Oregon Ducks RT Ajani Cornelius named to midseason Senior Bowl team

Oregon Ducks RT Ajani Cornelius named to midseason Senior Bowl team

Each year in February, the top football players from colleges across the country are invited to Mobile, Alabama, to compete in the Senior Bowl. Similar to the NFL’s Pro Bowl, the Senior Bowl is an exhibition game featuring two All-Star teams of the nation’s best draft-eligible college football players. Historically, the players selected for the Senior Bowl have had a high rate of success on NFL draft day and gone on to have fruitful careers.

While we’re still in October and a ways away from the 2024 Senior Bowl, predictions for this season’s class are beginning to unfold. Today, the Reese’s Senior Bowl tweeted the “Senior Bowl Midseason All-American Team.” The only Oregon Duck to make the team: Ajani Cornelius

Cornelius is a 2022 transfer from Rhode Island. After Bruce Feldman wrote a feature story on Cornelius for the Athletic, his story became known nationwide. One of the things that made Cornelius’ story resonate with people was his journey from being a no-star high school recruit to one of the most sought-after transfer targets last offseason.

There was a massive rush of schools trying to bring Cornelius in after last season, but on early signing day last December, he chose Oregon. So far, it seems the Ducks couldn’t be luckier to have to him.

Through five games as the team’s starting right tackle, Cornelius has played 304 snaps (the third most on the team). But what’s most impressive about the way Cornelius has played, is that he has yet to give up a QB pressure this season, despite facing 182 pressure opportunities.

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When blocking for the run, Cornelius has been just as dominant. No matter who he faces off against, Cornelius has been able to consistently set the edge for the Oregon RBs — who love to bounce it outside.

Despite being selected to the midseason Senior Bowl All-America team, Cornelius still feels like one of the unsung heroes of the Oregon offense. When asked about Cornelius on Monday night, Head Coach Dan Lanning had this to say.

“I wish everyone could see where he started when he first got here this spring and what he’s been able to do throughout the spring and his development and all the way into the fall. He’s proven to be one of the best tackles in the league. I think he’s really playing at a really high level, but I know he has a high bar for himself and he wants to get even better and I think he will.”

Cornelius and the Oregon Ducks still have a long way to go in order to end this season atop the mountain. Their matchup this weekend against the Washington Huskies will be their most important game of the regular season, and Cornelius will have a key role to play as he faces off against one of the nation’s premier pass rushers, Bralen Trice.

In terms of Cornelius’ individual path, a midseason Senior Bowl selection is certainly not his long-term goal, but it’s a large step in the right direction. Like I said earlier, a trip to the Senior Bowl says a lot about one’s chances in the NFL draft. For Cornelius, a chance in the NFL has to be his objective, and for a player who received zero FBS offers out of high school, it doesn’t seem too far from his reach.

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