Ohio State upheld its reputation as one of college football’s top talent-producers once again.
Nine Ohio State players were selected in this week’s 2019 NFL draft, ranking the Buckeyes second among all schools in total draft selections, behind only Alabama, which had 10.
Ohio State had at least one player selected in every round of the draft but one, and at least two players chosen on each day of the draft.
The draft started off in a big way for the Buckeyes on Thursday, as the San Francisco 49ers selected Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa with the No. 2 overall pick, while the Washington Redskins drafted Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins with the No. 15 overall pick.
It was the fourth straight year and the fifth time in six years that Ohio State had at least two first-round picks in the NFL draft, and Bosa and Haskins became the 80th and 81st first-round picks in Ohio State history – tying the Buckeyes with the USC Trojans for the most first-round picks in NFL draft history.
Three Buckeyes were selected during the second day of the draft on Friday. The Indianapolis Colts selected Ohio State wide receiver Parris Campbell with the No. 59 overall pick late in the second round, while the Denver Broncos selected Ohio State defensive lineman Dre’Mont Jones with the No. 71 overall pick early in the third round. Five picks later, the Redskins selected Terry McLaurin with the No. 76 overall pick – becoming the only team in this year’s draft to select two Buckeyes – pairing Haskins with one of his Ohio State receivers.
In the process, Ohio State had at least five players drafted in the top 77 picks for the fourth year in a row, and tied Alabama for the most picks in the first three rounds.
Four more Buckeyes were added to Ohio State’s draft class on Saturday, as the Atlanta Falcons selected cornerback Kendall Sheffield (No. 111 overall) and the Cincinnati Bengals selected guard Michael Jordan (No. 136 overall) in the fourth round, the Miami Dolphins selected offensive tackle Isaiah Prince in the sixth round (No. 202 overall) and the Dallas Cowboys selected running back Mike Weber in the seventh round (No. 218 overall).
Altogether, it was the fourth straight year that Ohio State had at least seven NFL draft picks. Alabama, which has had at least seven draft picks for eight straight years, is the only other school that has hit that mark.
This year’s nine total selections are tied for the third-most Ohio State has had since the NFL draft was shortened to seven rounds in 1994. The Buckeyes had 14 selections in 2004 and 12 in 2016. They also had nine draft choices in 2006.
In addition to the nine draft selections, four additional Ohio State players landed with NFL teams as undrafted free agents on Saturday night. Guard Demetrius Knox agreed to a deal with the Seattle Seahawks, linebacker Dante Booker agreed to a deal with the Arizona Cardinals and wide receiver Johnnie Dixon and offensive lineman Malcolm Pridgeon both landed deals with the Houston Texans.
