Emil Ekiyor Jr., IOL
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 317 lbs.
Class: RS-Senior
School: Alabama
Arm length: 33⅜”
Wingspan: 82⅛”
Hand size: 9⅜”
Age: 23 (born on 01/22/2000)
A former four-star recruit out of Cathedral High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he was the third center recruit and the first-ranked Indiana prospect in the 2018 recruiting cycle. Terry McLaurin, Mark Clayton, Pete Werner, and Mathias Kiwanuka were Cathedral alumni. Ekiyor was recruited as a center but only played five snaps at the position; he played 2,161 snaps at right guard throughout his five years in Tuscaloosa.
Notables
Ekiyor has been a rock for the Crimson Tide offensive line since 2020. He only allowed one sack his entire time at Alabama. PFF only credited 31 total pressures in 1,277 pass-blocking snaps throughout his college career; he only allowed six pressures this past season. Ekiyor earned First Team All-SEC because of his dominant senior season. Ekiyor earned a trip down to the 2023 Reese’s Senior Bowl, where he had an impressive week of practice.
Strengths
Weaknesses
Summary
Emil Ekiyor Jr. gets the job done as a run and pass blocker; he has sufficient athleticism to play in the NFL, and his play strength is solid, but his technique disallows him from reaching his potential. He gets too high, and his hand usage is inconsistent.
Despite the technical errors, Ekiyor seems to find ways to win as a blocker. He did well in space as the pulling IOL for Alabama, and he was able to stifle opposing pass rushers with an excellent anchor. He’s not perfect, but he can be a year-one starter at guard in the NFL.
GRADE: 6.2
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