Canadian Jevon Holland solidified himself as one of the best defensive backs available in the 2021 NFL Draft at his University of Oregon pro day.
Holland sat out the 2020 NCAA season to focus on training for professional football amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The son of former CFL all-star defensive back Robert Holland was born in Coquitlam, B.C. during his father’s stint with the Lions. He’s developed into a better version of his father, using the genes well.
In front of many NFL scouts, Holland checked in at six-foot-and-a-half, 207 pounds with a 76-and-five-eights wingspan. He ran a 4.46 forty-yard time, 4.14 shuttle, recorded a 35.5-inch vertical, 10-foot, six-inch broad jump, while repping 225 pounds 19 times on the bench press.
31 NFL teams sent representatives to Eugene, Oregon, including Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst, Minnesota Vikings GM Rick Spielman, along with Cincinnati Bengals top talent man Duke Tobin and head coach Zac Taylor. Holland received an invitation to this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, but due to the coronavirus there was no in-person event.
“As a nickel, as a safety, can do a lot of things. I think he’s one of the three or four best safeties in this draft class,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said.
A consensus four-star recruit out of Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, California, Holland made an immediate impact as a true freshman for the Ducks by making 44 tackles, defending 11 passes, and finishing second in the Pac-12 Conference with five interceptions.
In 2019, Holland was a semi-finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award as NCAA football’s top defensive back. He was an All-Pac-12 second-team defender after recording 66 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, eight passes defended, and four interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. The playmaking cover man helped Oregon win the 2020 Rose Bowl 28-27 over Wisconsin.
Jevon’s brother, Jamir Holland, went unselected in the 2019 CFL Draft, but the younger brother will not lack for pro football suitors. Holland is projected as a top NFL Draft pick and could potentially be the first safety off the board thanks to his ability to cover and provide dynamic, big-play production.
