2019 NFL Draft: Get to know sleeper WR Justin Sumpter, Kennesaw State

The 2019 NFL Draft may have a sleeper prospect in Kennesaw State’s Justin Sumpter, a big play wide receiver in their triple option offensive attack.

It’s an uphill battle getting into the NFL from a small-school program. It’s an even tougher battle when you’re a wide receiver playing in a triple-option offense at a small-school program.

It’s an uphill battle Kennesaw State’s Justin Sumpter is facing head-on, and he’s got his fair share of big plays to show off to prospective NFL teams.

Sumpter put himself firmly on the map with an outrageous one-handed catch that caught the attention of the production crew at ESPN, and then everyone else in America thereafter.

Kennesaw State’s football program is still really in its infancy stages. Their first season was in 2015 and it was only three seasons later they put their first athlete into the NFL with defensive back Dante Blackmon getting a shot with the Indianapolis Colts in 2017.

Kennesaw State’s program has seen a rapid ascent to the top of the FCS’s Big South conference, where they are back-to-back first-place finishers. Located in Kennesaw, GA, this school’s new program provided the perfect platform for a player like Sumpter to show what he can do, if even just on a limited basis.

Sumpter took some time earlier this offseason for an exclusive interview with us here at NFL Mocks.

Sumpter, a Georgia native, was part of the first recruiting class in school history at Kennesaw State and was a big-play threat all four years.

Over the course of his four seasons, Sumpter put together what really amounts to one or two years of production for a typical college receiver, hauling in 111 passes for 1,989 yards and 21 touchdowns (17.9 yards per reception).

Sumpter admitted in our interview that he has to prove to NFL teams that he can do more than his tape at Kennesaw State may lead on. He was only asked to run three routes in college, essentially, and didn’t get much of a chance to showcase his abilities after the catch.

That didn’t prevent him from making big plays or taking advantage of his opportunities.

Sumpter pointed out that in his limited opportunities, he had to make sure he came down with the football despite being the focus of the defense in obvious passing situations. It was a valid point I have never heard raised by another triple-option receiver (basically just any guy from Georgia Tech the last decade or so).

Sumpter maximized his limited opportunities over four years in the passing game and made the most of them, proving himself to be a consistent big play threat and giving NFL teams enough in that department to lead them to believe there is something there to work with.

Sumpter is 6-foot-3, 217 pounds. He’s obviously well-versed as a blocker and watching his highlight reel, he clearly has a knack for making big plays and tough catches.

After talking with him, it’s also very clear that Sumpter knows the areas he needs to work on as a player and understands what he has to do to prove to NFL teams he’s capable of playing at the next level, and that he’s capable of making an impact right away.

It’s also really interesting that he was part of the first ever recruiting class for a school, and that he was able to see the team go from nothing to being a major contender at the FCS level in a very non-traditional offensive attack in today’s football world.

For him to stand out the way that he did in college speaks volumes.

He went to a highly regarded high school in Georgia (Sandy Creek) but wasn’t put in a position to get attention from big name college scouts with just 26 catches his senior year.

"“It teaches you to just always be prepared in the moment. If you get your one play, you never know when you’re going to get it again.”Justin Sumpter, Kennesaw State"

Sumpter learned over the course of his college career to embrace the pressure of being a go-to receiver in a low-volume passing attack. That kind of mental fortitude will undoubtedly impress NFL teams. Hopefully he gets a chance to prove himself over the course of the next few months in an NFL camp and show everyone he belongs.