WHAT: 84th Annual National Football League Player Selection Meeting
WHERE: Nashville, Tennessee
WHEN: 8:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 25 (Round 1); 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday, April 26 (Rounds 2-3); noon ET on Saturday, April 27 (Rounds 4-7)
TIMING: Round 1: 10 minutes per selection. Round 2: Seven minutes per selection. Rounds 3 through 6, including compensatory picks: Five minutes per selection. Round 7, including compensatory picks: Four minutes per selection.
TELEVISION & RADIO: The 2019 NFL Draft will be televised nationally by NFL Network, ABC, ESPN and ESPN Deportes, and can be heard nationwide on Westwood One Radio, SiriusXM NFL Radio, TuneIn Radio and ESPN Radio.
CLEMSON AT THE DRAFT: Head Coach Dabo Swinney and defensive tackle Christian Wilkins are currently scheduled to attend Thursday’s first round.
In February, Clemson set a record in the Dabo Swinney era with 11 players earning invites to the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine. If all 11 were to get drafted, it would break Clemson’s single-draft school record of 10, set in the 1983 NFL Draft. It would be only the second time in school history Clemson has had double-digit players selected in the draft.
MOST SELECTIONS FROM CLEMSON BY YEAR
YEAR: TOTAL1) 1983: 102t) 2016: 92t) 1984: 9^2t) 1960: 9*5) 1991: 8^Includes 3 selections in NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL Players*Includes 5 AFL selections (four of whom were also selected in the NFL Draft)
In 2010, the NFL changed the format of the NFL Draft, moving from conducting the first three rounds on a Saturday and the final four rounds on a Sunday to a format that featured Round 1 on Thursday night, Rounds 2-3 on Friday night, and Rounds 4-7 on Saturday. The new format pushed the first round into the spotlight in prime-time, and Clemson could shine in the spotlight in 2019 in historic fashion.
Clemson has produced multiple first rounders in the NFL Draft four times. In 1979, the dynamic quarterback-receiver duo of Steve Fuller and Jerry Butler became the first pair of Clemson teammates to go in the first round of the same draft, as Butler was selected fifth overall by the Buffalo Bills and Fuller went 23rd overall to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Three years later following Clemson’s first national championship, the Tigers produced another first-round duo, as defensive tackle Jeff Bryant was selected sixth overall by the Seattle Seahawks and wide receiver Perry Tuttle earned the 19th overall selection from the Bills.
The other two instances have both come under current Head Coach Dabo Swinney. Clemson’s beloved 2014 defense produced two first rounders in defensive end Vic Beasley (No. 8 to Atlanta) and linebacker Stephone Anthony (No. 31 to New Orleans) in the 2015 NFL Draft. Two years later, the 2016 national champion Tigers placed two offensive stars in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, sending wide receiver Mike Williams to the then-San Diego Chargers at No. 7 and quarterback Deshaun Watson to the Houston Texans at No. 12.
A quick survey of pundits and projections have indicated that the 2019 Clemson draft class could usurp the records held by those four duos. As many as four Clemson players have been mocked in the first round by various observers, and the selection of three or more Clemson players in the first round would represent a school record. A single first-round selection would also give Clemson at least one first rounder in six of the last seven drafts.
Entering the 2019 NFL Draft, Clemson has had at least one player selected in the NFL Draft in 16 consecutive years. Another selection in 2019 would push the streak to 17, adding to Clemson’s second-longest such streak. Clemson had at least one player selected in the NFL Draft every year across the 1951-74 NFL Drafts, a span of 24 years.
LONGEST CONSECUTIVE DRAFT STREAKS(CLEMSON HISTORY)
DRAFTS: NO.1) 1951-74: 242) 2003-18*: 163) 1987-99: 13*Active
After having no selections in the 2002 NFL Draft, Clemson’s current streak started when DT Nick Eason and DE Bryant McNeal were both selected by the Denver Broncos in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL Draft. That also marks only time in history that two Clemson teammates were selected by the same team in the same round.
During Clemson’s eight-year streak of 10-win seasons, the Tigers have produced 32 NFL Draft picks, sixth-most in the country.
NFL DRAFT PICKS SINCE 2012 SEASON (2013 NFL DRAFT)
SCHOOL: PICKS1) Alabama: 532) LSU: 423) Florida State: 414t) Florida: 404t) Ohio State: 406) Clemson: 32
Since taking over the top job at Clemson in the middle of the 2008 season, Dabo Swinney has presided over a total of 47 draft picks from Clemson, the fourth-most by any active coach.
NFL DRAFT PICKS BY ACTIVE COACHES SINCE 2008
COACH: PICKS1) Nick Saban: 772) Les Miles: 583) Jimbo Fisher: 484) Dabo Swinney: 475) Brian Kelly: 42
In that time frame, Swinney has produced eight first-round picks, tied for fourth among active coaches, behind only Nick Saban (26), Les Miles (10) and Jimbo Fisher (9).
Swinney’s 47 picks in all rounds are the tied for the sixth-most of all coaches — active or inactive — in that time frame.
NFL DRAFT PICKS BY ALL COACHES SINCE 2008
COACH: PICKS1) Nick Saban: 772) Mark Richt: 593) Les Miles: 584) Urban Meyer: 565) Jimbo Fisher: 486t) Dabo Swinney: 476t) Bob Stoops: 478) Brian Kelly: 42
Last offseason, Clemson drew the attention of both the college football and NFL Draft worlds when defensive linemen Austin Bryant, Clelin Ferrell and Christian Wilkins announced their intention to return to Clemson and play alongside junior Dexter Lawrence as arguably the most-feared starting defensive line in the country.
In 2018, the four combined for 56.5 of Clemson’s nation-leading 136 tackles for loss as well as 27 of the team’s school-record and nation-best 54 sacks. The unit, known collectively as the Power Rangers, helped guide Clemson to a No. 1 national ranking in points allowed per game for the first time in school history (13.1 points per game).
Numerous mock drafts have projected as many as three Clemson defensive linemen in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft. If three were to be selected, it would mark only the second time since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger that a single school has produced three defensive linemen (including edge rushers at outside linebacker in 3-4 schemes) in the first round of a single draft. The only other draft to feature three defensive linemen from a single school in the first round was in 2006, when NC State’s Mario Williams, Manny Lawson and John McCargo went with the Nos. 1, 22 and 26 picks, respectively.
Clemson’s status as an elite producer of pro talent has been inarguable in recent years, particularly at wide receiver, where the school has adopted the moniker of “Wide Receiver U” (or #WRU in hashtag form).
Since 2013, no school has had more receivers selected in the NFL Draft than Clemson.
MOST WIDE RECEIVERS DRAFTED (2013-18)
School: No.1) Clemson: 72t) LSU: 62t) Ohio State: 64t) Georgia: 54t) Oklahoma: 54t) Michigan: 54t) Texas A&M: 54t) West Virginia: 5
Clemson could add two receivers to those totals in 2019, as slot extraordinaire Hunter Renfrow and Pro Day standout Trevion Thompson are both subjects of NFL interest. If both were to be selected, it would be the second straight year that Clemson would have two receivers drafted, as Deon Cain and Ray-Ray McCloud both earned selections in 2018. It would represent Clemson’s first time producing multiple receiver draftees in back-to-back drafts.
The new Clemson products at receiver in the NFL will join the league’s most prolific group. Receivers who played collegiately at Clemson caught an NFL-best 34 touchdowns in 2018.
MOST RECEIVING TOUCHDOWNS BY SCHOOL OF ORIGIN(NFL WIDE RECEIVERS, 2018)
School: Receiving TDs1) Clemson: 342) Alabama: 283) Ohio State: 184t) SMU: 174t) USC: 17
While odds may be slim, the sheer number of Clemson players with legitimate hopes to hear their names called in the 2019 NFL Draft could result in NFL franchises selecting multiple Tigers in a single draft. A total of 16 NFL Drafts have featured at least one team drafting a pair of Clemson teammates, including the 1946, 1951, 1955, 1959, 1960, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1983, 1991, 1998, 2003, 2015, 2016 and 2017 drafts.
In addition, in 1984, the New York Giants selected Jim Scott in the NFL Draft and added James Robinson via the Supplemental Draft for USFL Players. The 1960 AFL Draft also featured both Lou Cordileone and Harold Olson’s selections by the Buffalo Bills.
The Giants hold the current record for most Clemson players selected in one draft, selecting Terry Kinard, Andy Headen and Frank Magwood in the famed 1983 NFL Draft.
The 1991 and 1998 NFL Drafts both featured two sets of Clemson teammates sticking together in the selection meeting. In 1991, Chris Gardocki and Stacy Long were both selected by the Chicago Bears while Dexter Davis and Vince Hammond went to the Phoenix Cardinals. In 1998, the St. Louis Rams selected Raymond Priester and Glenn Rountree and the Miami Dolphins selected Lorenzo Bromell and Jim Bundren.
The Houston Texans are the most recent selectors of Clemson teammates in a single draft, nabbing both Deshaun Watson and Carlos Watkins in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Clemson has had at least one player selected by 30 of the 32 active NFL franchises.
The Baltimore Ravens have never selected a player from Clemson since arriving in Charm City in 1996. The city has been host to nine Clemson draft picks though, including one by the AAFC’s Baltimore Colts and eight by the NFL’s Baltimore Colts before the franchise’s relocation to Indianapolis.
The other team without a Clemson draft pick to its historical ledger is the Carolina Panthers, a franchise whose very roots trace back to Death Valley. The franchise that is now housed less than 150 miles from Clemson’s campus has never selected a Clemson Tiger despite playing all of their home games in their inaugural 1995 campaign at Memorial Stadium.
Few NFL franchises have been as nomadic as the Cardinals, who have laid claim to four different municipalities in three different metro areas since their inception in 1920. Clemson has had at least one player selected by every iteration of the Cardinals, including four by the Chicago Cardinals, seven by the St. Louis Cardinals, two by the Phoenix Cardinals and one by the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cardinals’ 14 selections from Clemson are the third-most by any single franchise all-time, trailing the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, who have both selected 17 Clemson products all-time. Four franchises (49ers, Bears, Bills and Colts) are tied for fourth, with 12 Clemson selections each all-time.
Clemson has produced a total of 264 professional draft selections by major American leagues, including the NFL Draft, NFL Supplemental Draft, NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL Players, AFL Draft and AFL Redshirt Draft. The list includes 250 players, as 14 were selected multiple times and/or in multiple leagues prior to the Common Draft era (since 1967).
