Since 2000, Utah ranks 30th in the country with most drafted players into the NFL
There's been a lot of speculation lately about how having players drafted into the NFL can lead to a big boom in recruiting. Utah is without a doubt one of those schools as they've seen a recent boom in recruiting on the heels of successful seasons and players getting taken in the NFL draft.
Last year alone the Utes had six defensive players taken in the draft and seven overall. Three more defensive starters signed undrafted contracts as well, which put a total of 12 players from the 2019 squad into the NFL this upcoming season
“That is a lot of players that are having the opportunity to make a living and a good living. There’s not a lot of jobs coming right out of college that can pay you what the NFL does,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham told the Deseret News. “So it’s a selling point for us in recruiting that if you come to the University of Utah there’s a very high chance that you will have an opportunity to play at the next level.”
According to a report by 247sports, since the turn of the century Utah ranks 30th in the nation with 60 players drafted during that time period. But one thing to definitely take note is that the Utes didn't become part of a Power 5 conference until the 2011 season — the only school in the top-30 to not be a Power 5 program since 2000.
The Utes also rank sixth in the Pac-12 during that time period, not bad considering they haven't been on a level recruiting field with the rest of the conference for half of the time. Four of the 60 players drafted have been taken in the first round, led by quarterback Alex Smith who was the No. 1 overall pick of the 2005 NFL draft.
Part of what makes Utah so special is that a lot of the players who've been drafted enter the NFL ready to go. That's a huge testament to what sort of program Whittingham runs and how they go about the evaluation process in high school and how that translates to the development in college.
“You’ve got to give it up to the recruiting Utah has. They always find guys that are kind of diamonds in the rough that end up developing and getting into the NFL,” former Utah safety and 2020 NFL draftee Julian Blackmon told the Deseret News. “They do a really good job preparing us for the NFL and that’s why they’re so successful — the defense that we have, the opportunities that we have.”
Utah's quality of players is right up their with the rest of the conference as evidenced by Pro Bowlers Steve Smith Jr., Jordan Gross, Zane Beadles and Eric Weddle, arguably the most talented Ute to be taken in the NFL draft and a surefire Hall of Fame candidate.
Top Pac-12 Programs (National rank)
1.) USC (7) = 109 total draftees / 24 first rounders
2.) Stanford (9) = 74 total draftees / 7 first rounders
3.) Oregon (22) = 69 total draftees / 8 first rounders
4.) Cal (24) = 66 total draftees / 11 first rounders
5.) UCLA (25) = 65 total draftees / 9 first rounders
6.) Utah (30) = 60 total draftees / 4 first rounders
7.) Arizona State (32) = 56 total draftees / 7 first rounders
8.) Washington (34) = 54 total draftees / 10 first rounders
9.) Oregon State (41) = 48 total draftees / 3 first rounders
10.) Colorado (45) = 44 total draftees / 4 first rounders
The only Pac-12 programs to not crack the top-50 in the country are Washington State and Arizona.
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