CU at the NFL Draft

May 1st

SEC leads Draft numbers for tenth straight season

Here’s the full breakdown of the 2016 NFL draft by conference:

SEC: 51

Big Ten: 47

Pac-12: 32

ACC: 26

Big 12: 26

FCS/D-II/International: 25

American: 10

C-USA: 10

MWC: 9

Independent: 8

MAC: 6

Sun Belt: 3

 

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April 30th

Five Buffs sign free agent contracts

From cubuffs.com … At least five former Colorado Buffaloes were signing free agent contracts Saturday night after the conclusion of the NFL Draft.

The Buffs did not have a player selected in the 2016 draft.

Among those signing free agent deals were running back Christian Powell with the Pittsburgh Steelers, offensive lineman Stephane Nembot with the Baltimore Ravens, defensive back Ken Crawley with the New Orleans Saints, wide receiver Nelson Spruce with the Los Angeles Rams and safety Jered Bell with the San Francisco 49ers.

Powell, who led the Buffs in rushing three of his four years at CU, said the Steelers had been in contact with him before the draft.

“They told my agent they had an interest in me,” Powell said. “I’m glad to get the opportunity. I’ll play my role and do anything I can to make the squad.”

Powell led the Buffs in rushing in his freshman, sophomore and junior seasons, and finished his career as CU’s all-time leading rusher with 2,040 yards, and he also finished with 18 career touchdowns and 33 receptions.

Nembot started 42 games in his CU career, including the final 37 (every game from his sophomore through senior seasons).

“It’s a great place for me,” Nembot said. “It’s where I want to be. They kept in contact with me from the beginning and were honest with me. I’m just looking for a place to compete. If it works out, great. If not — I will go find a job. Professional football has always been Plan B with me, not Plan A.”

Spruce finished his career with more than 40 CU records to his credit, as well as the Pac-12 all-time record for receptions (294). Among Spruce’s other CU records were receiving yards (3,347) and touchdown catches (23).The Rams also spent a pair of draft picks on receivers, selecting South Carolina’s Pharoh Cooper in the third round and Southern Mississippi’s Mike Thomas in the sixth.

Spruce, who grew up near the Rams’ new headquarters, had a personal workout with Los Angeles earlier this spring.

Crawley, a three-year starter for CU, played nearly 80 percent of CU’s defensive snaps over his four-year career and finished his career third on CU’s pass deflection chart (36). The Saints did not add any defensive backs in the draft.

Bell overcame two serious knee injuries at Colorado to finish with seven career interceptions, tied for 22nd on CU’s all-time list.

 

Colorado shut out of the draft in consecutive years for the first time in 65 years

– Since 1990, there have been only five drafts which have been conducted without at least one Buff having their name called. Those five drafts were 2001, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2016. (An oddity – In April, 1989, the spring before CU went 11-0 in the regular season and climbed to No. 1 in the polls for the first time in school history – no Buffs were drafted).

– Only once before the 2015 and 2016 drafts has the Colorado program gone two seasons in a row without a player being drafted, and that was back in 1949 and 1950.

— Other Power-Five conference schools shut out of the 2016 NFL Draft … Tennessee; Kansas; North Carolina; Wake Forest; Iowa State and Duke.

Pac-12 picks

UCLA … 8

Stanford … 5

California … 4

USC … 4

Oregon … 2

Arizona … 2

Arizona State … 2

Washington … 2

Washington State … 1

Utah … 1

Oregon State … 1

 

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April 29th

Pac-12 has four players chose in first round of NFL Draft

The Pac-12 had four players chose in the first round of the 2016 NFL draft, including the first overall pick in Cal quarterback Jared Goff.

Overall, however, the conference lagged behind other Power-Five conferences in first round selections. The SEC had eight first round selections, with eight, followed by the Big Ten, with six (five of those from Ohio State alone). The Pac-12’s four picks was matched by the ACC, with the Big 12 coming in with three first round selections.

(For those keeping score, the final tally for draft picks in the 2015 NFL draft … SEC, 54; ACC, 47; Pac-12, 39; Big Ten, 35; Big 12, 25.

Colorado has the 5th-most first round picks in the Pac-12

(Updated to include 2016 draft)

Since the NFL and AFL began the common draft in 1967, Colorado has had 22 first round draft picks*. This is good enough for 5th in the annals of the Pac-12. Oregon State, with the fewest, picked up No. 3 in 2014 with Brandin Cooks.

Washington State broke the longest drought without a first round pick, dating back to 2003, when Deone Bucannon went to Arizona with the 27th pick in 2015. The longest drought without a first round pick now belongs to Arizona, which last had a first round pick in 2008.

The Pac-12 conference and the first round of the NFL draft (1967-present):

USC – 70 … Most recent: 2015 – Leonard Williams, DE, 6th pick, New York Jets; Nelson Agholor, WR, 20th pick, Philadelphia

UCLA – 25 … Most recent: 2016 – Kenny Clark, DT, 27th pick, Green Bay

California – 24 … Most recent: 2016 – Jared Goff, QB, 1st pick, Los Angeles Rams

Arizona State – 23 … Most recent: 2015 – Damarious Randall, 30th pick, S, Green Bay

Colorado – 22 … Most recent: 2011 – Nate Solder, OT, 17th pick, New England; and Jimmy Smith, CB, 27th pick, Baltimore

Washington – 20 … Most recent: 2015 – Danny Shelton, DT, 12th pick, Cleveland; Marcus Peters, CB, 18th pick, Kansas City; Shaq Thompson, LB, 25th pick, Carolina

Stanford – 18 … Most recent: 2016 – Joshua Garnett, OG, 28th pick, San Francisco

Oregon – 16 … Most recent: 2016 – DeForest Buckner, DE, 7th pick, San Francisco

Washington State – 9 … Most recent: 2014 – Deone Bucannon, S, 27th pick, Arizona

Arizona – 9 … Most recent: 2008 – Antoine Cason, CB, 27th pick, San Diego

Utah – 6 …  Most recent: 2013 – Star Lotulelei, DT, 14th pick, Carolina

Oregon State – 3 … Most recent: 2014 – Brandin Cooks, WR, 20th pick, New Orleans

(And, in case you are wondering … Colorado State – 4 … Most recent: 1987 – Kelly Stouffer, QB, 6th pick, St. Louis)

* Colorado actually has had 24 first round NFL first round picks overall, counting Byron White, the 4th overall pick in 1938 (Pittsburgh) and Jerry Hillebrand, TE, the 13th overall pick of the 1962 draft (New York Giants).

 

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April 28th

NFL Draft opens Thursday … the waiting for Spruce, Crawley, and Nembot will be over by Saturday

— “Buffs Spruce, Nembot, Crawley Ready For NFL Draft” … from cubuffs.com

The opening: For hundreds of college football players across the nation, the work has been completed for weeks — and by the end of the weekend, the waiting will be over as well.

At least three Colorado Buffaloes are hoping the wait will be worth it. Wide receiver Nelson Spruce, cornerback Ken Crawley and offensive lineman Stephane Nembot are all projected as late-round picks, meaning by Saturday night, they could know what uniform they’ll be wearing next.

“I’ve done everything that I can to this point, and now I’m just waiting for it to be over,” said Spruce, who wrapped up his CU career with more than 40 Buffs records to his name. “I’m more anxious than nervous. I’m ready to get started with the next step in the process.”

With 266 all-time NFL draft picks, Colorado is 22nd in the nation and fourth in the Pac-12 in number of players selected by NFL teams.

… The draft begins Thursday at 6 p.m. in Chicago with the first round, and will be televised by ESPN and the NFL Network. Rounds 2 and 3 will be held Friday, beginning at 5 p.m., with the final four rounds set to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Continue reading story here … (you may have to right click and go to “open in new tab” to read the remainder of the story …

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April 27th

Scouting Report … Nelson Spruce

— “Nelson Spruce believes his draft value transcends combine” … from the Daily Camera

Quotable:

… “The best thing is to look at my game film,” Spruce said. “My last two years at Colorado, I feel like I was one of the most productive receivers in the country.

“In the combine and all of that stuff isn’t where I’m really going to excel. I feel like I did as much as I could there, and I was happy with the way it turned out, but I feel like if you go back to my game film, you can see that I know how to play this game. My knowledge of the game and my passion is there.”

… “When it comes down to it, I know how to play football,” he said. “(Teams) having a real interest in me is kind of surreal almost, but at the same time, it’s just the beginning for me. I’ve always had super high expectations of myself and my dream is being a successful NFL player and having a long career.

“In one way, it’s pretty awesome, but at the same time, I really haven’t accomplished anything yet.”

 

Nelson Spruce evaluation … From NFL.com

Overview

One of the most productive receivers in college football in 2014, Spruce filled the stats sheet with 105 catches for nearly 1,200 yards and 12 scores. His senior year, however, was not as productive (84-942, three TD) partially due to the team’s offensive limitations. While Spruce is not considered an explosive downfield threat, but he runs solid routes, fights for the ball in the air and is a reliable pass-catcher (he’s the Pac-12’s leader in career receptions) — three important traits for a No. 2 or 3 NFL receiver.

Strengths

Same guy every snap. Despite a high number of body catches, is extremely sure-handed dropping just three balls over last 288 targets. Willing over the middle and is comfortable in contested catch situations. Fearless, steady punt returner. Production off the charts. Broke Pac­-12 all-time mark in career catches. Will vary speed in routes and is clever with double moves. Knows how to set up a route. Uses plus play strength to fight through press. Technique not always there, but will strike with a purpose as a run blocker.

Weaknesses

Marginal play speed and needs double moves to give him a shot over the top of cornerbacks. Cornerbacks know he can’t run by them and squat on underneath routes. Compactly built with tight hips. Has noticeable balance issues running whip routes and is too tight to run sharp breaking routes with acceleration out of his cuts. Lack of get­away speed means he will always have company in a nearby defender. Short-limbed and not an explosive leader. Won’t win many high­-point battles for the ball.

Draft Projection

Rounds 6 or 7

Sources Tell Us

“His production had our area scout over­-grading him, but once you get past what he can’t do and focus on what he can do you feel better about him as a late round guy who can help your team.” –­ AFC general manager

NFL Comparison

Danny Amendola

Bottom Line

Spruce won’t check very many of the athletic boxes needed to get drafted, but his overall toughness, production and hands should put him back on the draft radar. Spruce won’t appeal to everyone, but teams looking for a hard­-nosed slot receiver with value as a punt returner could bite on the third day.

Nelson Spruce evaluation … from CBS Sports

Spruce toiled in relative obscurity while the speedster Paul Richardson starred for the Buffs but exploded a year ago in the vacuum left when his former teammate was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks, setting school records with 106 grabs and 12 touchdowns along with 1,198 receiving yards to earn Second Team All-Pac-12 honors.The lanky pass-catcher proved to be the picture of reliability for the Buffs, and leaves the program as the only Colorado receiver to eclipse the 1,000-yard receiving mark twice.

STRENGTHS: Spruce is a polished, dependable route-runner with the soft hands to quickly become a quarterback’s favorite target. He uses deceptive quickness off of the ball to escape press coverage and incorporates body lean, varied gaits and an occasional push-off to gain separation from more athletic pass defenders. He has a lanky, athletic frame and possesses terrific ballskills, including the body control and catch radius to pull in passes far outside of his frame.

Spruce has good hand-eye coordination and soft mitts to pluck the football and secure it quickly. Effectively uses a jab-step to force opponents to commit to one direction before turning the other way, scrambling for extra yardage. He shows good vision to set up blocks and isn’t afraid to turn things upfield into traffic rather than attempting to circle around defenders.Spruce shows vision and toughness in working across the middle on drag routes, slipping through traffic and showing the focus and toughness to pull in passes with defenders closing in.WEAKNESSES: While his production is undeniable, Spruce does not possess ideal athletic traits. Has just average straight-line speed and relies on sharp route-running (rather than true explosiveness) to generate separation. He’ll struggle to get free against NFL cornerbacks on the perimeter and doesn’t possess the size, leaping ability or strength to consistently win 50-50 balls.IN OUR VIEW: Spruce is a classic possession receiver who wins with savvy route-running and soft hands. He production will get him a shot but he’s not surefire NFL prospect his numbers would indicate. 

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April 26th

Scouting Report … Stephane Nembot

From CBS Sports

COMPARES TO: Sebastian Vollmer, New England Patriots – Nembot (Cameroon) and Vollmer (Germany) were each born outside of the United States, but talent like theirs make geographical boundaries meaningless. Just as Vollmer showed rapid development at offensive tackle once he made the switch from tight end, Nembot has steadily improved at offensive tackle after initially playing defensive end for the Buffalos. He has a lot of work to do to match the success Vollmer has enjoyed since being drafted 58th overall in 2009 but has the talent to ultimately emerge as a starting tackle, just as Vollmer has for the Patriots.

IN OUR VIEW: While still quite raw, Nembot’s exciting blend of traits could earn him a surprisingly high grade from NFL teams. With some patience, he could develop into a starter at the next level, likely remaining outside at tackle because of his length and athleticism. However, there is cause for concern after struggles during Shrine Game practices, where he was routinely called out by coaches for playing too high and had struggle adjusting to multiple rushers.

From NFL.com

Overview

Stephane Nembot was born in Cameroon, speaks three languages (English, French, and Spanish) and well as 11 African dialects. He began playing football in his junior year of high school, starring as a defensive end. But as he grew into his massive frame during his redshirt freshman season at Colorado, coaches moved him over to right tackle — during the middle of a game. He started the next week, and the following 36, at that right tackle spot before moving to the left side for the last month of the 2015 season. Nembot has agility and length to spare, and despite his still-leggy frame has added 40 pounds during his career at CU.

Strengths

Long­-levered tackle prospect with gigantic hands. Has experience at both left and right tackle spots. Has shown improvement in each of his year’s at the position. Sack total dropped from six (2013) to 4.5 (2014) to three (2015). Full time starter for the better part of four years. Aggressive with his punch and has some snap at the end of it to impact pass rusher’s course. Has the athleticism and quickness to become a capable run blocker in space. Has high success rate in collapsing his man in down­blocks. Much more disciplined in 2015 cutting holding down from five to one and false starts from four to one.

Weaknesses

Lean frame that could use longer trips to the training table. Moved from defensive end to offensive tackle as a redshirt freshman so he’s still a work in progress. Footwork gets sloppy in run game and gets caught thinking rather than reacting. Ends up on ground entirely too much due to poor body control. Lacks power in lower half to win in the neutral zone as base blocker. Plays on skates in his pass sets. Over­shifts his weight outside and then is unable to recover back inside when pass rushers come underneath him. Not enough bend or strength to drop anchor and battle back against a bull rush. Below average instincts.

Draft Projection

Rounds 6 or 7

Bottom Line

Nembot is a project who would get a quarterback killed if he had to step into a starter’s role next season. However, evaluators will understand this and will likely give him time to continue growing into his frame and working on his technique. Nembot’s play strength and balance is a substantial concern and might always be an issue for him, but he’s got size and length and teams take chances on those traits at tackle.

 

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April 25th

Scouting Report … Kenneth Crawley

Crawley eager to answer if NFL calls” … from the Daily Camera

Quotes …

“The whole process has been a long process, a stressful process,” he said. “At the same time, these are the moments that you’re supposed to cherish and I’ve been waiting a long time for this moment and this day coming up soon.

“I’m just blessed. I’m still working to try to stay in shape and hopefully I land in the right coordinator’s hands.”

… “I’m anxious, because I can’t wait to get back out there and play football,” he said. “That’s my biggest thing is to get it over with and just fly and play. I’ve been away from football for a long time and I’m just ready to play.”

 

Scouting Analysis

From NFL.com

Overview

Since his freshman year, Crawley has used his height and long arms to distract and disrupt receivers downfield. He broke up 21 passes in his first three seasons, intercepting two others (both in 2013). Crawley continued his progress as a player during his senior year, making 46 tackles while adding another 13 pass breakups and an interception to his career totals. Crawley’s lack of interceptions kept him from receiving post-season accolades, but his height and length should earn him a long look at the next level.

Strengths

Good height. Three-year starter who has played over 78 percent of the team’s defensive snaps in all four seasons. Shows patience out of back pedal. Won’t open to one side or the other based on basic, first move by receiver. Flashed bursts of athleticism in Shrine Game practices and was able to open hips and transition into a sprint. Has mirror and match ability on stop and go routes. Consistent tackle production. Has balanced approach and usually drives through running back’s legs in run support.

Weaknesses

Has had significant issues with discipline in his coverage. Not as vigilant as he should be in off coverage and allows people over the top of him with go routes and double moves. Plays high in his back­pedal. Doesn’t trust his technique down the field. Has been hit with a whopping 12 pass interference penalties over last two years. Needs more play strength and assertiveness to challenge blockers in run support. Has just three interceptions to 19 touchdowns allowed over his career. Lack of hustle in back­side run support cost his team in Stanford game.

Draft Projection

Rounds 6 or 7

Sources Tell Us

“He’s got a little something to him. I like the way he moves out there. I need to watch him.” — AFC executive at East-West Shrine Game practice

Bottom Line

Crawley definitely had some flash moments at the Shrine Game practices, but teams value production and there is no getting around his astounding number of touchdowns allowed and pass interference penalties. If Crawley runs well, teams may view him as a developmental prospect in need of technique work, but his inconsistency in coverage and lack of plays on the ball may be a sign of confidence issues and a lack of instincts.

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April 24th

Three Buffs hope to have their named called in the 2016 NFL Draft

Three Buffs – wide receiver Nelson Spruce, offensive tackle Stephane Nembot, and cornerback Kenneth Crawley – hope to hear their names called this upcoming weekend during the 2016 NFL Draft (April 28th – 30th).

In mock drafts, Spruce is the Buff whose name comes up as the most likely candidate to be drafted, with DraftSite.com having Spruce going in the 5th round to Kansas City and NFLDraftGeek.com seeing Spruce as a 7th round pick by New England.

At least one mock draft (nfl.com), however, has both Kenneth Crawley (5th round, Minnesota) and Stephane Nembot (6th round, San Francisco) being drafted.

In the upcoming days leading up to the draft, check back under this headline for draft profiles of CU’s draft hopefuls

 

NFL pre-draft interview with Nelson Spruce

Nelson Spruce is looking to be drafted this upcoming week (draft coming April 28-30). FanSided has posted an interview with Spruce, which can be found here.

Some excerpts:

Is there a coach who’s had a strong impact on your life and career?

My last WR coach I had —Troy Walters – as a player and a person he was someone I could always count on to give me good advice. He’s been through it all, he played in the League for a few years and was someone I could relate to.

What is your biggest strength as a player?

My reliability.

What does being the Pac-12 all time receptions leader mean to you?

It means a lot. You obviously want to be the best and leave your mark. To be able to say I held that record with the great receivers that have come through our conference is pretty awesome.

What will you miss most about Boulder, CO?

The college experience. It was a great place to spend four and a half years. I will always have a lot of great memories.

 

Beware of draft years divisible by five …

In the period from start of the common draft, in 1967, there have been only six drafts which have gone without a CU player being selected.

When the 2015 draft came up empty for the Buffs, however, it marked the third time in the past 11 drafts without a Buff being picked, with CU finishing with no draft picks in 2005, 2010, and 2015.

Or, to put it another way – In the 38 drafts between 1967 and 2004, there were only three empty drafts for the University of Colorado … but there have been three empty drafts since.

 

Colorado has the 5th-most first round picks in the Pac-12

Since the NFL and AFL began the common draft in 1967, Colorado has had 22 first round draft picks*. This is good enough for 5th in the annals of the Pac-12. Oregon State, with the fewest, picked up No. 3 in 2014 with Brandin Cooks.

Washington State broke the longest drought without a first round pick, dating back to 2003, when Deone Bucannon went to Arizona with the 27th pick in 2015. The longest drought without a first round pick now belongs to Arizona, which last had a first round pick in 2008.

The Pac-12 conference and the first round of the NFL draft (1967-present):

USC – 70 … Most recent: 2015 – Leonard Williams, DE, 6th pick, New York Jets; Nelson Agholor, WR, 20th pick, Philadelphia

UCLA – 24 … Most recent: 2014 – Anthony Barr, LB, 9th pick, Minnesota

California – 23 … Most recent: 2011 – Cameron Jordan, DE, 24th pick, New Orleans

Arizona State – 23 … Most recent: 2015 – Damarious Randall, 30th pick, S, Green Bay

Colorado – 22 … Most recent: 2011 – Nate Solder, OT, 17th pick, New England; and Jimmy Smith, CB, 27th pick, Baltimore

Washington – 20 … Most recent: 2015 – Danny Shelton, DT, 12th pick, Cleveland; Marcus Peters, CB, 18th pick, Kansas City; Shaq Thompson, LB, 25th pick, Carolina

Stanford – 17 … Most recent: 2015 – Andres Peat, OT, 13th pick, New Orleans

Oregon – 15 … Most recent: 2015 – Marcus Mariota, QB, 2nd pick, Tennessee; Arik Armstead, 17th pick, San Francisco

Washington State – 9 … Most recent: 2014 – Deone Bucannon, S, 27th pick, Arizona

Arizona – 9 … Most recent: 2008 – Antoine Cason, CB, 27th pick, San Diego

Utah – 6 …  Most recent: 2013 – Star Lotulelei, DT, 14th pick, Carolina

Oregon State – 3 … Most recent: 2014 – Brandin Cooks, WR, 20th pick, New Orleans

(And, in case you are wondering … Colorado State – 4 … Most recent: 1987 – Kelly Stouffer, QB, 6th pick, St. Louis)

* Colorado actually has had 24 first round NFL first round picks overall, counting Byron White, the 4th overall pick in 1938 (Pittsburgh) and Jerry Hillebrand, TE, the 13th overall pick of the 1962 draft (New York Giants).

… And CU is fourth in the Pac-12 in overall draft picks …

USC is the nation’s leader in draft picks all-time, with 493. Only Notre Dame, with 486, is close to challenging the Trojans (Ohio State is third on the all-time list, with 418).

In the Pac-12, USC is followed by UCLA, tied with Michigan State for 15th-place, with 303 draft picks, and Washington, in at No. 17 with 285 picks.

Colorado is a solid 4th on the all-time Pac-12 list, with 266. That total is good enough for 22nd on the all-time list.

Pac-12 teams catching up with the Buffs – but with still a ways to go – are No. 27 Stanford (249) and No. 30 Arizona State (239).

… If you are keeping score at home, the Buffs enter the 2016 draft two behind No. 21 Wisconsin (268), and four ahead of Auburn and Minnesota, tied for 23rd on the all-time list with 262.

 

Some notes about the University of Colorado and the NFL draft …

– Colorado has had 24 first round draft picks in NFL history. The highest-ever pick was Bo Matthews, taken as the No. 2 overall pick by San Diego in 1974. Colorado is one of only three schools in the Pac-12 (the Arizona schools being the others) to not have at least one No. 1 overall draft pick (USC has had five – the most by any school – while Stanford has had four, and Cal has had two. No other Pac-12 school has had more than one No. 1 overall pick).

– The most recent first round draft picks for CU came in 2011, when Nate Solder was taken in the first round by New England (17th pick overall), followed shortly thereafter by Jimmy Smith, going to Baltimore with the No. 27 overall pick.

– The first Buff to be chosen in an NFL draft was halfback Byron White, taken in the first round by the Pittsburgh Steelers (the No. 3 pick overall) in the 1938 NFL draft.

– Paul Richardson, in 2014, became only the eighth player in CU history to declare early for the NFL draft. All eight have been drafted – defensive tackle Leonard Renfro (1st round, Philadelphia, 1993); running back Lamont Warren (sixth round, Indianapolis, 1994); running back Rashaan Salaam (first round, Chicago, 1995); defensive end Shannon Clavelle, sixth round, Buffalo, 1995); cornerback Ben Kelly (third round, Miami, 2000); running back Chris Brown (third round, Tennessee, 2003); David Bakhtiari (4th round, Green Bay, 2013); and Paul Richardson (2nd round, Seattle, 2014).

– Since 1990, there have been only four drafts which have been conducted without at least one Buff having their name called. Those four drafts were 2001, 2005, 2010 and 2015. (An oddity – In April, 1989, the spring before CU went 11-0 in the regular season and climbed to No. 1 in the polls for the first time in school history, no Buffs were drafted).

– Only once in school history has the Colorado program gone two seasons in a row without a player being drafted, and that was back in 1949 and 1950.

– The most Buffs ever drafted in the same spring came in 1976, when 11 Buffs were drafted. The 1975 Buffs went 9-3, and produced three first round draft picks – center Pete Brock (New England, 12th overall pick), defensive tackle Troy Archer (New York Giants, 13th overall pick), and offensive tackle Mark Koncar (Green Bay, 23rd overall pick). That draft also had Buff great Dave Logan going to the Cleveland Browns in the third round (65th pick overall).

– Twice in school history, ten Buffs were drafted in the same season. In 1974, ten Buffs were selected, led by fullback Bo Matthews and tight end J.V. Cain in the first round. In the 1995 draft, ten Buffs were chosen as well, with Michael Westbrook going to the Washington Redskins with the No. 4 overall pick. Westbrook was joined in the first round by Heisman trophy winner Rashaan Salaam, who went to the Chicago Bears at No. 21. Three other Buffs were chosen in the second round of that 1995 draft – tight end Christian Fauria (Seattle); linebacker Ted Johnson (New England); and quarterback Kordell Stewart (Pittsburgh).

– In the 1974 draft, it took 16 rounds to get to ten Buffs. In 1995, ten Buffs were gone by the end of the sixth round.

– The NFL team which has chosen the most Buffs? … The Green Bay Packers, with 18 Buffs, the most recent being Bakhtiari in 2013 and linebacker Brad Jones in the 7th round of the 2009 draft.

– The NFL team which has chosen the fewest Buffs? There is a tie. The Jacksonville Jaguars have only selected one Buff through the draft, being cornerback Chris Hudson in the third round of the 1995 draft. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers also have only chosen one Buff, offensive tackle Steve Young, taken in the third round of the 1976 draft (perhaps the Bucs were thinking that they were drafting quarterback Steve Young, who also played for the Bucs, and that is why they have never again chosen a player from CU).

– Jacksonville has only been around since 1995, with Tampa Bay coming into the league in 1976. I found it surprising that the Minnesota Vikings, who have been around since 1960, have only chosen two Buffs in their history – offensive tackle Jerry McClung in the 17th round of the 1964 draft, and fullback Jim Kelleher, in the 12th round of the 1977 draft.

and, finally, a little trivia for Bronco fans … There have been 14 Buffs selected in the draft by the Denver Broncos, but none since 1980. Can you name the last Buff drafted by Denver? It was nose tackle Laval Short, taken in the 5th round of the 1980 draft (136th pick overall).

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5 Replies to “CU at the NFL Draft”

  1. Yo Stuart,

    I’m really proud of the FIVE Buffs who were able to sign free agent contracts right after the draft. Last year, by my count of the NFL website, there were ZERO. That’s quite an improvement.

    Also, for those trolls out there pointing to the lack of Buffs drafted as proof of how horrible things are, take a look at North Carolina, Tennessee and Duke. They didn’t have anyone drafted either and they WON 28 games between them in 2015.

    Bell and Powell are hard workers and have as a good shot at being special team players in the NFL.

    Mark
    Boulderdevil

  2. Today’s results simply reflect the past few years, not where the program is headed. CU now has great facilities, a strong AD, recruiting is off to a good start. Webb will make whatever decision is best for him with one year to play. The key this year is for Macintyre to get to 6-6 in whatever way he can. It’s going to be all about results. Get to a bowl with this brutal schedule and CU will have the launching pad of talented recruits it needs for the future.

  3. Yo Stuart,

    Not surprised that the Buffs were shut out this year or last in the draft. CU only had 12 seniors total and only three were major players. Also, since the Buffs haven’t been to a bowl game in a decade, we are not really on anybody’s radar.

    I’m pretty sure Crawley and Spruce will be invited to camp somewhere and they both have a good chance to make their marks in camp and on special teams. They are both hard workers and will have a chance to show in person what they did NOT show to scouts before the draft.

    I’m also sure that Nembot will be invited to camp somewhere but I think he’ll get hung out to dry by NFL defensive ends in whatever camp he is in. He’s got great size but he doesn’t have the lower body strength and balance to survive right now. Maybe a year of development and hitting the training table will make a difference.

    Remember that David Bakhtiari was only a 4th round pick for Green Bay and he has been a starter since he arrived in the NFL.

    Also remember that Alex Lewis, a former Buff player, was drafted in the 4th round. Of course, being a violent felon doesn’t preclude one from playing for Nebraska. So he was able to continue his football career after leaving Colorado.

    All in all, I have a feeling that in the current group of Buffs, including incoming freshman and transfers, half a dozen or more will hear their names called come draft time when they finish their careers.

    MacIntyre and his staff are raising the bar on who gets into school at Colorado and it will show. All that’s left is for the wins to start coming and the Buffs will be able to recruit with anyone in the country.

    Mark
    Boulderdevil

    PS — Good catch on the corn troll “Ron Scott”

  4. Six players in 2016 either kicked off or suspended. No one drafted in two years. Webb not coming now for sure. Cal and MSU had their QB;s drafted plus other players. Plus McIntyre is not their coach. Where would you go?

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