The Southeastern Conference set a record on Thursday night of the 2020 NFL draft, having 15 out of 32 players selected in the first round.
This is three more players out of the conference than the previous record of 12 going in the first round of the 2017 draft.
Former Georgia linebacker Tae Crowder had a slightly different draft experience than those who heard their name in the first round.
The NFL community awards the very last pick of the draft the title of ‘Mr. Irrelevant’. This is in-part motivation to this player to prove that teams made a mistake in passing on him but also in-part making fun of the fact that they were picked last overall.
First overall or last overall, hearing your name called in the NFL Draft is an accomplishment that very few people can say they’ve achieved.
Former Oklahoma Sooners and Dallas Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer had some encouraging words for Crowder following the pick.
“Tae Crowder you do not need my encouragement as ‘Mr. Irrelevant’!” Switzer said. “You’ll do well! Reggie Kinlaw, Oklahoma defensive lineman, 1979 was 320 in the 12th & last round! He started at nose guard for six years on Oakland Raiders’ great teams! Super Bowl champions 1980, 1983! Good Luck Tae.”
But this isn’t Tae’s first last-minute call he’s received in his career.
Crowder was committed to Georgia Southern in 2015 as a 3-star out of Harris County, Georgia, but got a call from former UGA head coach Mark Richt just two days before national signing day, ultimately flipping his commitment.
Crowder was recruited by Richt as a running back with a nasty stiff arm, filling the hole that Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson left when he flipped his commitment from Georgia to Oklahoma State. Crowder was coming onto a team with Sony Michel and Nick Chubb as returning sophomores, contributing to the decision to redshirt his freshman year.
Brian Herrien and Elijah Holyfield then signed with the Dawgs in 2016, leading to Crowder making a positional switch to linebacker.
He battled through the depth chart and earned his spot as starter with some serious linebacker prospects right behind him hungry for minutes. Crowder played in one game in 2016. Fast forward to 2019, he started every game, becoming a pivotal piece to the Dawgs dominant defense.
Down 31-14 in the 2nd quarter of the 2018 Rose Bowl, Crowder caught and fell on a squib kick by Oklahoma, in what is maybe the most overlooked play of Georgia’s magical 2017 season. This gave the Dawgs great field position and set up Rodrigo Blankenship’s 55-yard field goal going into halftime, a record long in the Rose Bowl. That play was a huge momentum swing in the game that helped play a part in Georgia’s double overtime victory.
Crowder stands at 6-foot-3, 235 pounds and was a great pickup by the New York Giants with the last pick in the 2020 draft. He had 29 solo tackles, 4 pass deflections, 1 fumble recovery and 1 touchdown last season.
Now Crowder will join former Georgia teammates DeAndre Baker, Lorenzo Carter and Andrew Thomas for a reunion in the Meadowlands of New Jersey.