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A high-risk, high-reward bet with outstanding athletic traits. A three-year starter at South Carolina, Kilgore played a nickel role in defensive coordinator Clayton White’s scheme. After Nick Emmanwori suffered an injury in 2023, Kilgore was pressed into a prominent role as a true freshman — and never left the field. He was a Freshman All-American, then led the Gamecocks in both passes defended and interceptions during his sophomore and junior seasons. Kilgore is an impressive height-weight-speed athlete and consistently made plays on the football from the nickel position. Though his athletic traits are outstanding, he lacks functional control in his pedal and break movements, which allows receivers to uncover on his watch. He wasn’t asked to range over the top in coverage, but that should be his best position at the next level. Can he deploy his athleticism more efficiently from deep coverage? Kilgore is a tough eval when projecting him at a position other than nickel, but his size, athletic talent and ball-hawking skills should give teams confidence to make that bet. There is a high-risk, high-reward scenario waiting for the team that chases his upside. Advertisement Tap any column header to see its definition. Note: Combine: Left hand measured; no three-cone (choice). Advertisement Tap any column header to see its definition. Jalon (JAY-lun) Kilgore, the youngest of three boys in his family, grew up in Milledgeville, Ga. , with his parents (James Sr. and Tammy). He started playing flag football at age 4 and tackle football at age 6. He started competing up a level in little league so he could play with one of his brothers (Gerald), who is 16 months older. In pee-wee, the brothers led the rec-league Redskins to the championship game. Kilgore was a multisport athlete and played baseball, basketball and track (he also played the saxophone). In middle school, his father, a pastor who also worked in the school system, helped coach the boys. In eighth grade, Kilgore earned 2019 all-state honors for track. His oldest brother (James Jr. ) was on scholarship at Clayton (Ga. ) State for cross country. Jalon’s cousin (Andrew Thomas) was a first-round pick and is now an All-Pro left tackle for the New York Giants. Kilgore started his prep career at Baldwin High School in Milledgeville and played defensive back as a freshman alongside Javon Bullard (now a starter for the Green Bay Packers). Gerald, a sophomore at the time, was Baldwin’s quarterback. Before Jalon’s sophomore year, the brothers transferred to Putnam County High School in Eatonton, Ga. Jalon played both ways in 2020 as a wide receiver and safety, helping the team to a 10-2 record. As a junior, Kilgore caught 37 passes for 921 and 11 touchdowns (from his brother), while posting 88 tackles and four forced fumbles. The Kilgore brothers led Putnam County to a 12-1 record and the 2021 regional championship, the best season in school history. Jalon Kilgore was named first-team all-state and 2021 Georgia Region 4-AA Athlete of the Year. After his brother graduated, Kilgore was used across the offense as a senior to get the ball in his hands. He posted 551 rushing yards (8. 3 yards per carry), 174 passing yards, 108 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns (eight rushing, three passing). Kilgore also finished with 71 tackles and two interceptions at safety and returned two kickoffs for touchdowns. Kilgore also lettered in basketball and track. He won the 2A state championship in the long jump (23 feet 7 inches) as a junior. He set personal bests of 11. 62 seconds in the 100-meter dash, 23. 04 in the 200 and 51. 71 in the 400. A four-star recruit, Kilgore was the 25th-ranked safety in the 2023 class and the No. 27 recruit in Georgia. He started to receive FBS interest during his junior season, including an offer from South Carolina in January 2022. Several other schools followed, including offers from Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Oklahoma, UCF and Vanderbilt. The summer before his senior year, Kilgore announced a final five of Clemson, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee Tech (where Gerald played). But his heart was set on the Gamecocks and the relationships he had developed with that staff. Kilgore was the eighth-ranked recruit in head coach Shane Beamer’s 2023 class. After two seasons at Tennessee Tech, Gerald Kilgore, who had switched to safety, transferred to South Carolina in 2024 and joined his younger brother in the Gamecocks’ secondary. Jalon Kilgore graduated with a degree in public health (December 2025). He elected to forgo his senior season and enter the NFL Draft. Kilgore accepted his invitation to the Senior Bowl. Advertisement Written by Dane Brugler; designed and produced by Junghye Kim, Thomas Oide and Yuriko Schumacher; illustrations by Mojo Wang; edited by Chris Burke and Skye Gould; art direction by Dan Goldfarb and Will Tullos; additional development by Elijah Soria, Laura Pelton, Matt Myers and Oliver Viehweger; additional production by Dan Goldfarb, Kelsea Petersen, Demetrius Robinson and Drew Jordan; additional editing by Ken Bradley, Adam Coleman, Alison Cotsonika, David De Chant, Jimmy Durkin, Gary Gramling, Adam Hirshfield, Cristina Ledra, Dave Niinemets, Mike Sansone, Dan Steinberg and Josiah Turner. Sources: Select data from footballreference. com and Pro Football Focus.