[autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] had a breakout season for the Tigers as a sophomore in 2022, leading the team with a 1,000-yard campaign and leading the SEC in receptions.
However, that was just the preamble for the true leap that was to come in 2023. Nabers went from reliable receiver to one of the nation’s best this season, finishing as the runner-up for the Biletnikoff Award as he ranked second nationally in receiving yards.
His touchdown total also took a huge jump from just three last fall to 14 this season.
Nabers entered the year viewed as a possible first-round round pick, but now, he isn’t likely to fall out of the top 10. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. recently detailed Nabers’ growth this season on an episode of First Draft.
“I look at him last year? He wasn’t the guy who he was this year,” Kiper Jr. said per On3’s Sam Gillenwater. “2023, you talk about what he was able to do for [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag]? The last five games of Jayden Daniels’ career? He had a catch of over 45 yards. In nine of 13 games? He’s getting it done, has had a catch of over 35 yards. 17 receptions of 30-plus yards this year.
“He can be in the slot, he can be outside. This is a kid who was remarkable this season in terms not dropping passes and producing big play after big play.”
Kiper pointed to the statistical improvements Nabers made this season, particularly his yards per catch, which rose to 17.6 in 2023.
“You see the touchdown improvement? The average per catch? Everything is up. Making plays, stretching it, taking the top off a defense, wanting the ball in clutch moments,” Kiper Jr. said. “When this kid had to step up, game after game? He did it.
“He loves to play the game of football. I’ve always spoken about how much of a baller he is. How tough, how physical, how reliable he is. The improvement he showed this year was dramatic.”
Both Nabers and Daniels — as well as fellow receiver [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] — have seen dramatic draft stock rises toward the end of the 2023 season and are now all likely to be taken in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft.
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