List of UConn Huskies in the NFL draft

The University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies football team has had 42 players selected in the National Football League (NFL) Draft.[Note 1] Two of those selections were in the first round of the draft, both with the 27th overall pick: running back Donald Brown in 2009 and cornerback Byron Jones in 2015.[1][4][General] A Connecticut football alumnus had been selected in every NFL draft from 2007 to 2015 and in twelve of the last fourteen NFL drafts.

Donald Brown was the first player in UConn Huskies football history to be drafted in the first round.[1]

Each NFL franchise seeks to add new players through the annual NFL draft. The draft rules were last updated in 2009. The team with the worst record the previous year picks first, the next-worst team second, and so on. Teams that did not make the playoffs are ordered by their regular-season record with any remaining ties broken by strength of schedule. Playoff participants are sequenced after non-playoff teams, based on their round of elimination (wild card, division, conference, and Super Bowl).[5]

Before the merger agreements in 1966, the American Football League (AFL) operated in direct competition with the NFL and held a separate draft. This led to a bidding war over top prospects between the two leagues. As part of the merger agreement on June 8, 1966, the two leagues would hold a multiple round "common draft". Once the AFL officially merged with the NFL in 1970, the "common draft" simply became the NFL draft.[2][3]

The first Connecticut player to be taken in the NFL draft was Walt Trojanowski in the sixth round of the 1946 NFL draft. From 1946–1994, the Huskies had fourteen players drafted into the NFL over the span of forty-eight years. The rate at which UConn alumni were selected would significantly increase following the Huskies' upgrade from Division I-AA to Division I-A in 2000.[6][Note 2] Beginning in 2005 and continuing through 2015, Connecticut has had twenty-five players picked over eleven NFL drafts. In 2009 four UConn alumni were taken in the first two rounds of the draft. The most Connecticut players to be selected in a single NFL draft was five in 2013, including three in the third round, one in the fourth round, and one in the sixth round.

Player selection
Will Beatty was the first UConn draftee to play for a Super Bowl-winning team: the 2011 New York Giants.[Note 3][Note 4]
Quarterback Dan Orlovsky, drafted in the 5th round in the 2005 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions, is as of 2015 Connecticut's longest-serving active alumnus in the NFL.[11]
Darius Butler was the first UConn alumnus to be selected in the second round of the NFL draft, in 2009.

American Football League
Year Round Pick Overall Player AFL team[Note 5] Position Notes References
1963 4 3 27 John Contoulis New York Jets Tackle – [12][13]

National Football League

Selections
Year Round Pick Overall Player Team Position Notes References
1946 6 9 49 Walt Trojanowski Washington Redskins Back – –
9 4 74 Walt Dropo Chicago Bears End [Note 6][Note 7] [16]
1947 24 9 224 Bill Moll New York Giants Back – –
28 4 259 Milt Dropo Washington Redskins Center [Note 7] –
1958 18 5 210 Lenny King Washington Redskins Back – –
1962 11 13 153 Dave Bishop New York Giants Back – –
16 3 213 John Contoulis New York Giants Tackle – [12][13]
1971 4 24 102 Vince Clements Minnesota Vikings Running back – [17][18]
1974 11 12 272 Eric Torkelson Green Bay Packers Running back – [19][20]
1980 8 28 221 Ted Walton Pittsburgh Steelers Defensive back – –
1984 4 15 99 John Dorsey Green Bay Packers Linebacker – [21][22]
1989 9 15 238 David Franks Seattle Seahawks Guard – –
1992 12 10 318 Cornelius Benton Seattle Seahawks Guard – –
1994 6 29 190 Paul Duckworth Green Bay Packers Linebacker – –
2005 3 18 82 Alfred Fincher New Orleans Saints Linebacker – [23][24]
5 9 145 Dan Orlovsky Detroit Lions Quarterback – [25][26]
2007 6 21 195 Deon Anderson Dallas Cowboys Running back – [27][28]
2008 4 1 100 Tyvon Branch Oakland Raiders Defensive back – [29][30]
6 29 195 Donald Thomas Miami Dolphins Guard – [31][32]
2009 1 27 27 Donald Brown Indianapolis Colts Running back – [1][33][34]
2 9 41 Darius Butler New England Patriots Defensive back – [35][36]
2 28 60 Will Beatty New York Giants Offensive tackle Super Bowl champion (XLVI)[8][Note 3] [8][37][38][39]
2 31 63 Cody Brown Arizona Cardinals Linebacker – [40][41]
2010 4 9 107 Marcus Easley Buffalo Bills Wide receiver – [42][43]
7 42 249 Robert McClain Carolina Panthers Defensive back – [44][45]
2011 5 5 136 Anthony Sherman Arizona Cardinals Fullback Super Bowl champion (LIV)[46][47] [48][49]
6 1 166 Lawrence Wilson Carolina Panthers Linebacker – [50][51]
6 18 183 Jordan Todman San Diego Chargers Running back – [52][53]
7 34 237 Greg Lloyd Philadelphia Eagles Linebacker – [54][55]
2012 2 17 49 Kendall Reyes San Diego Chargers Defensive tackle – [56][57]
2013 3 2 64 Dwayne Gratz Jacksonville Jaguars Defensive back – [58][59]
3 4 66 Sio Moore Oakland Raiders Linebacker – [60][61]
3 8 70 Blidi Wreh-Wilson Tennessee Titans Defensive back – [62][63]
4 27 124 Trevardo Williams Houston Texans Defensive end – [64][65]
6 33 201 Ryan Griffin Houston Texans Tight end – [66][67]
2014 7 5 220 Shamar Stephen Minnesota Vikings Defensive tackle – [68][69]
7 38 253 Yawin Smallwood Atlanta Falcons Linebacker – [70][71]
2015 1 27 27 Byron Jones Dallas Cowboys Defensive back – [72][73]
6 10 186 Geremy Davis New York Giants Wide receiver – [74][75]
2017 2 24 56 Obi Melifonwu Oakland Raiders Defensive back – –
2018 6 6 180 Folorunso Fatukasi New York Jets Defensive tackle – –
2020 3 35 99 Matt Peart New York Giants Offensive tackle – –

Notes
  1. Because of the NFL–AFL merger agreement, the history of the AFL is officially recognized by the NFL and therefore this list includes the AFL draft (1960–1966). The AFL and NFL held a common draft from 1967–1969; UConn had no players selected during that period.[2][3]
  2. In August 2006 the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) changed the name of Division I-A to Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and Division I-AA to Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).[7]
  3. Beatty played the first ten games for the Giants during the 2011 season but after that was placed on injured reserve due to a detached retina. He did not play in Super Bowl XLVI.[8]
  4. While Beatty was the first Connecticut draftee to play on a Super Bowl-winning team, he was not the first alumnus to be a Super Bowl champion. Nick Giaquinto went undrafted and subsequently won Super Bowl XVII with the Washington Redskins.[9][10]
  5. This is the team that drafted the player, not the player's most recent team.
  6. Walt Dropo was also selected 4th overall in the 1947 Basketball Association of America (BAA) draft by the Providence Steamrollers.[14] He elected to play in neither league and instead signed a free agent contract with Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox. He would be named American League Rookie of the Year in 1950.[15]
  7. Walt and Milt Dropo were brothers.[15]

References

General

  • "UConn's NFL Draft History". www.uconnhuskies.com. University of Connecticut. Archived from the original on 2015-09-19. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  • "Connecticut Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on September 20, 2015. Retrieved September 20, 2015.

Specific

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