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FROM THE EDITOR

May 6, 2008

DG:

Is it just me, or does the ACC have a lot more NFL draft picks now than it ever did in the past? I watched a lot of the draft (April 26-27) this year on ESPN, and it seemed like every 30 minutes another ACC player was called.

Hook me up with the info, please, and let me know if it’s just my imagination, or whether this is actually happening. I never thought I’d see it. We’re supposed to be a basketball league, aren’t we?

Keep up the good work!

Robert:

It’s not your imagination.

In the years leading up to its most recent round of expansion, the ACC’s impact on the NFL draft looked similar to that of Conference USA.

In the years since expansion, the ACC has looked more like the SEC.

"The expansion debate may never go away entirely," Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe said. "But I don’t think there’s any doubt that expansion has raised the profile of ACC football, and the NFL numbers are one example of that."

In the three years (2002-04) immediately before expansion, the ACC produced 60 NFL draft picks and just five first-round selections. Those numbers were by far the lowest of the six conferences that form the backbone of the Bowl Championship Series.

In the first three years (2005-07) after expansion, the ACC produced 118 NFL draft picks and 23 first-round selections. Those numbers were neck-and-neck with the SEC (115, 25), which historically has been regarded as the top producer of pro-level football talent, and significantly higher than those of the other four BCS leagues.

"The ACC is producing just as much talent for the NFL as anyone else. In some years, we’re producing more than anyone else," Clemson coach Tommy Bowden said. "That hasn’t always been the case."

Prior to the additions of Miami and Virginia Tech in 2004, then Boston College in 2005, the ACC averaged 13.6 NFL draft picks per year in the 1970s, 20.6 per year in the 1980s, 24.2 per year in the 1990s, and 20.8 per year from 2000-04.

The league’s two Florida schools have, by far, the most impressive track records when it comes to generating NFL-caliber talent. Miami has produced 294 draft picks, including 60 first-rounders, in the history of its program. Florida State, which joined the ACC in 1992, has sent 216 players into the draft, including 34 first-rounders.

"There’s no doubt. Those are questions we get in recruiting," Miami coach Randy Shannon said. "(Prospects) want to know about a lot of things – the NFL, national championships, playing time, coaches, facilities, academics. Most of the time, the NFL is important to them."

Here are the all-time NFL draft numbers for the rest of the league: North Carolina 199 selections (17 in first round), Clemson 196 (21), Georgia Tech 196 (9), Maryland 195 (15), Boston College 186 (16), Duke 149 (6), Virginia 144 (15), N.C. State 140 (15), Virginia Tech 122 (7), Wake Forest 120 (2).

Here are the 2008 results, with the NFL teams that picked the ACC players:

Brought to you by:

First Round

Virginia DE Chris Long, St. Louis

Boston College QB Matt Ryan, Atlanta

Virginia OT Branden Albert, Kansas City

Boston College OT Gosder Cherilus, Detroit

Virginia Tech OL Duane Brown, Houston

UNC DT Kentwan Balmer, San Francisco

Miami S Kenny Phillips, New York Giants

Clemson DE Phillip Merling, Miami

Virginia Tech CB Brandon Flowers, Kansas City

Virginia Tech WR Eddie Royal, Denver

Miami DE Calais Campbell, Arizona

Miami LB Tavares Gooden, Baltimore

Virginia Tech DE Chris Ellis, Buffalo

N.C. State S DaJuan Morgan, Kansas City

Florida State DT Andre Fluellen, Detroit

Georgia Tech LB Philip Wheeler, Indianapolis

Wake DE Jeremy Thompson, Green Bay

Maryland DT Dre Moore, Tampa Bay

Virginia Tech LB Xavier Adibi, Houston

Georgia Tech RB Tashard Choice, Dallas

Wake Forest WR Kenneth Moore, Detroit

N.C. State DT DeMario Pressley, New Orleans

Virginia Tech DT Carlton Powell, Denver

Florida State DT Letroy Guion, Minnesota

Georgia Tech P Durant Brooks, Washington

Clemson OG Barry Richardson, Kansas City

Virginia Tech WR Josh Morgan, San Francisco

Florida State LB Geno Hayes, Tampa Bay

Boston College DB DeJuan Tribble, San Diego

Virginia TE Tom Santi, Indianapolis

Wake Forest OC Steve Justice, Indianapolis

Virginia Tech WR Justin Harper, Baltimore

North Carolina DE Hilee Taylor, Carolina

The ACC’s seven first-round picks this year were the most for any conference. The 33 selections overall were only one behind the Pac-10 and the SEC. Virginia Tech’s eight picks were the most of any college program.

Two years ago, the ACC set an all-time NFL record – for any conference, in any year – when 12 of its products were chosen in the first round. Leading the way were N.C. State defensive end Mario Williams (the first overall selection), Virginia offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson (fourth), Maryland tight end Vernon Davis (sixth) and Florida State linebacker Ernie Sims (ninth).

Overall, the ACC had 51 players selected in the 2006 draft – another all-time NFL record, for any conference – after its first season (2005) as a 12-team league. That performance shattered its previous record of 36 selections, set in April 2005, the spring after its first season (2004) at 11 teams.

Thanks for reading.

David Glenn, Editor