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Goal No. 2: UNSELFISHNESS.There is no “I” in TEAM.

#2 Adrian Maddox

Redshirt Senior* | 6-1 | 194 lbs. | Conyers, Georgia

• Position: Safety
• Previous Colleges: Alabama State University; University of Alabama at Birmingham; University of Georgia
• Projection: Co-Starter
• Remaining Eligibility: 1 year
• Status: On Scholarship

Adrian Markese Maddox (b. Aug. 31, 2004) is a safety transfer from Alabama State by way of UAB and Georgia who is majoring in sociology. He is battling with Koy Beasley and Ja’Son Prevard for a starting role.

In 2022, Maddox saw action in 10 games with nine starts as a true freshman at FCS Alabama State, playing on 491 defensive snaps and 89 special teams plays. He recorded 49 tackles, six tackles for loss, a sack, two interceptions and three total passes defended.

A finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, which is given to the most outstanding FCS freshman, Maddox had a season-high eight tackles and an interception in his first career game against Howard; recorded 1.5 tackles for loss and a pick at UCLA; posted a career-high two tackles for loss against Miles, while he had 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack against Jackson State; and set a career high with nine tackles against Alabama A&M and tied that mark in the season finale against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, a game in which he also broke up a pass.

The following year, he saw time in 11 games with nine starts, carding 41 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, seven pass breakups and two forced fumbles. Maddox played on 604 defensive snaps and 63 special teams plays.

He recorded a career-high-tying nine tackles against Grambling, which included 1.5 tackles for loss, and also had six tackles against Alabama A&M and five tackles against Alcorn State, recording sacks in both games.

Maddox recorded a career-high three pass breakups against Grambling, while he had two against Alabama A&M and one apiece against both Florida A&M and Alcorn during his sophomore season.

A member of the Aeneas Williams Award watch list, given annually to the nation’s best defensive back at an HBCU, he also was named to the preseason All-HBCU team and Phil Steele preseason All-SWAC team.

After transferring to UAB in 2024 for his junior campaign, Maddox played in 11 games with 10 starts for the Blazers, carding 44 tackles, two tackles for loss, an interception, eight total passes defended and two forced fumbles across his 393 defensive snaps, in addition to seeing time on 133 special teams plays.

His interception went for a 99-yard touchdown against Rice, while he broke up two other passes against the Owls and had three pass breakups at Arkansas, the most among all American Athletic Conference players during the 2024 season.

Maddox had a season-high seven tackles against Navy, while he had five apiece against Tulane, Army, South Florida and Rice. He recorded tackles for loss against both Tulane and South Florida, broke up passes against both Alcorn State and Charlotte, and forced fumbles against both UConn and Rice.

Last season, Maddox ended up redshirting* as a senior at Georgia despite appearing in four games in 2025, seeing time on 67 defensive snaps across the Marshall, Austin Peay, Kentucky and Ole Miss games, the latter being the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal loss at the Allstate Sugar Bowl. He recorded a pair of tackles — including half a tackle for loss — against Kentucky, while he had solo stops against Austin Peay and Ole Miss.

Although it didn’t really work out for him at Georgia, possibly because he didn’t show up on campus until after spring ball, I remain optimistic Maddox can be a big contributor at K-State, as do his coaches and teammates.

New head coach Collin Klein said some good things about Maddox toward the end of spring practices in April:

Well, like I was saying with the heated secondary competition, he’s high energy, he flies around the field and plays with a ton of passion. So, guys gravitate to him, for sure, and he’s made plays, which people see.

Maddox prepped under head coaches Corey Johnson and Eddie Snell at Heritage High School in Conyers, Georgia, where he was named the regional defensive player of the year after recording 63 tackles and three interceptions, helped the Patriots to earn a playoff appearance as a sophomore.

He transferred from Alabama State to UAB over an offer from Temple, where he was previously committed, and then from UAB to Georgia over offers from Florida (from which he also previously decommitted) and Nebraska.

*K-State has recently announced a new classification scheme that designates players by their year of eligibility regardless of whether they have “redshirted,” a term that will go out of use with the new “5-for-5” rule. Thus, the KSU SID lists Maddox as a “fifth year” even though he barely played in 2025. For the sake of consistency with past posts, I will continue to designate redshirts based on their playing history, but also note their remaining eligibility to stay consistent with the new designations as well.

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