Utah safety Cole Bishop declares for NFL draft

Utah junior safety Cole Bishop declared for the NFL draft, announcing his decision on social media Friday morning.

A three-year starter for Utah, Bishop hit the ground running his freshman season, starting six games (and playing 10), and starting 13 and 10 games, respectively, in 2022 and 2023.

This year, the 6-foot-2, 207-pound safety registered 60 tackles, which leads Utah’s secondary, and totaled 6.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, two interceptions, three pass breakups, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries as the captain of Utah’s defense.

“From the moment you set foot on campus, you bought in to the #RSNB culture, you owned your 20 square feet, and you have developed into one of the best safeties in the country, and one of the best young men I have ever had the privilege of coaching! Love you, Cole!!” Utah defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley said in a message on X.

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During his Utah career, the Peachtree City, Georgia, native had 197 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, three interceptions and 14 pass breakups.

“Cole does so many things to positively affect the game. The fumble recovery, the big hit, the communication that he provides, his mastery of the defense is comfort and just ability to make others feel at ease,” Utah cornerbacks coach Sharrieff Shah said. “You’re starting to get a glimpse of a player that’s really getting comfortable with who he is, and he wasn’t always like that. So to see him just makes me happy and happy that he’s having this success.”

ESPN NFL draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has Bishop at No. 7 on his 2023 safety big board.

Bishop is the 16th Utah player to enter the transfer portal or declare for the NFL draft this offseason.