Jessie Bates III

SS, FS · Wake Forest
A two-year starter at Wake Forest, Bates quickly established himself as a defensive leader as a redshirt freshman and only grew in that role this past season, starting 20 career games at strong safety for the Demon Deacons. Bates is fearless in run support and comes to balance well pre-contact, but he isn’t a power player and fundamental breakdowns lead to missed tackles. Although he seeks out contact as a downhill hunter, he doesn’t boast ideal body armor, which leads to durability concerns at the next level. However, Bates is a very smart player in coverage and trusts his diagnose skills to put himself in position to make plays, anticipating routes and passing windows. BACKGROUND A two-star safety recruit out of high school, Bates was a two-time first team all-state defender at Snider, recording nine interceptions as a senior – also a standout basketball and baseball player at Snider. He received low interest from FBS-level schools and initially verballed to Toledo in the summer of 2014, but Iowa and Wake Forest offered him closer to signing day and Bates flipped to Wake Forest. After redshirting in 2015, he moved into the starting strong safety role and finished second in the ACC with five interceptions in 2016, adding 100 tackles and nine passes defended to earn Freshman All-American honors. Bates started nine games at strong safety as a redshirt sophomore and recorded 79 tackles, six passes defended and one interception, earning All-ACC Honorable Mention honors. ...