The 2023 NFL draft is coming up in a week and ahead of the spring festivities the national media has been looking at both the upcoming draft class as well as the history behind the amateur selection process for the tastiest stories.
The University of Florida has the distinction of being the only school to have a player drafted in each year of the common era — even during the dog days of the program. The Orange and Blue have also had a player selected in the first round in the past three drafts and nine of the last 10 years.
ESPN’s staff recently broke down the top late-round find for every Power 5 school dating back to 1994, with Florida Gators defensive end [autotag]Alex Brown[/autotag] earning the nod. Here is what Harry Lyles Jr. had to offer on the terrifying pass-rusher.
Alex Brown, DE (2002, fourth round, 104th overall, Chicago)
Being the most prolific pass-rusher in Florida history (Brown holds the school record for the most sacks in a season with 13 and the most in a career with 33), you’d think Brown would at worst go in the first three rounds of the draft. But as Brown himself would say, it all worked out in the end, as he played nine years for the Chicago Bears and had 45.5 sacks, forced 17 fumbles — recovering 12 — and even finished sixth in the AP Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2005.
This year’s NFL draft kicks off on Thursday, April 27 at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, with the first round starting at 8 p.m. EDT. Round 2 begins on Friday at 7 p.m. EDT and the remaining rounds 4-7 start at noon EDT on Saturday. The events can be followed on ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes and the NFL Network.
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