laquon treadwell.jpg
Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell poses for photos with his daughter, Madison, after being selected by the Minnesota Vikings with the 23rd pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday, April 28, 2016, in Chicago.
(AP Photo)
2 SEC players have been the 31st player picked in the first round after the Seahawks selected Texas A&M offensive tackle Germain Ifedi at that spot. It's the first time an SEC player has been picked at No. 31 since 1999, when the Broncos chose Tennessee LB Al Wilson. Nineteen NFL first rounds have included a No. 31 pick. Eight other SEC players have been selected at No. 31, but none were first-rounders.
3 Ole Miss players were first-round selections - OT Laremy Tunsil, WR Laquon Treadwell and DT Robert Nkemdiche. That's the most in school history. The Rebels had had two first-round picks in one previous draft: In 2009, the Ravens chose OT Michael Oher at No. 23 and the Falcons chose DT Peria Jerry at No. 24.
4 Consecutive drafts have featured an SEC player as the No. 23 pick, with the Vikings extending the streak by selecting Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell in that slot. In 2015, the Broncos took Missouri DE Shane Ray with the 23rd pick. In 2014, the Chiefs picked Auburn DE Dee Ford at No. 23. In 2013, Florida DT Sharrif Floyd went to the Vikings with the 23rd pick.
4 Consecutive drafts have featured a Texas A&M offensive tackle in the first round, with the Seahawks extending the streak by selecting Germain Ifedi with the final pick. In 2015, the Bengals selected Aggies OT Cedric Ogbuehi at No. 21. In 2014, Jake Matthews went to the Falcons at No. 6. In 2013, Luke Joeckel went to the Jaguars at No. 2. The Seahawks are projecting Ifedi as a guard in their offense.
8 SEC players were selected in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft, more than from any other conference. The Bears picked Georgia linebacker Leonard Floyd at No. 9, the Buccaneers picked Florida cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III at No. 11, the Dolphins picked Ole Miss offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil at No. 13, the Falcons picked Florida safety Keanu Neal at No. 17, the Colts picked Alabama center Ryan Kelly at No. 18, the Vikings picked Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell at No. 23, the Cardinals picked Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche at No. 29 and the Seahawks picked Texas A&M offensive tackle Germain Ifedi at No. 31. The Big Ten had six players picked, the ACC and Pac-12 four apiece, the Big 12 three, the American and independent Notre Dame two each and Conference USA one on Thursday night. An FCS player, North Dakota State's Carson Wentz, also went in the first round. In the 2015 draft, the SEC had seven players drafted in the first round while the ACC and the Pac-12 had nine apiece.
8 Consecutive first rounds have included at least one Alabama player, with the Colts extending the streak by selecting Crimson Tide C Ryan Kelly at No. 18. Alabama owns the longest current streak of first-round picks in the nation and the third-longest in draft history. The record for most consecutive drafts providing a first-round selection is 14 by Miami (Fla.) from 1995 through 2008. The SEC record for most consecutive drafts providing a first-round selection is nine by Florida from 1983 through 1991. Alabama became the third team with a first-round streak of at least eight drafts.
8 Georgia players have been the first SEC player selected in an NFL Draft, with the Bulldogs' Leonard Floyd earning the honor for 2016. A list of the first SEC player selected in each draft, arranged by school:
- Alabama
- Arkansas: 1
- Auburn: 6
- Florida: 9
- Georgia: 8
- Georgia Tech: 1
- Kentucky: 6
- LSU: 10
- Missouri: 0
- Mississippi State: 5
- Ole Miss: 5
- South Carolina: 1
- Tennessee: 11
- Texas A&M: 1
- Tulane: 2
- Vanderbilt: 3
8 Consecutive NFL Drafts have passed without an Arkansas or Vanderbilt player selected in the first round, the longest active first-round droughts in the SEC. The most recent Razorbacks to come off the board in the first round are RB Darren McFadden, who went to the Raiders at No. 4, and RB Felix Jones, who went to the Cowboys at No. 22, in 2008. The most recent Commodore to be drafted in the first round is OT Chris Williams, who went to the Bears at No. 14 in 2008. The longest first-round drought in SEC history is 23 drafts by Vanderbilt, which didn't have a first-round pick in the 1961 through 1983 drafts.
10 Years since the SEC had to wait so late to have its first player drafted. Georgia LB Leonard Floyd was the first SEC player picked in 2016, going to the Bears at No. 9. The SEC hadn't gone that long without a player being picked since 2006, when the first selection from the SEC was Vanderbilt QB Jay Cutler by the Broncos at No. 11. The SEC had had at least one player picked in the top three for five straight drafts entering Thursday night.
10 Years since an SEC player had been drafted in the first round by the Colts. Indianapolis broke the longest active SEC-less first-round streak by taking Alabama C Ryan Kelly at No. 18. The Colts hadn't used a first-round pick on an SEC player since 2006, when they took LSU RB Joseph Addai at No. 30. The longest SEC-less first-round streak now belongs to the Redskins, who haven't used their first-round pick on an SEC player since selecting LSU S LaRon Landry in 2007.
12 SEC players have been the first linebacker selected in an NFL Draft, with Georgia's Leonard Floyd earning that honor this year by going to the Bears at No. 9. The other SEC players who were the first LB selected include Florida's Dante Fowler (chosen third in 2015 by the Jaguars), Georgia's Jarvis Jones (17th in 2013 by the Steelers), Alabama's Rolando McClain (eight in 2010 by the Raiders), Ole Miss' Patrick Willis (11th in 2007 by the 49ers), Alabama's Keith McCants (fourth in 1990 by the Buccaneers), Alabama's Derrick Thomas (fourth in 1989 by the Chiefs), Auburn's Aundray Bruce (first in 1988 by the Falcons), Alabama's Cornelius Bennett (second in 1987 by the Colts), Mississippi State's Johnie Cooks (second in 1982 by the Colts), Lee Roy Jordan (sixth in 1963 by the Cowboys) and Georgia's Dave Lloyd (47th in 1959 by the Browns).
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13 SEC players have been first-round selections at the 18th pick after the Colts took Alabama C Ryan Kelly in that spot on Thursday night. That pick has been included in the first round for the past 50 drafts, meaning SEC players have filled those slots 26 percent of the time. That's a higher rate than the most popular first-round slot for SEC players - No. 1. Eighteen SEC players have been the first player picked in the 81 NFL drafts - 22.2 percent.
13 Players from the SEC have been the first center selected in the NFL Draft, with Alabama's Ryan Kelly taking that honor for 2016. The other SEC players who were the first centers selected in their draft years are Florida's Maurkice Pouncey in 2010, Ole Miss' Chris Spencer in 2005, LSU's Kevin Mawae in 1994, Kentucky's Dermontti Dawson in 1988, Tennessee's Robert Shaw in 1979, Auburn's Lee Gross in 1975, Tennessee's Bob Johnson in 1968, Kentucky's Irv Goode in 1962, Georgia Tech's Larry Morris in 1955, Ole Miss' Ed Beatty in 1954, LSU's George Tarasovic in 1952 and Alabama's Vaughn "Cisco" Mancha in 1948.
18 Years since the Falcons drafted a player from Florida. Atlanta used its first-round pick on Florida S Keanu Neal, making him the first Gator picked by the Falcons since DB Elijah Williams in 1998. Of the eight previous Florida players drafted by the Falcons, none was picked before the third round.
20 SEC players have been picked in the first round by the Cardinals, who added to their total by taking Ole Miss DT Robert Nkemdiche at No. 29. That's the most SEC first-rounders for one NFL team.
22 Players were selected before the Minnesota Vikings chose Laquon Treadwell -- the earliest an Ole Miss wide receiver has been drafted. In the 1968 NFL Draft, the Oilers picked Mac Haik at No. 49, the previous best for an Ole Miss wide receiver.
52 Players from Alabama have been selected in the first round of the NFL Draft after C Ryan Kelly went to the Colts at No. 18. That's the most in the SEC thanks to 18 first-rounders in the past eight years. Florida has had 50 players selected in the first round, Tennessee 45, LSU 38, Georgia 31, Auburn 29, Ole Miss 21, Kentucky 14, Mississippi State 10, Vanderbilt 9, South Carolina 8, Arkansas 7, Texas A&M 6 and Missouri 2. Former SEC members Georgia Tech and Tulane had three apiece, bringing the number of SEC players who went on to become first-round draft picks to 327. Including players picked before their SEC membership, Arkansas has had 23 first-rounders, Missouri 17, South Carolina 12 and Texas A&M 31.
68 Years since Alabama produced the first center selected in the NFL Draft, an honor that went to the Crimson Tide's Ryan Kelly in 2016. In 1948, the New York Yanks selected Alabama C Vaughn "Cisco" Mancha with the fifth choice of the draft. In the previous 28 NFL drafts, one Alabama players had been drafted with a center designation - Antoine Caldwell in 2009.
70 Consecutive NFL Drafts have included at least one SEC player in the first round. The most recent NFL draft in which an SEC player was not selected in the first round was 1947, although the first SEC player picked that year, LSU B Red Knight, was taken by the Redskins with the 17th choice, which would put him around the middle of the first round this year. Three other drafts - 1937, 1938 and 1941 - have not included an SEC player in the first round, although an SEC player had been selected by the 14th pick in each of them.