Nick Emmanwori, South Carolina: 2025 NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report

Emmanwori was a three-star recruit from Irmo High School in Columbia, S.C. in the class of 2022

South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori offers generational athleticism for a high ranking safety prospect and made a strong case to hear his name called in the first round with an outstanding showing at the NFL Scouting Combine. Emmanwori projects as a top 35 selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.

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Nick Emmanwori, S South Carolina: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Junior strong safety from Irmo, S.C.

Background: Emmanwori was a three-star recruit from Irmo High School in Columbia, S.C. in the class of 2022. He was the No. 435 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 325 (four-star) for On3.com. Emmanwori was an unranked four-star outside linebacker recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star outside linebacker recruit for ESPN with a 78 grade out of 100. He played multiple defensive positions in high school but primarily aligned at linebacker. Emmanwori earned First Team All-State honors as a senior by amassing 232 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, four sacks, eight forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries. He also earned All-State honors as a junior for totaling 100 tackles, eight tackles for loss, three sacks, two interceptions, and a forced fumble. Emmanwori was born on Feb. 7, 2004.

Injuries & Off-Field: Played through an Achilles strain vs. Missouri (2022), left 2023 North Carolina game with a hamstring injury and missed the Furman game

Awards: 2022 Freshman All-SEC, 2022 First Team Freshman All-American (ESPN, PFF, On3), 2022 Second Team Freshman All-American (CFN, The Athletic), 2024 First Team All-SEC, 2024 First Team All-American

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, historic level athlete, Freaks List, height/weight/length combo, arm length, hips move well for a player with his build, good COD at his size, short-area burst, quickly accelerates to top speed, re-routes tight ends with jams, quick to diagnose and trigger on routes breaking in front of him, quick to close at top of the stem, diagnoses and anticipates sweeps, reads the quarterback’s eyes, ball production, vertical expands catch radius, not afraid to fit the run, quick downhill trigger to fit the run, closing speed helps him make steep angles work, speed to recover from some poor angles, size to compete in the box, nice run fits from the box, splits blockers to reach the ball, examples of stacking and shedding TE blocks, a chore for blockers to dig out at the second level, arrives at tackle attempt with power, accelerates into hits, wrap-up tackler who finishes plays

Cons: Penalized five times in 2024, some natural hip tightness at his size, lacks single-high range, sometimes late to recognize threats and help corners outside the numbers, awareness in deep coverages occasionally stalls, bites on underneath route fakes opening up chances to stack him downfield, improper approach to attacking high-low route combos, caught too low on some deep crossing routes, steep angles create space for running backs to bounce runs outside, sometimes over runs outside runs in pursuit

Overview: Emmanwori played a wide variety of coverage roles for South Carolina, including two-high safety, single-high, in the box, off-man over the slot or over the in-line tight end, and dropped down playing the middle hook or robber. He’s a historic athlete who appeared on Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List in the summer and backed up his selection with a terrific NFL Scouting Combine performance. Emmanwori offers the ultimate height, weight, speed, and length combination among modern top end safety prospects. His height and size cause some natural hip tightness during his transitions, but he moves well for a player with his build. Emmanwori quickly diagnoses and triggers on routes breaking in front of him and closes on pass catchers at the top of the stem to make receptions difficult. He identifies and triggers on sweeps from depth. Emmanwori re-routes tight ends with powerful jams when lined up in off man or around the box. He reads the quarterback’s eyes in coverage and uses his acceleration and short-area burst to quickly close throwing lanes. These traits, combined with Emmanwori’s vertical, make him a productive defender in the passing game at depth despite possessing a build traditionally associated with operating in the box. The South Carolina native is rangy but lacks true single-high speed. He gets tunnel vision at times, which makes him late to work outside the numbers to support his cornerbacks or leads to him drifting. Emmanwori’s aggression causes him to bite on underneath routes or route fakes, which opens space for routes working downfield. His positioning on deep over routes is too low and makes it difficult for him to turn and recover to the receiver. Emmanwori is an eager run defender with a quick downhill trigger. He takes steep angles that sometimes open space to the outside. However, the All-American’s closing speed allows him to get away with these difficult angles. Even when initially beaten, Emmanwori possesses the speed to recover in pursuit. His size makes him a competitive box defender who stacks and sheds tight end blocks or splits blockers on his way to the ball. He arrives with force and accelerates into ball carriers for big hits while also wrapping up.

Overall, Emmanwori is a one-of-one prospect with rare athleticism and experience serving in a wide variety of coverage roles. His physical gifts give him the potential to be so much more than just a box safety. Emmanwori’s draft positioning comes down to how much of that versatility teams believe is translatable to the NFL level.

Role & Scheme Fit: Box safety in Cover 3 or Cover 2 safety

Round Grade: Second Round

Size: 6'3 1/8", 220 lbs. (NFL Combine)

Submitted: 02-04-25

Updated: 03-03-25