFF writes. "But unlike some of the other tall safeties in this class, Pola-Mao is primarily a deep safety in USC’s scheme. That length played far more when he was around the line of scrimmage. Watching him press tight ends last season looked like child’s play for him. Here’s hoping we see a little more of him in a playmaking role around the line in 2021."
Pola-Mao enters his fifth year with the Trojans. He is USC’s most experienced defensive back, and will start for his third season at free safety this year. Last season Pola-Moa proved to be highly effective when he hit the football field. He finished the season with 40 tackles, including 2.5 for losses of 15 yards, five deflections, three fumble recoveries and one interception. To add, he was third nationally in fumbles recovered and first in the Pac-12 conference.
Pola-Moa has appeared in 21 games with 20 starts during his career at USC, and could be poised for a highly productive season with the Trojans if he continues to build off his success from previous seasons.
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