Complete 2024 NFL Draft C Rankings:
You are currently viewing our center rankings for the 2024 NFL Draft. The 2024 C class didn’t have any stars immediately stand out, but how will that change over the coming months and years?
Our top center prospects are selected after thousands of hours carefully scouting the most talented interior offensive linemen in college football. Even though only about 10 will get selected in the draft, a lot more are signed as free agents, and many more receive a training camp invite.
We’ll provide you with inside information to help you know which linemen will be stars, who will be a bust, and which sleepers will shock the world.
BNB Football is the best place for in-depth analysis of 2024 NFL draft center prospects at all levels of college football. To view other positions, follow the links below.
(Last Updated: April 24, 2024)
1. Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon
C/RG | 6’4″ | 328 lbs | 3rd Year
Jackson Powers-Johnson is in his first year as a full time starter for Oregon, and he’s playing at an All-American level. He has a thick frame with immense power but good flexibility to anchor against power or recover. He’s been as effective as any interior offensive lineman in the country despite his inexperience, and he’s shown enough athleticism to climb to the second level as a run blocker or get out on screens. Powers-Johnson has played snaps at all 3 interior offensive line positions, and should be NFL-ready early in his career.
At the Senior Bowl JPJ showed the hype was very warranted, as he was easily the best offensive lineman in attendance. He’ll continue to climb up draft boards up until late April.
Jackson Powers-Johnson 2023 Stats
13 games: 13 starts (all at C), 0 sacks allowed, 0 hits allowed, 1 hurry allowed, 99.8% pass block success rate
2. Zach Frazier, West Virginia
C | 6’3″ | 313 lbs | 4th Year
Every year there’s at least one center who isn’t too naturally gifted, but just knows how to dominate the line of scrimmage. This year that’s Zach Frazier. The 4 year starter played almost immediately as a true freshman in 2020 despite a limited offseason, and immediately looked comfortable in pass protection. He plays very under control with optimal pad level and a good anchor. Frazier consistently finishes blocks and finds work at the second level or on double team blocks, while displaying a high football IQ pre-snap and post-snap.
He’s nursing an injury that has kept him out of events like the Senior Bowl, but the tape shows plenty of traits that NFL teams will covet.
Zach Frazier 2023 Stats
12 games: 12 starts (all at C), 0 sacks allowed, 3 hits allowed, 4 hurries allowed, 98.1% pass block success rate
3. Tanor Bortolini, Wisconsin
C | 6’4″ | 303 lbs | 4th Year
Tanor Bortolini’s film and blocking success rate is just a step behind the other guys on this list, but the athletic traits truly stand out.
His 20 yard shuttle and cone drill times were both the #1 fastest among centers since I started my database in 2017, along with an eye-catching 4.94 40 time. If you judged strictly on combine numbers and drills performance, Bortolini looked like the best center in the class. Watching back on film, you can see the quick feet to get to the second level in the run game. Wisconsin doesn’t run a lot of screens, but he’ll be dominant in that area at the NFL level.
He needs a little refinement and consistency, but his ceiling is as high as any center in the class, with experience at just about every position on the line.
Tanor Bortolini 2023 Stats
12 games: 12 starts (at C and LG), 1 sack allowed, 2 hits allowed, 8 hurries allowed, 97.8% pass block success rate
4. Sedrick Van Pran, Georgia
C | 6’4″ | 298 lbs | 4th Year
Sedrick Van Pran started the year as the top center in the class for just about everyone, offering consistent power from the interior of Georgia’s offensive line. He’s explosive off the line of scrimmage and capable of opening big holes, with a naturally powerful frame that should allow him to play any position along the interior. Van Pran is very flexible with a powerful core, quick hips, and strong ankles to redirect. He doesn’t have much length, but has clean hand usage to compensate.
His slight fall through the season has largely been due to some sloppiness in his pass protection technique. While he often recovers well, Van Pran’s lack of length hurt him, and he would often get caught leaning.
Sedrick Van Pran 2023 Stats
14 games: 14 starts (all at C), 0 sacks allowed, 0 hits allowed, 13 hurries allowed, 97.3% pass block success rate
5. Matthew Lee, Miami (FL)
C | 6’4″ | 301 lbs | 5th Year
Matthew Lee was one of the most dominant centers in college football in 2022 when he played for UCF. After transferring up in competition a bit this year, we’ll see if he has enough power to hang with interior defensive linemen. Lee isn’t the heaviest or fastest of linemen, but he has refined technique, good play recognition, and very quick feet to quickly get out of his stance. He excels as a pass blocker and getting out to the second level, and he is very experienced.
If he’s able to improve his ability to generate a push in the run game (which is a big “if”), he has a chance to skyrocket in the center draft rankings.
Matthew Lee 2023 Stats
12 games: 12 starts (all at C), 0 sacks allowed, 1 hit allowed, 3 hurries allowed, 99.1% pass block success rate
Complete 2024 Center Draft Rankings
RANK | NAME | SCHOOL | AGE | HT | WT | 40YD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jackson Powers-Johnson | Oregon | 3rd | 6'4" | 328 | |
2 | Zach Frazier | West Virginia | 4th | 6'3" | 313 | 5.24 |
3 | Tanor Bortolini | Wisconsin | 4th | 6'4" | 303 | 4.94 |
4 | Sedrick Van Pran | Georgia | 4th | 6'4" | 298 | 5.20 |
5 | Matthew Lee | Miami (FL) | 5th | 6'4" | 301 | 5.03 |
6 | Beaux Limmer | Arkansas | 5th | 6'5" | 302 | 5.22 |
7 | Dylan McMahon | NC State | 6th | 6'4" | 299 | 5.10 |
8 | Jacob Monk | Duke | 5th | 6'3" | 308 | 5.09 |
9 | Hunter Nourzad | Penn State | 6th | 6'3" | 317 | |
10 | Drake Nugent | Michigan | 5th | 6'2" | 298 | 5.23 |
11 | Nick Samac | Michigan State | 5th | 6'4" | 307 | |
12 | Bryan Hudson | Louisville | 5th | 6'5" | 300 | 5.26 |
13 | Charles Turner III | LSU | 5th | 6'4" | 303 | 5.59 |
14 | Kingsley Eguakun | Florida | 5th | 6'4" | 304 | |
15 | Andrew Raym | Oklahoma | 4th | 6'4" | 314 | 5.42 |
16 | Duke Clemens | UCLA | 5th | 6'3" | 302 | 5.10 |
17 | Jalen Sundell | North Dakota State | 6th | 6'5" | 301 | 5.18 |
18 | Michael Jurgens | Wake Forest | 6th | 6'5" | 307 | 5.43 |
19 | Mike Novitsky | Kansas | 6th | 6'4" | 309 | 5.33 |
20 | Corey Gaynor | North Carolina | 7th | 6'3" | 303 | 5.50 |
21 | Will Putnam | Clemson | 5th | 6'5" | 301 | 5.46 |
22 | Darrian Dalcourt | Alabama | 5th | 6'3" | 309 | 5.36 |
23 | Matthew Cindric | California | 6th | 6'4" | 295 | 5.02 |
24 | Andrew Meyer | UTEP | 6th | 6'4" | 295 | 5.07 |
25 | Sincere Haynesworth | Tulane | 6th | 6'1" | 300 | 5.20 |
26 | David Satkowski | Stonehill | 5th | 6'3" | 300 | 5.18 |
27 | Jake Levengood | Oregon State | 6th | 6'4" | 290 | |
28 | Jake Kradel | Pittsburgh | 6th | 6'4" | 294 | 5.13 |
29 | Jacob Likes | Memphis | 5th | 6'3" | 296 | 5.18 |
30 | Treylen Brown | Jacksonville State | 5th | 6'1" | 313 | 5.03 |
31 | Isaiah Helms | Appalachian State | 5th | 6'2" | 284 | 5.10 |
32 | Justin Dedich | USC | 6th | 6'2" | 301 | 5.38 |
33 | Hayden Gillum | Kansas State | 6th | 6'3" | 301 | 5.38 |
34 | Nathan Boe | Minnesota | 6th | 6'5" | 305 | |
35 | Rusty Staats | Texas Tech | 6th | 6'4" | 330 | 5.52 |
36 | Cole Smith | Mississippi State | 6th | 6'3" | 305 | |
37 | Avery Jones | Auburn | 6th | 6'4" | 317 | 5.49 |
38 | Jack Freeman | Houston | 6th | 6'3" | 300 | 5.45 |
39 | Paul Maile | BYU | 6th | 6'3" | 300 | 5.34 |
40 | Sidney Walker | Buffalo | 6th | 6'2" | 291 | 5.20 |
41 | Will Farniok | Tulsa | 6th | 6'3" | 296 | 5.44 |
42 | Ireland Brown | Rutgers | 5th | 6'3" | 290 | 5.01 |
43 | Bula Schmidt | UCF | 5th | 6'1" | 280 | 5.27 |
44 | Dennis Wilburn | Texas Tech | 6th | 6'4" | 328 | 5.40 |
45 | Clint Lapic | Stephen F. Austin | 6th | 6'5" | 300 | |
46 | Jacob Isaia | Fresno State | 6th | 6'2" | 297 | 5.27 |
47 | Deshawn Ingram | Howard | 5th | 6'4" | 310 | |
48 | John Lanz | TCU | 6th | 6'4" | 315 | |
49 | Mike Purcell | Maryland | 7th | 6'4" | 332 | 5.32 |
50 | Aric Harris | Maryland | 5th | 6'2" | 294 | 5.59 |
51 | Silas Robinson | Incarnate Word | 6th | 6'4" | 315 | |
52 | Andrew Carter | Weber State | 6th | 6'2" | 305 | 5.57 |
53 | Briason Mays | Southern Miss | 6th | 6'4" | 298 | 5.15 |
54 | Sebastian Delasoudas | Rhode Island | 6th | 6'0" | 298 | |
55 | Trevor Radosevich | Cincinnati | 6th | 6'3" | 306 | 5.35 |
56 | Thor Paglialong | Air Force | 4th | 6'4" | 300 | |
57 | Isaiah Burch | Campbell | 7th | 6'3" | 314 | 5.58 |
58 | Brandon Westberg | North Dakota State | 5th | 6'4" | 295 | |
59 | Anthony Pardue | San Jose State | 6th | 6'4" | 315 | |
60 | Osho Omoyeni | New Hampshire | 6th | 6'2" | 276 | 5.09 |
61 | Ernesto Almaraz | UTSA | 5th | 6'2" | 295 | |
62 | Treyvon Cahalan | Minnesota-Duluth | 6th | 6'2" | 303 | 5.14 |
63 | Eliki Tanuvasa | Hawaii | 6th | 6'2" | 300 | |
64 | Garrett Weichman | Cal Poly | 7th | 6'3" | 305 | |
65 | Richard Rodriguez | Temple | 6th | 6'5" | 295 | |
66 | Dexter Carr Jr. | Morgan State | 5th | 6'1" | 303 | |
67 | Ryan Berta | Queen's | 5th | 6'2" | 307 | 5.39 |
68 | Reggie Smith | South Alabama | 6th | 6'1" | 285 | |
69 | Seth Osborne | St. Francis (PA) | 6th | 6'3" | 301 | 5.85 |
70 | Brandon Hardy | Hampton | 5th | 6'4" | 295 | |
71 | Tyrone Sampson Jr. | Fresno State | 6th | 6'2" | 284 | 5.30 |
72 | Seth Hawkins | Howard | 4th | 6'3" | 300 | |
73 | Devan Rogers | Toledo | 6th | 6'1" | 278 | 5.28 |
74 | Abraham Delfin | Louisiana Tech | 7th | 6'1" | 310 | |
75 | AJ Forbes | Montana | 6th | 6'2" | 298 | 5.68 |
76 | TC Carey | Northern Arizona | 6th | 6'1" | 270 | |
77 | Antonio Derry | Merrimack | 6th | 6'3" | 293 | 5.40 |
78 | Brandon Malkow | Ball State | 6th | 6'4" | 295 | |
79 | Thomas Hartnett | Dartmouth | 4th | 6'3" | 290 | |
80 | Christian Hood | Houston Christian | 5th | 6'2" | 305 | |
81 | Peter Bussone | Illinois State | 6th | 6'2" | 305 | |
82 | Peter Povey | UC-Davis | 5th | 6'3" | 285 | |
83 | Jalen Armstrong | Austin Peay | 5th | 6'3" | 295 | |
84 | Julian Hernandez | Vanderbilt | 5th | 6'4" | 310 | |
85 | Layne Grantham | Central Oklahoma | 5th | 6'2" | 300 | |
86 | Jeff Burkhart | Slippery Rock | 5th | 6'3" | 315 | |
87 | Michael Bennett | Millersville | 5th | 6'5" | 300 | |
88 | Bernard Childs | Southern | 6th | 6'3" | 325 | |
89 | John Kourtis | Saskatchewan | 5th | 6'4" | 307 | |
90 | Cooper Frazier | Samford | 4th | 6'4" | 305 | |
91 | Avery Reece | Georgia State | 5th | 6'2" | 290 | |
92 | Josh George | Central Arkansas | 5th | 6'3" | 310 | |
93 | Jack Nance | Texas Southern | 5th | 6'1" | 287 | 5.30 |
94 | Tyler Williams | Monmouth | 6th | 6'3" | 310 | |
95 | Scott Houseman | Albany | 5th | 6'3" | 320 | |
96 | Scott Elliott | Duke | 5th | 6'3" | 295 | |
97 | Jonathan Williams | Alabama A&M | 5th | 6'2" | 270 | |
98 | Ahmad Assad | Bryant | 5th | 6'2" | 304 | 5.81 |
99 | Blake Jefferson | Lenoir-Rhyne | 5th | 6'0" | 300 | |
100 | Luke Smith | ETSU | 5th | 6'1" | 280 | |
101 | Chase Arends | Northern Iowa | 6th | 6'1" | 275 | |
102 | Mason Honne | Washburn | 6th | 6'2" | 295 | |
103 | James Dawson | Kennesaw State | 4th | 6'1" | 300 | |
104 | Zane Madison | Pittsburg State | 5th | 6'3" | 295 | |
105 | Charles Hempstead III | Midwestern State | 6th | 6'2" | 290 | |
106 | Steele Petty | Colorado-Mines | 6th | 6'2" | 295 | |
107 | Bryan Bystol | Butler | 5th | 6'2" | 280 | |
108 | Keegan Martin | Friends | 5th | 6'1" | 255 | |
109 | Cody Johnson | Fordham | 4th | 6'3" | 300 | |
110 | Nick Cerimele | Chattanooga | 7th | 6'1" | 290 | |
111 | Al Hogan | Kennesaw State | 6th | 6'4" | 310 | |
112 | Jonathon Durand | Yale | 5th | 6'2" | 290 | |
113 | Jarod Thornton | North Central | 5th | 6'0" | 300 | |
114 | Julio Cuello | A&M-Kingsville | 6th | 6'2" | 285 | |
115 | Michael Dorundo | Duquesne | 5th | 6'2" | 275 | |
116 | Kana'i Eldredge | Utah Tech | 6th | 6'1" | 290 | |
117 | Noah Mangum | Newberry | 5th | 6'0" | 320 | |
118 | Jordany Bruny | Erskine | 6th | 6'2" | 300 | |
119 | Conner Justus | Henderson State | 6th | 5'11" | 295 | |
120 | Daniel Shin | Alberta | 6th | 6'3" | 286 | 5.82 |
121 | Barclay Briggs | Davidson | 4th | 6'1" | 275 |
MORE NFL DRAFT RANKINGS
Traits That Make a Center Prospect Great
There’s a lot more than goes in to scouting interior offensive linemen than most fans realize. Strength, flexibility in the hips/knees/ankles, and blocking technique are among some of the most important factors of scouting the top center prospects.
Some of the factors we consider when scouting are included below.
Flexibility
Having flexibility in the hips, knees, and ankles is necessary for a center prospect to react to oncoming defenders and quickly recover. Being stiff or upright is a recipe for getting beaten consistently, so being smooth and bendy provides a massive advantage for all offensive linemen.
Quickness
Linemen rarely need to sprint 40 yards, but having quick feet is as important as any trait. While everyone thinks about linemen as mostly big, much of the play in the trenches is decided by footwork. If you don’t have the quickness to properly move your feet, you’re going to find yourself out of position.
Mental Traits
Beyond the traditional roles of offensive linemen, the center has a particular assortment of mental traits they need to have. Overall football IQ, play recognition, effective communication, and consistency in challenging environments are all vital given their role in pre-snap reads and snapping the ball.
Power
Generating power in the run game to open up holes, holding your base against massive nose tackles, and keeping your balance when passing off a block are just a few ways that power is important for a lineman. It isn’t all about bench reps, power is usually generated from the core and lower body.
Overall Opinion of the 2024 Center Class
The emergence of Jackson Powers-Johnson really saved the center class, which opened the season as one of the weakest position groups for the 2nd straight year. The depth looks better than it did a few months ago thanks to the rising stock of Beaux Limmer, Tanor Bortolini, and Hunter Nourzad. But to me this class is still all about JPJ and Zach Frazier.