With the 2024-25 bowl schedule in full swing, mock drafts for the 2025 NFL Draft are also ramping up.
The Alabama Crimson Tide won’t have the same number of first-round selections this spring as in years past when Nick Saban was coach, but two players were graded as first-round selections in a new mock draft this week from USA TODAY Sports’ Draft Wire.
Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe was projected as the No. 25 overall pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in Curt Popejoy’s mock draft for Draft Wire. Four picks ahead of Milroe is offensive lineman Tyler Booker, whom Popejoy has going No. 21 overall to the Houston Texans.
The Texas are coached by DeMeco Ryans, a stud linebacker at Alabama from 2002-05. Ryans played 10 years in the NFL, including six with the Texans and four with the Philadelphia Eagles.
RELATED: Jalen Milroe is projected first-round NFL Draft pick by this storied franchise
In Popejoy’s mock draft, Booker is the fifth offensive lineman chosen behind LSU’s Will Campbell (No. 4 overall to the Tennessee Titans), Texas’ Kelvin Banks Jr. (No. 9 to the Chicago Bears), Minnesota’s Aireontae Ersery (No. 12 to the Miami Dolphins), and Ohio State’s Josh Simmons (No. 16 to the Arizona Cardinals).
Now in his junior season, Booker has started all 12 games for Alabama, including 11 at left guard. He was named SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week after Alabama’s wins over Missouri (34-0), LSU (42-13) and Auburn (28-14). According to the coaching staff, Booker has recorded a team-high 87 knockdown blocks this season.
The 2025 NFL Draft begins Thursday, April 24 and will be held at Green Bay’s Lambeau Field. In the meantime, Booker and Alabama are taking on the Michigan Wolverines in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., on New Year’s Eve.
Kickoff for Alabama vs. Michigan is set for 11 a.m. CT Tuesday. The game will be televised on ESPN.
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