Ricky Pearsall

Ricky Pearsall (WR) – Florida / Senior (5th year)

6’1″, 189 Lbs. (Combine)

2023 Stats: 12 games, 65 receptions, 965 Yards, 14.8 Avg., 4 TDs

{Reference: Ricky Pearsall College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits | College Football at Sports-Reference.com}

Awards/Leader: 

Measurables (Combine): 

RAS: 9.78

Games Watched: Utah (2022), Utah (2023), LSU (2023), South Carolina (2023), Georgia (2023)

PRO’S 

Pearsall is one of the best zone route runners of anyone in this rookie class. He understands how to adjust his routes based on the coverage, and he processes the field very well. You regularly see him scanning the field before and during the play to figure out where his coverage triangle is and how to make himself an option for the quarterback. He also excels at separating against off man coverage from the slot, where he uses his speed to quickly get on top of defenders, and a variety of footwork techniques.  He knows how to make different routes look the same and set up his defender throughout the game. Pearsall has a very sound understanding of his offense as a whole. He runs his routes with the correct speed and timing that the particular play needs. If he’s later in the progression or needs to wait for a clear-out, he will take the opportunity to manipulate the stem of his route or execute more time consuming techniques. Against press coverage, Pearsall is more of a work in progress, but shows promise. He appears to have a good conceptual understanding of how to win at the line of scrimmage. His decisions of which release to use in different situations are usually logical, and he’s shown on multiple occasions that he can layer techniques together. His versatility is also easy to see just by looking at his average depth of target by year. In 2022 with Anthony Richardson at QB, he had a massive ADOT of 19.7. In 2023 that came all the way down to 10.9, but his production did not falter. He has reliable hands and is capable of making difficult catches away from his body (go watch his catch against Charlotte). His leaping ability is exceptional and he usually displays good body control. 

CON’S

The biggest thing that could hold Pearsall back from being a very productive player is how he handles physicality. He has a slender frame at 6’1 189 pounds and allows defenders to push him off of his route a little too easily. Typically, successful smaller receivers are adept at avoiding contact with a shoulder dip or “blade” technique. Pearsall will avoid contact with his footwork and smarts, but will likely need to develop further in this area. He needs to improve his use of hands during routes as well. He also has lapses in his receiving skills at times. He has a tendency to jump for throws that he doesn’t need to which can limit his capacity to make plays after the catch, as well as make it more difficult to survive contact. Not that he’s incapable of this, but he is very rarely seen making any sort of square cuts on his routes. He’s almost always running routes that require cuts at higher speed and with longer strides. However, he has great footwork on comebacks and curls which leads me to believe this will not be an issue. I’ve seen evaluators note Pearsall’s after the catch ability as one of his best attributes, but I don’t really see it as such. He’s a solid ball carrier on jet sweeps because of his speed and vision, but he’s not particularly elusive and doesn’t have great contact balance. His transitions after the catch are also decent but not exceptional. According to PFF, Pearsall forced 8 missed tackles in his first 5 games, but only 1 in his final 7.

OVERALL 

Ricky Pearsall started his career at Arizona State where he enjoyed mild success. In 2022, he transferred to Florida and initially caught the attention of many evaluators watching Anthony Richardson. He’s an exciting prospect who should quickly become one of his quarterback’s best friends. The guy just knows how to get open, and his combination of elite athleticism and high football IQ are not easy to come by. I see him becoming an excellent WR2 playing as a flanker/slot hybrid, with the possibility of developing into someone who can play all 3 receiver positions. He reminds me a bit of Jayden Reed without quite the same skills as a ball carrier. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Pearsall have a similar year-1 impact as Reed if he lands in a good situation. I see him as a candidate to be selected as soon as Day 2 of the draft begins. Anything after round 2 would be a steal.

Completed by: AJ Cola @AJ_T2T, 3/05/2024

Reviewed & edited: J. Clark, 03/05/24