Here’s five things you should know about the current crop of ’Canes projected to be chosen and about the history of the Miami program in the NFL’s annual player selection meeting.
1
In a recent teleconference with sports reporters from around the nation, ESPN draft analysts Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay projected all of Miami’s top players—defensive end Joe Jackson, safeties Jaquan Johnson and Sheldrick Redwine, defensive tackle Gerald Willis, cornerback Michael Jackson, and running back Travis Homer—to be selected in this year’s NFL draft.
2
The Hurricanes set an NFL record that still stands: Six first-round picks in the 2004 draft, a group that included the late, great free safety Sean Taylor (5th overall by the Washington Redskins); tight end Kellen Winslow II (6th overall by the Cleveland Browns); linebacker Jonathan Vilma (12th overall by the New York Jets); linebacker D.J. Williams (17th overall by the Denver Broncos); offensive lineman Vernon Carey (19th overall by the Miami Dolphins); and defensive lineman Vince Wilfork (21st overall by the New England Patriots).
3
Eleven Miami Hurricanes were chosen in the 2002 NFL draft—the most ever selected from one school in a single draft since the NFL went to a seven-round format in 1994.
4
The Hurricanes had 19 players drafted in the first round from 2001-2004, most notably Reggie Wayne, Santana Moss, Jeremy Shockey, Ed Reed, Andre Johnson, Willis McGahee, Sean Taylor, and Vince Wilfork.
5
From 1995-2008, the Miami Hurricanes had at least one player taken in the first round in each of those years.
