Mitchell and Kneeland are set to head to Indianapolis after impressive efforts at the Senior Bowl.
The NFL season never really takes a day off, with all eyes now turned to the 2024 edition of the Scouting Combine set to start in just over two weeks at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The combine, which begins on February 29th and ends March 4th, will see two representatives from the Mid-American Conference per the official roster in Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and Western Michigan edge rusher Marshawn Kneeland. They will make up two of the 321 invited prospects who will gather in the Circle City later this month.
Both players recently performed at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, acting as the MAC’s sole representatives there as well. Mitchell did not play in the game after a solid week of practices, while Kneeland earned the start and contributed to a dominant victory for the National side.
Mitchell, a back-to-back first-team all-MAC corner who also earned All-American honors from all five eligible publications, picked up 122 tackles, 6.5 tackles-for-loss, a sack, six interceptions and 52 pass break-ups over his career in Toledo. Mitchell also led the MAC in pass breakups in both 2022 (25 total) and 2023 (18 overall), while placing second in the league in interceptions in 2022 (five.)
Mitchell, who stands at six-feet and 195 lbs., has impressed in the prospect evaluation cycle thus far, currently projecting to go anywhere from the middle of the first round to the end of the first round. He’ll look to become the second-ever Toledo Rocket to be selected in the NFL’s first round— defensive end Dan Williams went 15th overall to Denver in 1993— and the first MAC player taken in the first round since Western Michigan’s Corey Davis was selected fifth overall by Tennessee in 2016.
Kneeland has also made a name for himself out of Kalamazoo, checking in to the NFL Combine as an intriguing project edge rusher in the Top 100-pick range.
The six-foot-three, 268 lb. former Bronco edge rusher finished his career with 149 tackles, including 28 tackles-for-loss and 13 sacks, with three passes defensed and three forced fumbles. The 2023 season was his best by statistics, finishing with a career-high 57 tackles and 4.5 sacks, while also collecting 7.5 tackles-for-loss and two forced fumbles. Kneeland even saw some run as a fullback, earning a rushing touchdown.
Kneeland’s 2023 efforts were rewarded with an all-MAC second-team selection and an invitation to the Senior Bowl.
Start-to-finish live coverage of the NFL Scouting Combine begins on Feb. 29th, with practices and skill drills televised on NFL Network and streamed on NFL+.