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After having just four players taken in the first three rounds, Big East players were were called upon early and often in the final three rounds. In total, 22 players from seven of the Big East's eight schools were selected in the seven-round draft. While Mocking the Draft has a detailed breakdown of each player drafted and his potential impact to his new team, here are some additional nuggets about the Big East and the players drafted.
- The Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles tied for the most number of players selected from Big East schools. The Eagles took Pittsburgh running back Dion Lewis, Cincinnati offensive lineman Jason Kelce, and Connecticut linebacker Greg Lloyd. The Panthers looked to the Big East to help rebuild their porous defense by taking South Florida defensive tackle Terrell McClain, West Virginia cornerback Brandon Hogan, and Connecticut linebacker Lawrence Wilson.
- Big East offenses often appeared downright putrid. The NFL Draft might help us understand why. 13 of the league's 22 drafted players were from the defensive side of the ball. West Virginia had the most drafted with four. South Florida had three.
- Every team in the Big East had a player selected except Rutgers.
- Connecticut has had more offensive players drafted in the past three seasons than Ohio State. The Huskies have had five players drafted compared to just three for the Buckeyes since 2009.
- Future Big East member TCU was very popular as five players were drafted. The highest draft pick came for quarterback Andy Dalton who was selected early in the second round by the Cincinnati Bengals.
- Our friend Matt Baxendell put together an interesting statistic: ratio of players drafted per teams in the league. Since the Big East only has eight teams, it will almost certainly have the fewest players drafted in any given year. But, when compared to the number of teams in the league, the Big East is comparable to the other BCS conferences. The Big East finished with 22 players drafted from its eight teams which comes out to a 2.75 players/team. That number is better than the ratio from the Big Ten and Big XII.
- Louisville offensive tackle Byron Stingily, selected in the sixth round by the Tennessee Titans, was the very definition of a sleeper. Stingily was a JUCO prospect with very few offers. He redshirted at Louisville before starting for two seasons at left tackle. He was not invited to the NFL Combine, but performed so well at Louisville's pro day that he caught the attention of several NFL scouts.
- Several Big East players that were not drafted should have opportunities to latch onto a roster via free agency. West Virginia's Noel Devine, Syracuse center Dan Bartholomew, and Connecticut linebacker Scott Lutrus should find teams interested in signing them once the NFL lockout is over.
- Below is a complete table of Big East players drafted along with the team that drafted them and round in which they were selected.
|
Name |
Pos. |
Round |
Selection |
NFL Team |
|
Jon Baldwin, Pittsburgh |
WR |
1 |
26 |
Kansas City |
|
Jabaal Sheard, Pittsburgh |
DL |
2 |
37 |
Cleveland |
|
Terrell McClain, USF |
DL |
3 |
65 |
Carolina |
|
Johnny Patrick, Louisville |
CB |
3 |
88 |
New Orleans |
|
Brandon Hogan, West Virginia |
CB |
4 |
98 |
Carolina |
|
Delone Carter, Syracuse |
RB |
4 |
119 |
Indianapolis |
|
Bilal Powell, Louisville |
RB |
4 |
126 |
New York Jets |
|
Robert Sands, West Virginia |
S |
5 |
134 |
Cincinnati |
|
Anthony Sherman, Connecticut |
FB |
5 |
136 |
Arizona |
|
Dion Lewis, Pittsburgh |
RB |
5 |
149 |
Philadelphia |
|
Jason Pinkston, Pittsburgh |
OT |
5 |
150 |
Cleveland |
|
Doug Hogue, Syracuse |
LB |
5 |
157 |
Detroit |
|
Lawrence Wilson, Connecticut |
LB |
6 |
166 |
Carolina |
|
Mistral Raymond, USF |
CB |
6 |
170 |
Minnesota |
|
Byron Stingily, Louisville |
OT |
6 |
175 |
Tennessee |
|
Jordan Todman, Connecticut |
RB |
6 |
183 |
San Diego |
|
Jason Kelce, Cincinnati |
OT |
6 |
191 |
Philadelphia |
|
J.T. Thomas, West Virginia |
LB |
6 |
195 |
Chicago |
|
Jacquain Williams, USF |
LB |
6 |
202 |
New York Giants |
|
Greg Romeus, Pittsburgh |
DE |
7 |
226 |
New Orleans |
|
Greg Lloyd, Connecticut |
LB |
7 |
234 |
Philadelphia |
|
Chris Neild, West Virginia |
DT |
7 |
253 |
Washington |