Tree Babalade OT Nebraska |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #51 SUB-POSITION: Left Tackle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2027 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 5.40 seconds (23%*) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #51 | |
| SUB-POSITION: Left Tackle | |
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2027 | |
| Forty time: 5.40 seconds (23%*) | |
| Overall Rating: |
74.2 / 100
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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78% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Pass Blocking: |
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69% |
| Run Blocking: |
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55% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
UDFA
Overall Rank:
#372
Position rank:
#43 (OL)
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| College Games: 22 College Snaps: 1164 | ||
ESPN RATING: 81/100
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247 RATING: 92/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.8 (95%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Myron Cunningham - Arkansas |
|
83% |
| Marques Cox - Kentucky |
|
82% |
| Tyler Vrabel - Boston College |
|
80% |
Draft Profile: Bio
A four-star out of national power DeMatha Catholic in Maryland, Babalade was a top-20 tackle recruit who flashed early at South Carolina, earning 247Sports True Freshman of the Week honors after a valiant effort against Georgia. He worked into a starting tackle role for the Gamecocks.An injury-shortened 2025 limited Babalade to seven games, but he started at tackle when available, taking 255 pass-blocking snaps and 166 in the run game while allowing one sack and 21 pressures as a developing blocker. He entered the transfer portal afterward and committed to Nebraska, a long, powerful tackle whose blue-chip pedigree and early flashes keep his ceiling high as he cleans up his consistency. The DeMatha pedigree and the early flashes against Georgia keep his ceiling high, and the move to Nebraska gives a long, blue-chip tackle a fresh stage after a promising but injury-interrupted start.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Massive natural bulk absorbs power; bull rushes stall out in his chest.
- Held up in pass protection against Oklahoma and Kentucky in his first SEC starts.
- Allowed only one sack despite a stretch that included LSU, Alabama and Ole Miss.
- Pass blocking is comfortably the stronger half of his game.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Vanderbilt washed him out of his gap repeatedly; the run game is the rough half of his tape.
- Hurries leak constantly; Alabama alone pressured him five times without needing a sack.
- Heavy-legged mover with limited range; loses footraces to the corner against real speed.
- Career resume is seven meaningful games; the projection rests on a two-month audition.
- Second program and a new scheme await at Nebraska; he has never repeated a system as a starter.
Scouting Report: Summary
A two-month audition is the whole evaluation. Babalade opened 2025 as a backup, inherited the right tackle job when injury struck the starter ahead of him, and held it for five consecutive SEC starts against Kentucky, LSU, Oklahoma, Alabama and Ole Miss. The pass protection held up better than anyone expected, one sack allowed across the stretch, and his enormous natural bulk swallows bull rushes once they commit to his chest.Everything else needs work. The hurry count tells the truth the sack count hides; Alabama alone pressured him five times, and quicker rushers walked the corner on him all season because his range is limited and his feet are heavy. Vanderbilt washed him out of his gap repeatedly in the run game, the rough half of his tape, and his lower-body quickness caps how much scheme variety he can handle. Seven games of meaningful film is a thin book.
Nebraska is the next stop, a second program and a fresh chance at a full season of starts. The body and the pass-protection instincts justify a camp investment, because mass like his cannot be taught and one-sack stretches against that schedule do not happen by accident. The realistic path runs through a practice squad year and a rebuilt run game, with swing depth as the target. He has to win a job from the bottom of a roster, and the tools say he might.
How other scouting services rate Tree Babalade (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
526.5
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
69.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.