With the 2020 NFL Draft officially in the books, Haley and I wanted to take a look at where the players from out favorite college teams (Notre Dame and Tennessee) ended up. It also doesn’t hurt that this draft put Notre Dame in the #1 spot as the all-time leader in NFL Draft picks. Overall, we’re both pleased with where each of the draft picks ended up, but there is definitely a pick or two that stood out for each of us.
Notre Dame Players Drafted
Chicago Bears (Rd.2 #43 overall): Cole Kmet – Tight End U does it again with the first Irish player off the board being Kmet. His campaign in South Bend was one of the more impressive, especially when you factor in the ankle injury that hampered his 2018 season. He bounced back in 2019, being second in targets, only behind Chase Claypool, and producing when asked on third downs. Kmet brings playmaking ability from a receiving stand point that Mitchell Trubisky, or whoever else settles in as the Bears quarterback, has as a dependable option.
Pittsburgh Steelers (Rd 2. #49 overall): Chase Claypool – I was holding out hope that Chase might drop to the Tennessee Titans, but it just wasn’t meant to be. Instead, he joins up with Big Ben, who has to be fired up to add a weapon like this. In his final year at Notre Dame, he hauled in 66 receptions for 1,037 yards and 13 touchdowns. All with a quarterback known more for guiding his team down the field more than chucking the ball deep. That will change in Pittsburgh, where I expect Chase to make an immediate impact in their system.
Detroit Lions (Rd.3. #67 overall) Julian Okwara – A fan favorite pick of the draft as Julian joins his brother Romeo in Detroit. The thought of both brothers sharing the field is so exciting, as I always enjoyed what both brothers brought in blue and gold. His last season in South Bend was cut short by a broken leg, but Matt Patricia and company must have loved what they saw out of his impressive 2018 year. Okwara still needs to bulk up a bit, but when motivated, he has shown he has a real knack for getting pressure on the quarterback.
Carolina Panthers (Rd. 4. #113 overall): Troy Pride Jr. – Another pick with sentiment, as the South Carolina native won’t be very far from home. All the talk this offseason has been about the quarterback situation, but all the talk coming out of draft weekend has to be about the defense. As in…all the Panthers did was draft defensive players. Right in the middle of all those picks was Pride. He will bring speed, toughness and versatility to a Panthers defense that finished the season ranked twentieth against the pass.
Cincinnati Bengals (Rd. 5. #147 overall): Khalid Kareem – Joining up with Joe Burrow and Tee Higgins in Cincy is none other than the versatile pass rusher out of ND. Kareem feels like a little bit of a steal in this spot as he’s gonna bring that versatility to a 3-4 defense where he could be everywhere. I mean, it’s really not crazy to think that, assuming he can keep his speed, Kareem can put a few pounds on and play both inside/outside on the d-line when asked to.
Los Angeles Chargers (Rd. 6. #186 overall): Alohi Gilman – The defensive leader and motivator in his time at South Bend, this man will be missed on campus. Gilman has that ability to always be around the ball, which comes from instinct and just being a student of the game. There may not be a player drafted that will bring the integrity that Alohi will bring. This pick is also of note as the Chargers keep with recent years of drafting Irish players like Isaac Rochell in 2017 and Jerry Tillery and Drue Tranquill last year.
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John Mosley is the independent wrestling and TV aficionado of the SoBros Network. He graduated from ETSU with a degree in Radio, TV and Film along with a minor in Film Studies. Since graduating he’s done pretty much nothing but watch, film, edit or commentate for local wrestling promotions and is the current color commentator for Resolute Wrestling. #Preds #Titans #DefendOrVacateConor. Follow on Twitter: @SoBroMose
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