From now until the 2025 NFL Draft, we will scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top-10 picks, down to Day 3 selections, and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Auburn linebacker Eugene Asante.
No. 9 EUGENE ASANTE/LINEBACKER AUBURN– 6004, 223 POUNDS (6th–YEAR SENIOR)
Measurements
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Eugene Asante | 6004/223 | 10 1/4 | 30 1/4 | 73 1/2 |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| 4.48 | 1.52 | N/A | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| N/A | N/A | 21 |
THE GOOD
– Impressive athletic ability
– Quick closing speed on ball carriers
– Strong change of direction and lateral speed
– Adequate play strength
– Impressive contact balance when taking on blocks
– Sheds blocks well
– Locates ball carriers and makes tackles, but needs to improve technique
– Plays gap sound that attributes to defensive success
– Plays with good zone coverage awareness and gets good depth when there is no threat underneath
– Puts hands on receivers to take them off track
– Flies to the ball with aggressiveness and hits ball carriers hard
– Can be used as a blitzer
– High motor team leader
THE BAD
– Gets fooled badly by play action and misdirection
– Can leave feet early when tackling, which leads to strong ball carriers running through him
– Out of control feet in man coverage
– Needs to control lower body when closing in on a ball carrier, can be out of control and overrun
– Old age, will be 24
– Questions about whether the ceiling is maxed out and how much more he can grow.
– Only played about 70-percent of snaps
BIO
– Started 25 games across three years at Auburn. Transferred from North Carolina, where he started two games across three seasons
– 2024: 47 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks
– Named Preseason First-Team All-SEC and the Butkus Award Watch List
– 2023: 86 tackles, 8.5 TFL, 5 sacks, and 1 PBU
– Named Third-Team All-SEC
– 2022: Only played in first four games, recording just 1 tackle
– Four-star prospect out of Westfield High School in Virginia
– Ranked the No. 9 player in Virginia and No. 9 player outside linebacker in the country
– Led team to a 13-1 record and state semifinals appearance
– Named First-Team All-State as a senior
– As a junior, won the state championship and was named Northern Virginia Player of the Year
– Also played running back as a junior, being named First-Team All-State and Concorde District Player of the Year
– Asante’s parents immigrated from Ghana and instilled a strong Ashanti work ethic in him that he applies to the football field
TAPE BREAKDOWN
Eugene Asante is a fun player to watch because he is focused on the field, which results in him hardly making mistakes. In the run game, he is gap disciplined, and if everyone else does their job on the field, it will turn into a positive play for the defense. He will hold his gap until the last possible second and then attack the ball carrier from behind the block. The way he flies to the ball is the most impressive thing he does, and he will chase down a ball carrier using his speed. His impressive athletic ability shows up when getting blocked, where he has really good contact balance to where he can hold the blocker up and hawk down the ball carrier.
His change-of-direction skills are good, and he follows that up with quick lateral speed. As a tackler, he will need to work on his technique, as he leaves his feet too early, which can lead to missed tackles. But for the most part, he still made almost all the plays he needed to bring ball carriers down.
He will also need to slow down his feet when getting up the field quickly to tackle the running back, as he can be out of control, and they can make a quick move, resulting in a whiff. On this play, he leaves his feet too early, and the powerful running back runs through him.
This is not to say he is a bad tackler, but he needs to improve these little things. When blocked, he uses that contact balance and good play strength to shed quickly and close in on the ball carrier.
He will not give himself up to being blocked. He fights to the end of the play and makes an offensive lineman exude a lot of effort on each play. When receivers block him, he will hold them up with good eyes on the ball carrier, shed, and make a play. The center approaches him on this rep, but he quickly sheds and helps make a tackle.
Asante uses his impressive athletic ability to fly around the field in pass coverage. He shows good awareness in zone coverage by playing everything from depth, where he can come down and make a tackle. He does not get beat over the top.
When there is no threat underneath, he gets great depth to wall off routes over his head. You can tell he has a veteran presence on the field with how he carries himself and commands the team. In this play, he flies to the ball to limit the gain, showing his closing speed and how he can confidently make a play from depth.
On this rep, he gets paused because of the play action, sees max protection, and flies back to wall off a deep crosser. This causes the quarterback to check the ball down, and the defense flows to the ball. This is one of the most crucial parts of linebackers in coverage because it can be the difference between an explosive play and a negative one.
He does a good job of getting collisions with tight ends and running backs in man coverage. He has the athletic ability to stay with them in the short and intermediate part of the field, but when it gets to 10+ yards, his feet may get out of control, and a quick move can shake him. But, it is not like NFL linebackers are being asked to cover downfield man coverage for many plays of a game.
As a blitzer, Asante flies up the field and can shed blocks because of his quickness. He will need to break down at the tackling point, but his blitzing ability is very encouraging. He uses the same contact balance in the run game to stay on his feet, and his high motor will land him extra sacks.
CONCLUSION
Eugene Asante is a rock-solid football player who can contribute on all 3 downs. He will not make many mistakes and can give your defense a good chance of succeeding if everyone does their job. He has the athletic gifts and football sense to be a positive starter, but his older age might prevent him from increasing his skillset and playing for a long time. I think he will be an immediate serviceable backup that can compete for that 3rd linebacker role, but in year 2 or 3, he can be a serviceable starter.
My comp is Malcolm Rodriguez.
Projection: Mid-Day 3
Depot Draft Grade: 7.7 – Third Round (Potential Starter/Good Backup)
Games Watched: at Georgia (2024), at Missouri (2024), at Alabama (2024)
