CLEMSON FOOTBALL

Former Tigers look forward to NFL Draft

Former Tigers look forward to NFL Draft


by -

Clemson, SC—The National Football league will hold its 2012 draft of college players Thursday, April 26 through Saturday, April 28. Many members of the 2011 Clemson team are candidates to be selected.

The first round will get underway at 8:00 Pm on Thursday night, while the second and third rounds will be held Friday night starting at 6 PM. Rounds four through seven will be held starting at noon on Saturday.

Three members of the 2011 ACC Champion Clemson team are candidates to be taken between late in the first round and the middle to late second round. Andre BranchAndre Branch
Defensive End
#40 6-5, 260
Richmond, VA

View Full Profile
, Brandon ThompsonBrandon Thompson
Sr. Defensive Tackle
#98 6-2, 310
Thomasville, GA

View Full Profile
and Dwayne AllenDwayne Allen
RS Jr. Tight End
#83 6-3, 255
Fayetteville, NC

View Full Profile
are all candidates to go within the top 50 picks of the draft. Defensive back Coty SensabaughCoty Sensabaugh
Gr. Defensive Back
#15 6-0, 180
Kingsport, TN

View Full Profile
and fullback Chad DiehlChad Diehl
RS Sr. Fullback
#30 6-2, 260
Lyman, SC

View Full Profile
have also received high marks from draft evaluators and could be drafted. ESPN lists 12 Clemson players overall as draft candidates.

Branch led the ACC in sacks this past season with 10.5 and was a first-team All-ACC selection, as well as a second-team All-American by the Walter Camp Foundation, Sports Illustrated, Rivals.com and CBS Sports. He was also a finalist for the Ted Hendricks Award, which is given to the top defensive back in the nation.

Allen won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end, just the third Clemson football player to win a national position award. He was a consensus All-American, the first Clemson tight end to make an All-America team since Bennie Cunningham in 1975.

Thompson was a second-team All-ACC selection and honorable mention All-American by Pro Football Weekly. Thompson was fourth on the Clemson team in tackles with 77, including eight tackles for loss. He was a starter on two Clemson Atlantic Division Championship teams.

Sensabaugh had 40 tackles, 36 of which were first hits. He also had an interception and a team best 14 passes defensed. ,Diehl, a durable performer from Lyman, SC, set a Clemson record for career games played with 57. He was regarded as one of the top blocking fullbacks in the nation.

Clemson has had 23 first-round draft choices over the years, including three in the last seven years. Those players are Tye Hill (2006), Gaines Adams (2007) and C.J. SpillerC.J. Spiller
Pro Running Back
#28 5-11, 195
Lake Butler, FL

View Full Profile
(2010). The highest draft selections in Clemson history were both taken fourth, Banks McFadden by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1939 and Gaines Adams in 2007 by the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Clemson had six players drafted last year and five the year before. The 11 players drafted in the last two years rank in a tie for sixth best in the nation.

Clemson has had 22 players drafted over the last five years, including five apiece in the 2007 and 2010 drafts and six in 2011. The six players taken last year were the most since six were taken in the April 1999 draft. The Clemson record for draft picks in a year is 10, in the 1983 draft.

Thirty-one of the last 35 Clemson players drafted have gone on to play in at least one NFL game.

Clemson First-Round Draft Choices

	Year	Player	Pos	Pick	Team

1939 Banks McFadden B 4 Brooklyn Dodgers

1949 Bobby Gage RB 6 Pittsburgh Steelers

1960 Lou Cordileone L 12 New York Giants

Harvey White QB NA New England Patriots

1976 Bennie Cunningham TE 28 Pittsburgh Steelers

1979 Jerry ButlerJerry Butler Wide Receiver # 6-0, 180 Ware Shoals, SC View Full Profile WR 5 Buffalo Bills

Steve Fuller WR 23 Kansas City Chiefs

1980 Jim Stuckey DT 20 San Francisco 49ers

1982 Jeff Bryant DT 6 Seattle Seahawks

Perry Tuttle WR 19 Buffalo Bills

1983 Terry Kinard FS 10 New York Giants

1985 William Perry MG 22 Chicago Bears

1987 Terrence Flagler TB 25 San Francisco 49ers

1989 Donnell Woolford CB 11 Chicago Bears

1992 Chester McGlockton DT 16 Los Angeles Raiders

1993 Wayne Simmons OLB 15 Green Bay Packers

1997 Trevor PryceTrevor Pryce Defensive Tackle # 6-5, 290 Brooklyn, NY View Full Profile DE 28 Denver Broncos

1998 Anthony Simmons ILB 15 Seattle Seahawks

1999 Antwan Edwards CB 25 Green Bay Packers

2001 Rod Gardner WR 15 Washington Redskins

2006 Tye Hill CB 15 St. Louis Rams

2007 Gaines Adams DE 4 Tampa Bay Bucs

2010 C.J. Spiller RB 9 Buffalo Bills

Ultimate Level LogoUpgrade Your Account

Unlock premium boards and exclusive features (e.g. ad-free) by upgrading your account today.

Upgrade Now
Comment on this story
Print   
Send Feedback to TigerNet Staff: Email | Comment
Scanlon's walk-off homer lifts Hurricanes over No. 2 Tigers
Scanlon's walk-off homer lifts Hurricanes over No. 2 Tigers
WATCH: Clemson vs. Arizona Sweet 16 extended highlights
WATCH: Clemson vs. Arizona Sweet 16 extended highlights
Everything Brad Brownell said after Clemson advanced to the Elite 8
Everything Brad Brownell said after Clemson advanced to the Elite 8
WATCH: Clemson players react to their Sweet 16 win over Arizona
WATCH: Clemson players react to their Sweet 16 win over Arizona
Post your comments!