Cedric Tillman spent five years at Tennessee, but really only has one-plus years worth of game film to show for it. He red-shirted, then was a reserve for two seasons before a breakout junior year. This past season, an ankle injury slowed the wide receiver down, but not out.

“Just the competitor in me,” Tillman said. “I wanted to come back a few weeks before. I did everything I could to try and go out there. I knew I wasn’t quite right, but I wanted to fight for my team. Like I said, everybody’s nicked up and bruised up towards the back half of the season, so hopefully, my teammates appreciated it. That’s just the competitor in me wanting to go out there and play.”

Tillman’s a physical wideout at 6’3” and 213 pounds. He uses his body well to make plays, which is necessary because he’s not the best athlete in this wide receiver class, ranking in the lower half in most of the testing at the NFL Combine, including a 4.54 40.

That one standout season in 2021 was special, posting over 1,000 yards and 12 TDs in 13 games.

From a character standpoint, he seems to earn high marks and believes he has what it takes to succeed at the next level.

“I think number one, you’ve got to be disciplined,” he said. “Number two, you got to go out there and play even when you’re injured. Got to go out there. And number three, just got to make plays. You got to be a playmaker. I take great pride in trying to make plays for my team. Those are some of the three things that come off the top of my head.”

It’s a true tale of tape versus testing for Tillman, who is likely a Day Two selection.