Christian Jones, T'Vondre Sweat making the most of the Senior Bowl
While a number of Longhorns were invited to Mobile, Ala. to participate in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, only offensive lineman Christian Jones and defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat ended up participating in one of the biggest opportunities for scouts to gain more information on prospects for the upcoming draft.
[Join Inside Texas and get ONE MONTH of Longhorn intel for just $1!]
Christian Jones
Jones, who measured in at 6-foot-5, 318 pounds with an almost 84-inch wingspan, is seen as someone who could play both tackle and guard at the next level.
During day one, he drew positive reviews and had some strong reps on film, including one against Texas Tech’s Myles Cole…
And Alabama EDGE Justin Eboigbe.
ESPN’s Jordan Reid had high praise for Jones after his day one performance.
I picked out guys I expected to rise over the next few months heading into the Senior Bowl, and Texas offensive tackle Christian Jones was one of them. He certainly helped himself during the first day of practice in Mobile, showing plenty of strength against defensive linemen in one-on-one sessions. Jones was able to cancel out pass-rushers quickly, much like he did all season; he allowed six pressures and one sack over 482 pass-blocking snaps in 2023. He has unique size at 6-foot-5 and 318 pounds with 34 7/8-inch arms, and while he has been projected as a late-Day 2 to early-Day 3 pick, Jones is trending toward third-round status.
That continued during day two, where Jones had strong reps versus Ole Miss’ Cedric Johnson and Alabama’s Chris Braswell but was bested by Connecticut’s Eric Watts.
Jones, who just completed his sixth season with Texas, played in 61 games during his Longhorns career with 48 starts. He was an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection in 2022 and 2023 and was part of an O-line that was a semifinalist for the 2023 Joe Moore Award. Jones started 13 games at right tackle for the Longhorns in 2023, missing just the Kansas State game due to injury.
In 2022, he started all 13 games at right tackle. In 2021 he started all 12 games at left tackle. 2020 saw him start all 10 games with nine at right tackle and one at left tackle. He was primarily on the field goal unit in 2019.
T’Vondre Sweat
Sweat, the 2023 Outland Trophy winner, continued his high level of play in Mobile.
He wrecked Arkansas OL Beaux Limmer on this rep.
He also got the most of TCU’s Brandon Coleman here.
Texas A&M’s Layden Robinson never matched up with Sweat on the field in college, but he did at the Senior Bowl. Sweat made quick work of him with a swim move.
Sweat was listed by Texas at 6-foot-4, 362 pounds. He reportedly elected not to weigh in at the Senior Bowl, something that will have scouts anxious to see him in Indianapolis for the combine.
Sweat, who completed his fifth year in 2023, played in 62 games with 18 starts in his career. Not only did he take home the Outland Trophy, he earned unanimous All-American honors as well as the title of Big 12 defensive player of the year.
[Subscribe to the brand new Inside Texas YouTube channel!]
Sweat had 45 tackles with 8.0 for loss and 2.0 sacks. He also had one reception for two yards and a touchdown in the 2023 Big 12 Championship game.
