Jayden Loving

Jayden Loving, who has three siblings, grew up with his mother (Mae Lynn Williams), who played college volleyball at Freed-Hardeman University. His older brother played on the offensive line at Bethune-Cookman, and his younger brother is an infielder at North Alabama. Jayden lettered in basketball, football and track at Hamilton High School (where his mother was a teacher). He was a 250-pound defensive end and earned second-team all-state honors as a senior in 2021 (he clocked a 100-meter dash time of 11.3 seconds). A no-star recruit, he signed with Bethune-Cookman and played in the FCS for two seasons before transferring to Western Kentucky in 2023. After missing most of his junior season because of a meniscus injury in his left knee, he went back into the portal and transferred to Wake Forest, where he earned all-ACC honors as part of the defensive-line rotation (he averaged 41.5 defensive snaps per game). Loving has a sawed-off, smooth-muscled body but average point-of-attack strength, which limits his ability to quickly shed or leverage blocks. His run-game motor helps him flow to the football and make tackles away from his square. As a pass rusher, he is at his best on loops and stunts, where he can stay free from blocks and show off his athleticism in space. His passionate energy on the field stood out to NFL scouts during his final season. Overall, Loving needs to mature his block recognition and leverage to take the next 443 Back to table of contents -- 447 of 629 -- step in his development, but his movement ability is rare for his size (his pro-day performance created a buzz among NFL scouts). He is a practice-squad candidate.