TaMuarion Wilson, Central Arkansas: 2025 NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report

Wilson was a defensive back recruit from Bryant High School in Bryant, Ark. in the class of 2020

Central Arkansas’ David Walker gets most of the attention when it comes to discussing the program’s future 2025 NFL Draft selections, but hybrid defender TaMuarion Wilson also belongs in the conversation. Wilson could take rotational snaps at multiple roles at the next level, including overhang defender, weakside linebacker, and box safety.

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TaMuarion Wilson, LB/DB Central Arkansas: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Fifth-year senior linebacker and nickel from Bryant, Ark.

Background: Wilson was a defensive back recruit from Bryant High School in Bryant, Ark. in the class of 2020. He didn’t receive a star rating or grade out of 100 from any major recruiting services. Wilson earned 7A All-State honors in 2018 and 2019 and made the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s All-Arkansas Team. In 2019, he tallied 41 tackles with three sacks and 12 tackles for loss, an interception, and nine passes defensed.

Injuries & Off-Field: Suffered an AC joint sprain early in the 2023 season

Awards: 2022 All-ASUN, 2022 Sophomore All-American (HERO Sports), 2023 First Team All-UAC, 2023 Fourth Team FCS All-American (Phil Steele), 2024 First Team All-UAC

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, arm length surpasses NFL’s thresholds, motor runs hot in pursuit, solid range, good closing burst, downhill missile, impressive horizontal flow to the ball, covers ground quickly as a backside run defender, deciphers multiple route concepts breaking in front of him, drops under slants to close off throwing lanes, reads the quarterback’s eyes to jump throwing lanes on short to intermediate routes, quick recognition and trigger out of zone, jars the ball loose with big hits, arm length expands catch radius, quick to recognize and trigger on screens, demon blitzing from the nickel

Cons: Nine penalties in 2024 including multiple targeting calls, competition level, bit of a hybrid build between safety and linebacker, needs to trust his instincts more, speed testing won’t be elite, appears to lack top end speed to cover vertical threats, some misplays when operating at depth and the ball is in the air, gains limited depth in zone when lined up near LOS, eyes on the quarterback leads to lapses in awareness in coverage, not a mirror and matcher in man coverage, sucked downfield by play action, bites on action in the backfield, overruns plays in pursuit, some steep angles give up the edge, fails to finish some arm tackles on the move, lacks a pass rush plan

Overview: Wilson brings experience on five different special teams units to the NFL, giving him an early path to the field. He fills a wide variety of roles for Central Arkansas, including playing off-man coverage over the slot, overhang defender, box add-on, robber, Cover 2 safety, rusher at 5-tech and wide-9, etc. The Bears make the most of his versatility and range in these alignments. Wilson even bails from mugged-up looks to undercut throwing lanes or bait quarterbacks into poor throws. He primarily operated in shallow to intermediate coverages in 2024 but also saw some downfield assignments. Wilson’s arm length surpasses the league’s thresholds. His build puts him in a hybrid class between safeties and linebackers with a lean toward the latter. Wilson’s motor pops in pursuit. He chases down ball carriers from across the field with his closing burst. The Arkansas native transforms into a downhill missile when fitting the run or attacking screens. He also displays impressive lateral flow and threatens to blow up plays as a backside run defender. Wilson lacks elite speed and true sideline-to-sideline range. He overruns some plays in pursuit and takes steep angles that allow running backs to out-leverage him on off-tackle runs. Wilson delivers some jarring hits, especially out of zone coverage, but also slides off arm tackle attempts. He needs to play with more discipline, especially when it comes to cutting down on the nine penalties he drew in 2024. Wilson lacks a pass rush plan when lined up on the edge but is a disruptive force when blitzing from the nickel. In coverage, he sees through routes unfolding in front of him to zero in on the quarterback’s preferred target. Wilson reads the quarterback’s eyes to jump throwing lanes or get an early step downhill to limit yards after the catch. He quickly recognizes and triggers on routes or screens out of zone. The fifth-year prospect also starts shallow and drops under short to intermediate routes to clog throwing lanes. He needs to trust his instincts more. Wilson left several plays on the field in 2024 because he hesitated. He lacks the speed to consistently carry slot options vertically and misplayed the ball a few times when operating at depth. In these instances, he mistimed his jump for the ball or tracked it poorly and took himself out of the play. Wilson lacks the agility to mirror and match NFL-caliber slot receivers in man coverage. His focus on the quarterback leads to some lapses in coverage. Play action and other eye candy draws Wilson downfield and opens throwing lanes over his head.

Overall, Wilson offers some unique physical traits for a linebacker, including his long arms and closing burst. He hasn’t played as much in deep zones this season as in past years and appears most comfortable operating at the short to intermediate levels. Wilson should provide value on special teams and could factor in as a rangy subpackage defender.

Role & Scheme Fit: Subpackage second level defender & special teams ace

Round Grade: Late Fifth to Mid Sixth Round

Size: 6'2", 215 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 10-29-24

Updated: 12-15-24