South Carolina football defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway is officially an NFL rookie after being picked No. 135 overall by the Las Vegas Raiders in the fourthround of the 2025 NFL Draft on April 26.
Here’s what Hemingway brings to the Raiders, based on his career with the Gamecocks under coach Shane Beamer.
What Tonka Hemingway brings to Las Vegas Raiders in 2025 NFL Draft
Tonka Hemingway brings experience to the NFL. He played in all 61 games over the past five seasons at South Carolina, which is tied for the most games played in school history.
He made 28 starts and finished his career with 17.5 career tackles for loss with 9.5 sacks, 11 pass breakups, 19 quarterback hurries and six fumble recoveries.
The 6-foot-3, 284-pound DT brings size and athleticism, as he scored an 84 on the athleticism test at the combine which ranked first among all defensive tackles.
Hemingway has good speed and lateral movement, and was graded 5.94, which projects he will be an “Average backup or special-teamer.”
Tonka Hemingway’s highlights, strengths, weaknesses at South Carolina
Hemingway sacked LSU QB Garrnet Nussmier on a two-point conversion attempt to preserve South Carolina’s lead. The sack was not only important in the moment but impressive as LSU had one of the strongest offensive lines in 2024.
He scored a touchdown against Oklahoma after scooping up the ball when Demetrius Knight Jr. stripped the Sooners’ QB.
In the win against Texas A&M, he had three solo tackles, one sack and one forced fumble.
A potential point of concern is he had more tackles in both 2023 and 2022, but did increase his total sacks from 1.5 in 2023 to four in 2024. He had seven passes defended in 2023, but only one in 2024.
Tonka Hemingway’s stats with South Carolina football
- 2024: 25 tackles (17 solo), four sacks, two fumble recoveries, one forced fumble, one pass defended
- 2023: 32 tackles (19 solo), 1.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries, seven passes defended
- 2022: 33 tackles (19 solo), four sacks, two fumble recoveries, one pass defended
- 2021: six tackles (four solo)
- 2020: 16 tackles (11 solo) one forced fumble, two passes defended
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
