NFL draft prospect and Tennessee cornerback Colton Hood is on the verge of giving his mother, Crystal, a memorable gift.
“The draft is on her birthday,” Colton said to USA TODAY Sports. “I think that would be like a really good birthday present for her.”
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Family is very important to Colton, who grew up with seven siblings. His father, Bengie, used to make Colton and his siblings write down goals. Colton’s long-term goal was to make it to the NFL.
“Six,” Colton reminisced about the age he decided he wanted to play in the NFL. “As soon as I starting playing.”
Football is in Colton’s DNA. His brother, Brandon, played running back at Colorado in 2024 before transferring to Massachusetts. Colton’s uncle, Roderick Hood, was a defensive back in the NFL for eight seasons and has become Colton’s personal defensive back coach.
“I definitely look up to him. I actually talked to him like almost every day. He’s my personal coach. I definitely looked up to him. He’s taught me everything I pretty much know about DB in itself,” Colton said of Roderick. “You know, my technique and everything the way I play. The mentality I play with comes from him and my dad. He’s definitely been a big help and a big part of my career so far.”
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Colton started his college career at Auburn before transferring to Colorado. He then played his final collegiate season at Tennessee. Colton said he gained knowledge at each of his three stops. At Colorado, Colton was coached by the person many consider the best cornerback ever, Deion Sanders.
“The biggest thing he taught me was just about film study. Learning how to study film. How much better you can be as a player if you study film really good and really well,” Colton said of what he learned from Sanders.
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
1. Las Vegas Raiders – Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
1. Las Vegas Raiders – Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
2. New York Jets – David Bailey, OLB/DE, Texas Tech
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
3. Arizona Cardinals – Arvell Reese, LB/DE, Ohio State
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
4. Tennessee Titans – Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
5. New York Giants – Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
6. Cleveland Browns – Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
7. Washington Commanders – Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
8. New Orleans Saints – Makai Lemon, WR, USC
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
9. Kansas City Chiefs – Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
29. Kansas City Chiefs (from Rams) – Malachi Lawrence, DE, UCF
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
30. Miami Dolphins (from Denver Broncos) – Chris Johnson, CB, San Diego State
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
31. New England Patriots – Zion Young, DE/OLB, Missouri
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NFL mock draft: Big-name prospect drops in latest first-round projection
32. Seattle Seahawks – Colton Hood, CB, Tennessee
What makes Colton Hood a special cornerback
Colton is one of 16 prospects who will attend the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. He’s projected to be a first-round pick as one of the top cornerbacks in this year’s class. However, if you ask Colton, he believes he’s the best cornerback in this year’s group.
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“I would say one of my competitiveness, like my competitive nature, you’re not gonna find that in any other player in this class. It’s hard to find, really, on this earth, I believe,” Colton said. “I would say, I’m technically sound, and I’m a complete corner. I cover, I tackle, I do everything.”
The confident cornerback was named to the 2025 All-SEC Second Team and he was on the 2025 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll.
“(He’s) an athlete that does it the right way,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said of Colton at Tennessee’s pro do, per 247 Sports. “He’s smart, tough, relentless competitor that cares about the people around him.”
Colton revealed to USA TODAY Sports he met with the New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders and Atlanta Falcons as part of the NFL’s top 30 visits, where each NFL team can bring up to 30 players in for a visit as part of their draft scouting process.
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“One of the most complete cornerbacks in the draft,” NFL media analyst Daniel Jeremiah said about Colton in a recent mock draft.
Colton said whichever team selects him will get a hypercompetitive player on the gridiron.
“They will get a dog. Somebody who is competitive and has an insatiable hunger to be great,” Colton said. “I’m a hard worker and just somebody who’s gonna go out there and compete every snap.”
Colton told USA TODAY Sports he plans to wear a royal blue outfit on draft day. Whenever Colton gets selected, the first person he will look to is his mother in what will undoubtedly be a special birthday present for her – and a dream realized for him.
