Cincinnati Bearcats WR Cyrus Allen Selected in 2026 NFL Draft

Cincinnati is rolling with draft picks this cycle.

Nov 1, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats wide receiver Cyrus Allen (4) warms up before the game against the Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Cyrus Allen is headed to the NFL after his starring season at Cincinnati.

The Kansas City Chiefs took him out of the draft mix on Saturday afternoon in the fifth round with the 176th pick, amidst a group of Bearcats coming off the board. He was the second UC pick of the day after Joe Royer went to the Browns.

The Bearcats' leading receiver this past season dialed up a school-record tying 13 touchdowns across the 2025 campaign and rose up draft boards throughout this cycle to hear his name called on Day 3 of the festivities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Jumping Up To The NFL

Cincinnati Bearcats wide receiver Cyrus Allen (4) gestures for a first down as Arizona Wildcats linebacker Jabari Mann (11) and Arizona Wildcats defensive back Treydan Stukes (2) react in the third quarter of the NCAA football game at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati on Nov. 15, 2025. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Allen finished the year with 674 yards en route to All-Big 12 Second Team honors after coming into the program from Texas A&M. He was the first UC player to earn a Cincinnati receiving triple crown since 2022 (Tyler Scott also led the team in catches, receiving touchdowns, and receiving yards that season).

The 5-11, 180-pound talent overcame that smaller size to stamp his NFL ticket and become the latest Bearcat to enter the league.

The program has seen at least one player drafted for 11 consecutive years, and over 50 Bearcats have joined the league since the turn of the century.

UC head coach Scott Satterfield was hyped before the event to see his guys get their names called.

"Obviously, we know Jake Golday is going to be a high draft pick," Satterfield said this past weekend. "Excited about some of the other guys and see where they go. Joe Royer is going to get drafted. We'll see how it ends up with a guy like Cyrus Allen, who has been moving up a lot of guys' draft boards, and tested outstanding in the Pro Day. So hopefully we'll get maybe four guys, maybe 3-4 guys drafted, and then we'll have several more that will be in camps, for sure. You know, this is a talented senior class that came out."

Allen is hoping to emulate similar NFL production to his favorite receiver, Odell Beckham Jr.

"Yeah, that's my favorite receiver, like, of all time," Allen said about Beckham Jr. on the Let's Reign Podcast last season. "The swagger that he brings. I like his swag. He battled injuries like me, so we have a lot of similar things that go on. And just the amount of fun that he has with the game, and like the amount of people that love him for real."

The football journey continues for Cyrus Allen.

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