Nick Saban on Cedar Creek alum Max Melton: This is my sleeper CB

Cedar Creek High School alum Max Melton, who played his college football at Rutgers, was selected with the No. 43 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on Friday night by the Arizona Cardinals.

Melton, whose brother Bo plays for the Green Bay Packers, is a 2020 graduate of Cedar Creek and a Mays Landing native.

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He began to gain attention at the NFL Combine where he ran a 4.39, 40-yard dash.

That coupled with a terrific career at Rutgers, starting 40 of a possible 43 games at cornerback. He had eight interceptions with 22 pass breakups, and totaled 114 tackles with nine for loss, had four fumble recoveries and a forced fumble, and even showed up on special teams, blocking four punts.

All of this made him one of former Alabama head coach Nick Saban's favorite cornerbacks in this year's draft.

"This is like my sleeper corner in the whole draft, Saban said about Melton on the ABC broadcast. "He's made a lot of picks, can play the ball in the air. He's a fast reactor. He's physical, he's tough. I think guys going to be a really good player."

I’m at a loss for thoughts. I’m just so happy, I’m so proud to finally be in the NFL, something I worked for my whole life,” Melton said via conference call on Friday evening from his home in Mays Landing.

He could face his brother Bo, as the Cardinals are set to face Green Bay this season in Wisconsin.

As a senior at Cedar Creek he caught 60 passes for 785 yards and seven touchdowns, while rushing for 211 yards and a touchdown to help the Pirates to a win over Camden in the NJSIAA South/Central Jersey Group 2 title.