SEC Top 10 from the 2023 NFL Draft
During the 88th NFL Draft, 28 teams combined to pick 62 players from the SEC. Here are 10 things that happened during the 2023 selections:
2 NFL drafts have had the first offensive player picked and the first defensive player picked come from the same college program since 1965, when unlimited substitution returned to college football and virtually eliminated the two-way player. In the 2023 draft, Alabama QB Bryce Young at No. 1 and LB Will Anderson Jr. at No. 3 were the first offensive and defensive players chosen, respectively. In 1967, Michigan State DL Bubba Smith went No. 1 and Michigan State RB Clint Jones went No. 2. There have been four other instances in which a single conference provided the two picks: Kentucky QB Tim Couch went No. 1 and Georgia CB Champ Bailey went No. 7 from the SEC in 1999, Georgia QB Matthew Stafford went No. 1 and LSU CB Tyson Jackson went No. 3 from the SEC in 2009, Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford went No. 1 and Nebraska DT Ndamukong Suh went No. 2 from the Big 12 in 2010 and South Carolina DE Jadeveon Clowney went No. 1 and Auburn OT Greg Robinson went No. 2 from the SEC in 2014.
4 Consecutive No. 9 selections have been used on an SEC player. At No. 9, the Jacksonville Jaguars picked Florida CB C.J. Henderson in 2020, the Denver Broncos chose Alabama CB Patrick Surtain II in 2021, the Seattle Seahawks selected Mississippi State OT Charles Cross in 2022 and the Philadelphia Eagles picked Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter in 2023.
5 SEC quarterbacks were chosen in this year’s NFL Draft, tied for the most from the conference in one year. The quarterbacks chosen this year included:
· Alabama’s Bryce Young: No. 1, Carolina Panthers
♦ Florida’s Anthony Richardson: No. 4, Indianapolis Colts
♦ Kentucky’s Will Levis: No. 33, Tennessee Titans
♦ Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker: No. 68, Detroit Lions
♦ Georgia’s Stetson Bennett: No. 128, Los Angeles Rams
That equaled the conference’s output for the 1971 draft, when the quarterback selections were:
♦ Ole Miss’ Archie Manning: No. 2, New Orleans Saints
♦ Alabama’s Scott Hunter: No. 160, Green Bay Packers
♦ LSU’s Buddy Lee: No. 167, Chicago Bears
♦ Mississippi State’s Joe Reed: No. 283, San Francisco 49ers
♦ Tennessee’s Bobby Scott: No. 340, New Orleans Saints
5 Georgia defensive players have been selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the past two NFL drafts. That’s the most defensive players from a single program in a two-draft span. After taking Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis in the first round and linebacker Nakobe Dean in the third round in 2022, the Eagles added Bulldogs defensive tackle Jalen Carter and outside linebacker Nolan Smith in the first round and cornerback Kelee Ringo in the fourth round in 2023. Before those picks, Philadelphia had not chosen a player from Georgia since cornerback Brandon Boykin in the 2012 draft.
6 Consecutive NFL drafts have included an SEC team as the most popular provider of players, with Alabama and Georgia tying for the top spot in 2023 with 10 players picked apiece. In the 2022 draft, Georgia produced 15 picks. Alabama took the honor in 2018 with 12 players, 2019 with 10 players and 2021 (when it tied with Ohio State) with 10 players. LSU had the most in 2020 with 14 draft picks. An SEC member has topped the draft for players picked 11 other times — 2014 (LSU with nine players), 2012 (Alabama eight), 2010 (Florida nine), 2007 (Florida seven), 2003 (Florida and Tennessee tied with Miami with eight apiece), 2000 (Tennessee nine), 1999 (Florida tied with Ohio State eight apiece), 1989 (Auburn 10), 1978 (Florida 10), 1962 (LSU and Ole Miss tied with Colorado, Michigan and Penn State with seven each) and 1951 (Kentucky and Tulane tied with nine).
10 Consecutive selections have been made by the Kansas City Chiefs without picking an SEC player, the longest current drought for the conference in the draft. Kansas City’s most recent SEC selection is Kentucky OT Darian Kinnard in the fifth round in 2022. The other teams that did not draft a player from the SEC in 2023 were the Los Angeles Chargers, New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Three teams picked four SEC players apiece in the 2023 NFL Draft — the Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks.
15 Consecutive first rounds have included at least one Alabama player, the longest streak in draft history. The most recent first round without an Alabama player came in 2008. The Crimson Tide had been tied with Miami (Fla.) for the longest streak until producing three first-round picks in 2023. The Hurricanes went 14 consecutive first rounds (1995 through 2008) with a first-round pick. Alabama’s first-round players during its streak have been:
♦ OT Andre Smith in 2009
♦ LB Rolando McClain and CB Kareem Jackson in 2010
♦ DT Marcell Dareus, WR Julio Jones, OT James Carpenter and RB Mark Ingram in 2011
♦ RB Trent Richardson, S Mark Barron, CB Dre Kirkpatrick and LB Dont’a Hightower in 2012
♦ CB Dee Milliner, G Chance Warmack and OT D.J. Fluker in 2013
♦ LB C.J. Mosley and S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in 2014 ♦ WR Amari Cooper in 2015 ♦ C Ryan Kelly in 2016
♦ CB Marlon Humphrey, DE Jonathan Allen, TE O.J. Howard and LB Reuben Foster in 2017
♦ S Minkah Fitzpatrick, DT Daron Payne, LB Rashaan Evans and WR Calvin Ridley in 2018
♦ DT Quinnen Williams, OT Jonah Williams and RB Josh Jacobs in 2019
♦ QB Tua Tagovailoa, WRs Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy and OT Jedrick Wills Jr. in 2020
♦ WRs Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith, CB Patrick Surtain II, QB Mac Jones, OT Alex Leatherwood and RB Najee Harris in 2021
♦ OT Evan Neal and WR Jameson Williams in 2022
♦ QB Bryce Young, LB Will Anderson Jr. and RB Jahmyr Gibbs in 2023
Twenty-five of the NFL’s 32 teams have drafted an Alabama player in the first round during the streak, with the Raiders selecting five.
17 Consecutive drafts have had more players selected from the SEC than from any other conference. In 2023, the SEC provided 62 selections, with the Big Ten next with 55. The most recent draft in which the SEC did not provide the most players came in 2006, when the Big Ten had 41 players picked and the SEC 37. The SEC’s draft-pick total and the runner-up in the previous years of the streak include:
2007: SEC 41, Big Ten 32 2008: SEC 35, ACC 33 2009: SEC 37, ACC 33 2010: SEC 49, Big Ten 34 2011: SEC 38, ACC 35 2012: SEC 42, Big Ten 41 2013: SEC 63, ACC 30 2014: SEC 49, ACC 42 2015: SEC 54, ACC 47 2016: SEC 51, Big Ten 47 2017: SEC 53, ACC 43 2018: SEC 53, ACC 45 2019: SEC 64, Big Ten 40 2020: SEC 63, Big Ten 48 2021: SEC 65, Big Ten 44 2022: SEC 65, Big Ten 48 22 SEC players have been the first pick in the NFL Draft after the Carolina Panthers started the 2023 draft by selecting Alabama QB Bryce Young. The SEC has produced more No. 1 players than any other conference, with the Pac-12 (and its ancestral conferences) second with 16. The SEC players who have been the No. 1 pick have come from Georgia five times, Auburn four, LSU three, Alabama and Tennessee twice apiece and Kentucky, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Tulane and Vanderbilt once each. The 21 SEC players who preceded Young as the No. 1 pick in an NFL Draft were:
♦ Tennessee B George Cafego by the Chicago Cardinals in 1940
♦ Georgia RB Frank Sinkwich by the Detroit Lions in 1943
♦ Georgia B Charley Trippi by the Chicago Cardinals in 1945
♦ Alabama QB Harry Gilmer by the Washington Redskins in 1948
♦ Vanderbilt QB Billy Wade by the Los Angeles Rams in 1952
♦ Georgia E Harry Babcock by the San Francisco 49ers in 1953
♦ LSU RB Billy Cannon by the Los Angeles Rams in 1960
♦ Tulane RB Tommy Mason by the Minnesota Vikings in 1961
♦ Auburn RB Tucker Frederickson by the New York Giants in 1965
♦ Auburn RB Bo Jackson by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1986
♦ Auburn LB Aundray Bruce by the Atlanta Falcons in 1988
♦ Tennessee QB Peyton Manning by the Indianapolis Colts in 1998
♦ Kentucky QB Tim Couch by the Cleveland Browns in 1999
♦ Ole Miss QB Eli Manning by the San Diego Chargers in 2004
♦ LSU QB JaMarcus Russell by the Oakland Raiders in 2007
♦ Georgia QB Matthew Stafford by the Detroit Lions in 2009
♦ Auburn QB Cam Newton by the Carolina Panthers in 2011
♦ South Carolina DE Jadeveon Clowney by the Houston Texans in 2014
♦ Texas A&M DE Myles Garrett by the Cleveland Browns in 2017
♦ LSU QB Joe Burrow by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2020
♦ Georgia DE Travon Walker by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2022
49 Years since the Los Angeles Rams had made their previous selection from Ole Miss in an NFL Draft. When the Rams chose Rebels RB Zach Evans on Saturday in the sixth round of the 2023 draft, he became the first choice for the franchise from Ole Miss since quarterback Norris Weese in 1974. Los Angeles selected four SEC players in this year’s draft, including Georgia QB Stetson Bennett. He became the first SEC quarterback chosen by the Rams since they took Alabama’s Jeff Rutledge in 1979. The Rams drafted 18 quarterbacks between Rutledge and Bennett.