NASHVILLE, Tenn. —LeShaun Sims earned a reputation in college for being a tough, physical football player.
The Titans believe that will carry over in the National Football League.
On Saturday, the Titans selected the Southern Utah cornerback with the 157th pick in the fifth round.
The team moved up to get him, giving up pick 176 (sixth round) and a 6th-round pick in 2017 for the 157th pick (Sims) and a seventh round pick (253) this year.
"I'm just happy to get the opportunity to play for the Titans,'' Sims said on Saturday. "I am happy with how today went."
Sims (6-0, 203) racked up 220 tackles in four seasons at Southern Utah, where he was a four-year starter for the Thunderbirds. He was a no-star recruit out of high school while playing receiver and free safety. After redshirting as a freshman, he intercepted three passes in his first college season.
Sims worked out for Titans defensive backs coach DeShea Townsend in March, and met with team officials at the NFL Combine.
Sims started 12 games as a senior in 2015, when he also has 12 passes defensed and two interceptions while earning first team All-Big Sky honors.
NFL.com projects Sims as a press corner in the NFL, describing him as a "constant annoyance to receivers getting into their framework with jabs from press and then crowding them throughout their route."
"Of course it's going to be a learning curve just like with anything else,'' Sims said. "I'm just ready to come in and learn as much as I can and try to contribute to a team any way I can."
The Titans select Southern Utah CB LeShaun Sims in the fifth round (157th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. (AP Photos)
