Princeton’s star safety Nasir Hill officially announced on Dec. 17 that he would be declaring for the 2026 NFL Draft, taking place in Pittsburgh, Pa., on April 23–25.
In an Instagram post, Hill, a senior, wrote “I am beyond blessed and appreciative of these past 4 years I got to spend playing the game I love with the people I love.”
“Thank you to my friends and family who have been a part of my journey, it’s always been recognized. Thank you to the Princeton coaches and staff for your support on my journey and thank you to my teammates who have stood beside me playing tough ball on the gridiron,” he continued.
Hill came to Princeton as a local New Jersey native and was a three-star recruit out of high school. Despite getting offers from many different schools, Hill looked for an elite education as well and opted to stay in the Garden State to play for the Tigers, pushing for that NFL dream the whole time.
“I thought the NFL could be a possibility for me ever since I was in high school, honestly,” Hill told The Daily Princetonian. “I feel like I competed very well. I played against the best of the best, state to state, and 7-on-7, and things like that.”
“Then coming to college, being able to dominate in the League as well, and be a part of a great team and have good team chemistry, it made it more reassuring that I could really have a shot at playing in the NFL,” he continued.
Hill finished his career with the Tigers with five interceptions, 183 tackles, and 37 games played across his four years. As a first-year, he mostly operated on special teams, before starting every game in his last three years — bar one due to injury — at safety.
Alongside the statistics, Hill has awards to back him up. In 2023 and 2024, he was named to the All-Ivy Second Team, and in 2025, he received an All-Ivy Honorable Mention.
Despite the disappointing seasons for the Tigers in the past three years, Hill’s talent has been obvious, giving him the opportunity to show off in front of NFL scouts.
Princeton has newly been held in high regard by scouts in the years since Andrei Iosivas ’23 was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the sixth round of the 2023 Draft. Since then, Jalen Travis ’24 became the highest ever Princeton draftee after he was selected 107th overall by the Indianapolis Colts.
“I would say the guys coming before me, [it was] the fact that they were getting an opportunity,” Hill said to the ‘Prince’ about players such as Iosivas and Travis. “It was just exciting for me to be able to see those guys win and get their shot to show off their abilities and talents that they worked for over their years at Princeton.”
But a declaration for the draft is no guarantee of selection. The months leading up to it, including combines, workouts, and interviews, all massively influence a player’s draft stock — capable of elevating it or dropping it.
Like Iosivas, Hill will be coming out of Princeton as more of a raw prospect with athleticism as a key factor — as opposed to game footage — which could decide between where he gets drafted, and if he gets drafted at all — especially for a position like safety.
For Hill, the draft process is no different, with the months ahead looking busy as he heads down to Georgia to prepare for the NFL Draft Combine in February.
“The next few months are really just like 12 hour days: waking up, lifting, running, film study, eating right, eating habits, extra workouts — things like that; Field work as well,” Hill commented to the ‘Prince.’ “So [it] really is just the same consistency and repetitiveness every day, making sure that I can be prepared to run good, test good, drill good overall.”
A lot can change in preparation for the draft, but being as good a talent as he has shown in the Orange and Black, there may be a lot on the horizon from Hill. He will have every chance to prepare before April comes around to show the NFL what Princeton Football fans have seen for four years.
Alex Beverton-Smith is a head Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections@dailyprincetonian.com.
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