From the likes of Ole Miss commit Maison Dunn to five-star recruit Bralan Womack, the talent at the defensive back position is present. A few weeks until the kickoff of the MHSAA and MAIS 2024 football season, here are the top defensive backs in Mississippi.
Players are listed in alphabetical order.
Preston Ashley
Brandon
5-foot-11, 170 pounds | Junior
Ashley, a four-star recruit, according to the 247Sports Composite, recorded 66 total tackles with 133 return yards. He has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida State, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
Demarcus Baker
Hattiesburg
6-1, 190 | Senior
Baker a Southern Miss commit, is the No. 30 overall recruit in the Class of 2025 and chose the Golden Eagles over offers from Western Kentucky, Arkansas State and Southern.
Kohl Bradley
George County
6-0, 170 | Senior
Bradley, a three-star recruit, had 58 total tackles with 45 solo and two interceptions in 2023. The safety has offers from Florida State, Arkansas, Army, South Alabama and Jackson State.
Jaekwon Collins
Jefferson County
6-0, 190 | Senior
Collins had 98 total tackles with six tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions last season.
Trevon Deans
Harrison Central
6-0, 200 | Senior
Last season, Deans had 47 tackles with 35 solo and four tackles for loss and had six interceptions.
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Allen Dobbs
Amory
6-2, 210 | Senior
Dobbs recorded 81 total tackles with 47 solo and 10 tackles for loss, and had an interception in 2023.
Maison Dunn
Tupelo
6-4, 180 | Senior
Dunn, an Ole Miss commit, had 21 total tackles, including 15 solo tackles. He also had two interceptions last season.
Jer’Kel Ivy
East Webster
6-1, 170 | Senior
Ivy recorded four interceptions with 39 total tackles and 23 solo in 13 games played last season.
Kesler Jenkins
Oak Grove
5-11, 175 | Senior
Jenkins, a three-star recruit, produced 10 tackles and one tackle for loss and has an offer from Wright State.
Demonte Martin
South Pike
6-0, 170 | Senior
Martin recorded seven interceptions last season and had 48 tackles, including three tackles for loss.
Tylen Mathews
Lake Cormorant
6-0, 175 | Junior
Mathews, a three-star recruit, had 28 total tackles and five interceptions with 637 all-purpose yards in 2023. He has offers from Arkansas, Auburn and Ole Miss.
Dolph McDonald
Morton
6-1, 155 | Sophomore
In his freshman season, McDonald had 65 total tackles with 43 solo, five tackles for loss, and seven interceptions. He has offers from Mississippi State, Florida State and UCF.
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Luke McKenzie
Starkville Academy
6-4, 180 | Senior
McKenzie had 69 total tackles with 36 solo and five interceptions with 114 interception return yards last season.
Trevionn Morton
Wingfield
6-1, 195 | Senior
The Southern Miss commit had 89 total tackles, 54 solo and caused six turnovers in Wingfield’s final football season in 2023.
Delwin Perkins Jr.
McComb
5-11, 160 |Â Sophomore
Perkins had 44 tackles, including 31 solos, and three interceptions last season. He has an offer from Florida A&M.
Zach Ruffin
Neshoba Central
6-3, 180 | Senior
Ruffin recorded 121 total tackles with five tackles for loss and six pass deflects in 2023.
Clavin Scott
Taylorsville
5-9, 170 | Junior
Scott produced 42 total tackles with six interceptions and 310 rushing yards on 50 carries last season.
Cortez Thomas
Holmes County Central
6-1, 180 | Senior
Thomas is an Ole Miss commit and helped Holmes County Central to a 12-1 record by producing 45 tackles and two interceptions.
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Zach Townsend
Grenada
6-2, 170 | Senior
Last season, Townsend had five interceptions with 41 total tackles, helping Grenada to the MHSAA Class 6A title game.
Samuel Watkins
Madison-Ridgeland Academy
6-2, 210 | Senior
The Arkansas State commit had 27 tackles and 22 solos in eight games in 2023 at Jackson Academy. He transferred to Madison-Ridgeland Academy for this season.
Tylan Wilson
Pascagoula
6-3, 175 |Â Junior
The four-star recruit is the No. 8 overall prospect in the state in the Class of 2026. He had 69 total tackles, 34 solo and five interceptions. Wilson has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Memphis, Miami, Arkansas and Texas Tech.
Bralan Womack
Hartfield Academy
6-1, 200 pounds | Junior
Womack, a four-star recruit and the No. 1 recruit in the state in the Class of 2026, had 26 total tackles with seven interceptions in 2023. He also had 562 receiving yards. Womack has offers from Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State.
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Top Mississippi high school football players: Best DBs in MHSAA, MAIS
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