Former Hollywood McArthur star LB Hyppolite a surprise pick in fourth round of NFL Draft
Ruben Hyppolite II didn't garner much interest from college football's powerhouses when he was starring at Hollywood McArthur. He didn't score an invitation to the NFL Scouting Combine after wrapping up a solid career with the Maryland Terrapins. He didn't pop up in many mock drafts — if any — leading up to the 2025 NFL Draft this week.
Even so, Hyppolite is headed to the Chicago Bears as the 30th pick of the fourth round — No. 132 overall — in the NFL Draft on Saturday.
The 6-foot, 232-pound linebacker was a five-year contributor at Maryland — he got to play an extra season because of the COVID-19 pandemic — and piled up 236 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, three sacks, one forced fumble, one interception and six passes defended during his time in College Park, starting all but five games during his time as a Terrapin. As a senior last year, Hyppolite had 66 tackles and set a career high with seven tackles for loss.
Speed has always been Hyppolite's greatest tool and he ran the 40-yard dash in just 4.39 seconds at his Pro Day in the lead up to the Draft — the time would have been the fastest at the Scouting Combine had Hyppolite been invited.
Although most of the biggest programs in college football were not interested in him, Hyppolite still finished his high school career in Hollywood as a four-star prospect in the Class of 2020, according to the 247Sports composite rankings. He was a two-time first-team All-Broward County selection and had 61 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, three sacks and an interception during his senior season with the Mustangs.
Hyppolite is now poised to end a lengthy drought for McArthur in the NFL. The last Mustang to suit up in an NFL game was defensive back Bryant McFadden, in 2011. Hyppolite is also the first McArthur alumnus to be drafted into the NFL since McFadden and defensive end Erasmus James were both picked in the 2005 NFL Draft.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


USA Today
13 minutes ago
- USA Today
Seahawks DT Byron Murphy II tabbed for breakout season
Seahawks DT Byron Murphy II tabbed for breakout season The Seattle Seahawks are expecting a developmental step forward from sophomore defensive tackle Byron Murphy II this year. Murphy looked effective when healthy, but an injury derailed a sizable portion of his rookie campaign. The No. 16 overall selection in the 2024 NFL draft is now entering a big second season. Pro Football Focus recently compiled a 2025 NFL All-Breakout Team. They selected one player at each position. Murphy was their choice at defensive tackle. "Many thought that Mike Macdonald had found his white whale out west when the Seahawks drafted Murphy 16th overall in 2024," Bradley Locker wrote. "After one year, that hasn't looked like the case, but it isn't time to panic yet. In Year 1, the former Texas star earned just a 57.8 overall PFF grade with a 64.5 PFF pass-rushing grade. Murphy also played only 457 snaps in 14 games, ceding time to Leonard Williams and Jarran Reed — each of whom returns to the team in 2025." A deeper dive into the analytics reveals Murphy was more effective than meets the eye. "There are still a bevy of reasons to get excited about Murphy, including his 70.0 PFF pass-rushing grade on true pass sets, 10% pass-rush win rate and 76th percentile run stop rate," Locker continued. "Macdonald helped Nnamdi Madubuike break out in earnest during the 2023 season, which was Macdonald's second in Baltimore. Perhaps Murphy will follow a similar arc and become a true disruptor along Seattle's interior in his second season." Murphy flashed pass-rushing upside in spurts as a rookie. A healthy, more mature sophomore version should be an effective defender in 2025. Mike Macdonald and his defensive staff will attempt to continue developing Murphy this season.
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Zakai Zeigler's prelimiary injunction challenging NCAA redshirt rule for fifth year of eligibility denied
Several weeks after Zakai Zeigler filed a lawsuit against the NCAA seeking a fifth year of eligibility, his preliminary injunction has been denied, according to Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger. Zeigler had already played four seasons for Tennessee and didn't begin his college career until 2021, one year after the 2020-21 class that was allowed one more year of eligibility lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advertisement In the lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District Court of Tennessee, Zeigler was looking to play the 2025-26 season, challenging the NCAA rule that an athlete has four years of eligibility within a five-year window. Zeigler, 22, isn't allowed an opportunity to earn NIL money for a fifth year because he used up all of his eligibility. As the lawsuit argues, that deprives him of a fifth year, "the most lucrative year of the eligibility window for the vast majority of athletes." How lucrative? The lawsuit argued that Zeigler could earn between $2 million and $4 million in a fifth year based on his record of success and visibility playing in the SEC. Those figures are projections from the Spyre Sports Group, which facilitates Tennessee's NIL collective. Advertisement Athletes who receive a redshirt are allowed a fifth year of eligibility, which gives them one more year to earn NIL income. A freshman who was redshirted, for example, would still be able to earn NIL money even if he or she doesn't play. As the filing, the documents of which were posted online by Boise State professor Sam Ehrlich, reads: "Many players, however, do compete in the fifth year of their eligibility window. And they can earn NIL compensation for all five of those years. Had Zeigler been withheld from competing in sports during one of those four years, perhaps by redshirting, the NCAA rules would permit him to participate again next year. And this is true even if he would have slowed his academic progress and taken five years to graduate." Zeigler graduated in May, majoring in retail and merchandising management. This is different from the lawsuit Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia filed against the NCAA, claiming that he should be allowed a fifth year of eligibility because he played his first two years for New Mexico Military Institute, a junior college. In December, Pavia was granted an injunction allowing him to play the 2025 college football season. Advertisement Last season with the Vols, the 5-foot-9 Zeigler averaged 13.6 points, 7.4 assists and 1.9 steals while shooting 32% on 122 3-point attempts. He was named a third-team All-American, and won first-team All-SEC and SEC defensive player of the year honors for two consecutive seasons. The Volunteers finished 30-8, 12-6 in the SEC, and advanced to the NCAA tournament's Elite Eight before losing to Houston. Zeigler holds the Tennessee single-season (275) and career (747) records for assists, and career steals with 251.


USA Today
13 minutes ago
- USA Today
Eagles biggest reason for optimism shouldn't come as a surprise
Eagles biggest reason for optimism shouldn't come as a surprise PFF reveals the Eagles' biggest reason for optimism, and it shouldn't catch anyone off guard. For just the fifth time in their 93-year history, the Philadelphia Eagles will enter the regular season as the defending champions. Three titles preceded the 1966 NFL/AFL merger (1948, 1949, 1960). They've added two Vince Lombardi Trophies to the shelf after winning Super Bowl 52 and 59. These young Birds fans certainly haven't gotten spoiled, haven't they? Most don't know the anguish of enduring Leonard Tose. They don't remember Bryce Paup shredding Randall Cunningham's knee. Three consecutive NFC Championship Games are foreign, and so is a depressing Fog Bowl. Young Eagles fans never had to endure seeing Reggie White leave, and you know what? The older guard ought to be thankful that they didn't. It would be cruel to wish that type of pain on anyone. This is one of the best eras of football this organization has seen, and there's still reason for more optimism. Pro Football Focus would undoubtedly agree with that last point. They recently offered a refreshing take, 'One reason for optimism for every team ahead of the 2025 NFL season'. As we know, Philadelphia has several, but it's hard to argue with the answer that PFF provided. How about a round of applause for the Eagles' loaded roster? There's plenty of content to wade through following Eagles OTAs and their single-day minicamp. Thank Dalton Wasserman for providing a nice distraction as we take a break before training camp begins in July. Philadelphia tacked an extension on the end of Saquon Barkley's current deal. Most of their young roster is locked up for the foreseeable future. They have young stars on an excellent defense. All are great reasons why Wasserman lists a 'stacked roster's return as cause for Birds fans to rest easy and smile broadly. Here's his explanation. "Philadelphia ran roughshod through the NFL last season en route to its second Super Bowl victory. This year's edition of the Eagles is poised to defend their title, returning 20 of their 25 players who led the team in snaps last season. Their defense, which paced the NFL in PFF grade last season, took most of the damage but returns stars such as Jalen Carter, Zack Baun, Quinyon Mitchell, and Cooper DeJean. The Eagles boast the best roster in the NFL heading into this season." This isn't the first time we've heard praise heaped on the Eagles' talent. The kudos are well deserved. Let's do some brief inventory. Their quarterback is the reigning Super Bowl MVP, and despite losing his first appearance in the big game, he has outplayed Patrick Mahomes on the big stage twice. Barkley is the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year. Philadelphia has the game's best one-two punch at wide receiver. They're also home to the game's best offensive line and a defense that is young and hungry, one led by one of the game's top defensive minds. Their owner is phenomenal. Howie Roseman is the best in the business. The fan support is otherworldly. One can certainly do a lot worse than being an Eagles fan. This season, Philadelphia tackles one of pro football's most demanding and challenging schedules, but they are armed well enough to handle the task of what will be a gauntlet. They return six Pro Bowlers (they should have had more). They return six All-Pros. Make no mistake. They'll be up to the challenge.