Local export Jake Hanson expected to be picked in NFL draft
In the latest episode of Humboldt Last Week: Five years ago he graduated from Eureka High School as a four-star college football recruit. Now following the start of an unprecedented virtual draft on April 23, Jake Hanson is expected to be swooped up by an NFL team.
“Hanson has been on NFL scouts’ radar since his redshirt freshman season,” reads his description via NFL.com. “…(He) took over the starting center job (on the offensive line) for the (Oregon) Ducks in 2016…”
The 6 feet 4 inches, 303-pound college senior recently wowed scouts as one of the top performers in the bench press among offensive linemen during the NFL Scouting Combine.
“He’s chatty before the snap, does a lot of talking and appears to have quite a bit in calls and protections on his plate,” wrote The Draft Network praising his football IQ.
“Hanson was initially projected to be a second or third-round pick in April’s draft,” wrote NBC Sports. “Most mock drafts now show him as a fourth-round selection.”
Possibly a bit biased, but this reporter believes teams would benefit from selecting him earlier.
Hanson will join a nice list of other locally-exported NFL players such as Alex Cappa, Taylor Boggs, Rey Maualuga, Soma Vainuku, and Maurice Purify.
Max Preps also notes Hanson was a wrestler at Eureka High.
The latest episode of Humboldt Last Week is an entire broadcast dedicated to all the good in this community and its associates. Just a few people and concepts noted: Tiger King, Star Wars, healthcare, skywriting, relative calmness, sports stars, appreciation, Guy Fieri, Sara Bareilles.
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I hope he makes it. Sucky year to be ready and then your whole world is put on hold.
A number of names were left off the list. Most were drafted, but never made it to even a practice team with the exception of Alex Cappa. Rey Maualuga actually played for USC. He was recruited from USC. Cappa actually played during a game and did fairly well until the end of last year. He is in the most likely to be injured stage. Having this year off should pay dividends as he has about 10 months to get healthy. There are quite a few good centers being looked at this year. I doubt Hanson will have a recruitment number less than 40 or 50. Probably if he had played the center position when he was a freshman he could see a lower number. Another reason at a higher number is Hanson was injured and missed some games. Teams could question his durability.
Just a few things: Rey Maualuga was a Eureka Logger and spent almost a decade as a starter in the NFL. Cappa, an HSU alum, started almost the entirety of last season for the Bucs, including kudos for playing three quarters of a game with a broken arm. Writers have been praising his improvements lately when discussing the likelihood of him blocking for Tom Brady. Boggs, also an HSU alum, has history with five teams and started a couple games in the NFL. Regarding Hanson, starting so young for the Ducks and playing so long, his history is very impressive. He started 49 games at center over four seasons. I’m not sure I’d question his durability too much at this point. The players I listed in the article were the first that came to mind, which is why I wrote “such as.”
@miamiwouldbemyguess I’m pretty certain Hanson played all four years at center and not playing two games wouldn’t make teams question his durability. Durability is questioned when a season or serious injury has occurred, which could affect their longevity in the sport.. that’s like saying someone with an ankle sprain is equivalent to a torn patellar tendon.. teams are given every reason for missed games and previous injuries during the combine and scouting process! The dude is a stud- I’ve watched him since high school.
Great news!
Still makes me sad there is no football at HSU.
I’m sad HSU is still in existence
Are you sad cz you are not educated, or you have a way better idea?
Seems undersized?
Been a while since I followed Football lol, the minimum is $450K ish?