If NFL teams relied on measurables and not much else, BYU cornerback Mory Bamba would almost certainly be selected in this weekend’s NFL draft.
The 6-foot-2, 193-pound redshirt senior from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, by way of Tyler (Texas) Junior College, started in only seven games over the course of three seasons in Provo, and likely didn’t make enough plays to warrant a pick in the seven-round draft.
However, several agents told the Deseret News that Bamba put up the kind of testing numbers at BYU’s pro day on March 20 that will earn him a priority free agent contract hours after the draft ends Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh.
“Pound for pound, he’s likely the best athlete at the cornerback position in the 2026 NFL draft,” wrote draft expert Brady Balhorn of BNB Football.
Performing alongside BYU players expected to get NFL opportunities such as Jack Kelly, Chase Roberts and Carsen Ryan, Bamba stole the show in Provo in front of representatives from all 32 NFL teams with his blazing speed and impressive athleticism.
He ran a time of 4.27 seconds in the 40-yard dash, a time that would have bettered all of the other cornerbacks at the NFL combine in February in Indianapolis. Bamba recorded a leap of 11 feet, 1 inch in the broad jump, which would have ranked second among cornerback prospects at the combine.
BYU defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga was not surprised.
“Mory has some of the best size and speed I’ve seen at corner,” Poppinga said. “If you go back to the Arizona game — maybe the best game of his career — I think a lot of NFL scouts saw the ability he has with his size and speed, his physicality being a great tackler, one of the best gunners and jammers on special teams that I have ever had, and once again just that combination of size and speed (is impressive).
“I know NFL scouts have loved this guy for two years now … and I know he’s going to give himself a chance to be a long NFL vet," Poppinga concluded.
Bamba had trouble getting on the field consistently because he played behind some of the best cornerbacks in school history, guys like Jakob Robinson, Marque Collins, Eddie Heckard and Evan Johnson. Last fall, he appeared in all 14 games for the 12-2 Cougars and started in two.
He finished the season with 23 tackles, 22 of them solo takedowns. He also had four pass breakups.
Bamba was an Academic All-Big 12 performer in 2025 as well.
Perhaps the best play Bamba made in a BYU jersey came against rival Utah in the No. 15 Cougars’ 24-21 win over the No. 23 Utes last October. Bamba displayed his 4.27 speed to knife into the backfield on fourth down and tackle Utah speedster Daniel Bray for a loss.
“If you don’t believe Mory Bamba can play in the NFL, go look at that Utah game tape,” former BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill said a few weeks after that rivalry game.
Bamba is a devout Muslim, and participated in BYU’s 2023 spring practices while also living his Muslim faith by fasting each day in observance of Ramadan, according to his profile on BYUCougars.com.