Michigan Has Three Players Drafted in Round One of the NFL Draft

With night one of the NFL draft in the books, Michigan has surpassed all expectations and then some. The Wolverines continued to show that when the rest of the world doubts them, that is when they thrive. By the halfway point of the first round of the draft, Michigan had already had three players drafted: defensive lineman Mason Graham, tight end Colston Loveland, and defensive lineman Kenneth Grant.

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Graham and Loveland were both expected to be drafted in the first round, while Grant was expected to go either late in the first or somewhere in the second round. All three players went earlier than expected, with Graham going to Cleveland as the 5th pick, Loveland going to Chicago as the 10th pick, and Grant going to Miami as the 13th pick.

With Graham and Loveland getting drafted at 5th and 10th, respectively, Michigan was the only program to have two players drafted in the top ten. With Grant going at 13, not only was Michigan still the only program with two players drafted by pick 15, they were the only program with three players drafted in the top 15 as well.

Wolverines continue to dominate rivals Ohio State

Beyond the success of having three players drafted in the first round, let alone the first half of the first round, it was made just a little sweeter by the fact that rivals Ohio State hadn’t gotten their first drafted player until Tampa Bay drafted wide receiver, Emeka Egbuka, at pick 19.

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Ohio State won the national championship this year, while Michigan did not even receive a bid to the playoffs, and ended their regular season at 7-5, which, at the time, was rather disappointing. However, Michigan did beat Ohio State in their own territory, and had that victory extended into the NFL draft when Kenneth Grant became the third Michigan player drafted before the national champions even had one.

Round two of the draft continues Friday night where Will Johnson, who was expected to be drafted in round one, will likely hear his name called, along with a handful of other hopeful Wolverines.

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