Arnold Ebiketie becomes second Nittany Lion to go in 2022 NFL Draft. What to know
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2022 NFL Draft
The 2022 NFL Draft, April 28-30, includes a number of Nittany Lion draft hopefuls. The Centre Daily Times has each round covered.
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For the second year in a row Penn State has had a defensive end go in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft. Arnold Ebiketie was taken No. 38 overall by the Atlanta Falcons with the sixth pick of the second round.
Ebiketie is the second Nittany Lion to go in the draft after Jahan Dotson went No. 16 to the Washington Commanders on Thursday.
Ebiketie only spent one season at Penn State, utilizing the transfer portal to go from Temple — where he spent his first three seasons — to the Nittany Lions. He took advantage of his lone season with the program, racking up 9.5 sacks to lead Penn State in the 2021 season while adding two forced fumbles.
He was the most consistent pass rusher on the roster and established himself as a force along the defensive front when opponents dropped back to pass.
Ebiketie finished his college career with 15.5 sacks, with the first six coming at Temple. His athletic traits stood out in the pre-draft process. He measured at 6 feet, 2 inches and 250 pounds with 34 1/8-inch arms and ran a 40-yard dash in 4.65 seconds.
Those testing numbers, along with his breakout season at Penn State, helped him rise up draft boards over the past season.
An anonymous NFL scout told the Centre Daily Times Ebiketie’s intangibles would be part of the reason an NFL team would take him.
“He has high character, he knows how to rush, he had a good Senior Bowl, he tested well,” the scout said. “He’s checked all the boxes. Some people are gonna be like, ‘I trust him, so I’m gonna take him in the second round, early third and then call it a day and know that I have a really good football player.’ ”
This story was originally published April 29, 2022 at 7:35 PM.
