The Jacksonville Jaguars chose Tulane defensive back Caleb Ransaw at No. 88 in the NFL Draft on Friday night.

The third-round pick is a former Sparkman High School standout who played three seasons at Troy before transferring to Tulane for the 2024 campaign.

Ransaw boosted his draft stock at the NFL Scouting Combine, where he ran a 4.33-second 40-yard dash – the sixth-fastest overall and the third-fastest among the cornerbacks at this year’s event.

Ransaw also had a 40-inch vertical jump, which ranked best among the cornerbacks and eighth overall at the combine. His 129-inch broad jump and 16 bench-press reps both tied for third among the combine cornerbacks.

At the Reese’s Senior Bowl in January, Ransaw worked as a safety after playing mainly cornerback – outside and slot – during his college career.

“He’s got so much position versatility,” said Jon Sumrall, who coached Ransaw at Troy and Tulane. “He’s got enough size to fit the run in the box. He’s got the speed and the movement ability to play on the perimeter and defend and cover slot receivers and wide receivers, and so a smart player, a headsy player.”

Ransaw was announced as a cornerback when he was drafted on Friday night.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, Ransaw measured 5-foot-11 and 197 pounds.

His brother, Gavin Ransaw, is a 6-3, 295-pound defensive tackle for Coastal Carolina. They helped Sparkman make only its second playoff appearance in 13 years in 2019. In 2020, Caleb Ransaw paced the Harvest school back to the AHSAA postseason.

Ransaw joined Troy’s starting lineup in his sophomore season, and as a junior in 2023, he had 51 tackles, one interception and six tackles for loss.

During Ransaw’s two seasons as a starter at Troy, the Trojans posted a 23-5 record and won the Sun Belt Conference championship in each year. Tulane lost to Army 35-14 in the American Athletic Conference championship game last season.

With Ransaw’s selection, the 2025 NFL season could be the second in a row with the debut of Sparkman alumnus. Safety Dell Pettus played in every game in 2024 after joining the New England Patriots as an undrafted rookie from Troy. Ransaw and Pettus were teammates on the Senators in 2017 and 2018 and at Troy in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Ransaw is the first defensive back chosen from Tulane in the NFL Draft since the Kansas City Chiefs chose Thakarius Keyes in the seventh round in 2020.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.