Arizona Wildcats Superstar Stays Put in Latest NFL Draft Projections
The Arizona Wildcats have witnessed a plethora of outstanding performances on the perimeter from their superstar receiver Tetairoa McMillan throughout his three-year tenure with the program.
It has been such an astounding display of skill and ability, that the receiver is destined to play football on Sundays sooner rather than later.
While the Wildcats would surely love to keep their best player around for another year as he is currently just a junior, McMillan has been projected to be selected in the first round of the NFL draft for quite some time now, and that is no different with the most recent 2025 NFL draft Big Board from NFL draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. for ESPN.
After having the junior positioned to be selected with the 13th overall pick in his last projections, Kiper has not moved McMillan in the most recent iteration.
"McMillan is a big-bodied receiver who can be a mismatch for smaller corners. And his great size, body control, concentration and hands help him consistently win in contested-catch situations," reads Kiper's scouting report on McMillan, "He can snatch the ball and make it look easy. And while McMillan plays with more physicality than speed, he generates late separation to get open. He is third in receiving yards in the country."
McMillan enters the week with 982 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns on 57 catches, and his 17.2 average yards per catch leads the nation for players with 50 or more catches.
McMillan's projection of 13th could be considered as the first wide receiver on the board, or the second, depending on how you look at Colorado Buffaloes' two-way player Travis Hunter.
Hunter is listed as a wide receiver, but is also considered a defensive back, the two-position part of being a two-way player, so McMillan is technically the second receiver projected to be taken in the 2025 NFL draft.
The junior can be an explosive threat with his knack for late separation and has shown as much throughout his tenure with Arizona.
The receiver set the school record for single-game receiving yards in the first game of the 2024 campaign with 304 and has put up two of the other totals that rank among the top 12 in program history.
McMillan has tallied 100 or more yards receiving 11 times throughout his collegiate career, with four of those coming this year.
The superstar is bound to make an immediate impact on whatever NFL team is lucky enough to select him, whether that be with the 13th pick or another, but it will certainly come in the first round.
