For Jackson State football player Nyles Gaddy, this season is about making a statement

J.T. Keith, Mississippi Clarion Ledger
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Jackson State football's Nyles Gaddy knows it’s time — his time — to continue where he left off last season.

Gaddy considered entering the transfer portal after a standout season at defensive end under Deion Sanders as a junior in 2022. He also considered leaving for the NFL.

But as he returns to the Tigers as a redshirt senior, there's unfished business to reconcile after JSU finished runner-up in the Celebration Bowl for the second consecutive season.

“I feel like last year was a cool year for me," Gaddy said, "but I feel like this year is a statement year. This is my last one and I am trying to go out with a bang. We have not won the Celebration Bowl the last two years.”

Gaddy was an All-SWAC performer with seven sacks under Sanders, now the coach at Colorado.

As JSU opens its first spring practice under coach T.C. Taylor, Gaddy expects similar success to follow despite losing a slew of starting players — including starting quarterback Shedeur Sanders and two-way star Travis Hunter — to the transfer portal.

“We are building something different,” Gaddy said. “We are building something new. We started in Atlanta ( Cricket Celebration Bowl) and we are going to finish in Atlanta.”

Gaddy said the energy level of the team was high as the Tigers opened spring ball, adding that the defensive line was challenged by the offensive line during practice. Gaddy will be the leader of that defensive unit, one of the best in the FCS last season, especially with the departure of fellow lineman Aubrey Miller to the NFL draft.

The goal is to win a third consecutive SWAC championship, the the Black college national championship.

“If we do what we do,” Gaddy said, “we are always going to be focused. That’s our main thing. I don’t want to say there is pressure, we just have to take care of our business.”

NYLES GADDY REMOVES NAME FROM PORTALJackson State football player Nyles Gaddy removes name from transfer portal

THE T.C. TAYLOR ERA BEGINS AT JSU How the T.C. Taylor era began for Jackson State football

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: For Jackson State's Nyles Gaddy, statement to make post Deion Sanders