NFL Draft winners and losers: SEC and Big Ten clean up, Kiper rants, Sanders slides and Washington offers a cautionary tale
We’ll start our assessment of the 2025 NFL Draft at the end — not the very end, but mighty close. We’ll start early in the seventh round, with linebacker Carson Bruner becoming the first and only Washington Husky selected in the entire draft.
That’s right, one year after the Huskies produced 10 draft picks, they had one.
And if that’s not enough of a head spinner, consider this: In 2023, the Huskies didn’t have anyone selected.
From no draft picks in 2023 to 10 picks in 2024 to one pick in 2025 — has a school ever experienced a rags-to-riches-to-rags story of that magnitude during the draft’s modern era?
In that regard, the Huskies are both a beacon of hope and a cautionary tale for schools along the West Coast and across the country.
Fortunes change rapidly in the age of NIL and the transfer portal; rosters can be remade, or crumble, at warp speed. But fortunes and rosters are often tied to coaching changes akin to what hit the Huskies 15 months ago, when Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama and Jedd Fisch arrived from Arizona.
The roster damage caused by the transition was too great for Fisch to overcome in a single recruiting cycle. At least, it was too great for Fisch to overcome in the Big Ten, where budgets, like defensive linemen, are bigger than they were in the Pac-12.
The climb is steeper in the Big Ten. The margin for error is thinner. And one look at the draft results is all the evidence needed: The Big Ten generated 71 selections this weekend, which was second only to the SEC’s 79.
When accounting for membership, the Big Ten averaged 3.9 picks per school; the SEC, 4.9 per school.
But filter for success, and the numbers change in telling fashion. The seven teams from the Big Ten and SEC that qualified for the expanded College Football playoff averaged 8.6 draft picks.
Indiana was on the low end (two picks), followed by Tennessee (four) and Penn State (five). The other four teams (Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia and Texas) all sent at least 10 players into the draft — the same number the Huskies had last year when they played for the national title in the four-team format.
That’s a big number. But it’s attainable over time with accurate evaluations, proper coaching and, of course, the requisite payroll.
There is a green light at the end of the dock for teams, like Washington, that finished in the middle of the conference and barely registered on draft weekend.
But there are also warning signs visible on Montlake. One misstep, and momentum vanishes faster than you can say, “With the 10th pick of the seventh round …”
Loser: The Sanders family. Make no mistake, folks, Shedeur’s slide into the fifth round revealed exactly what NFL teams think of The Deion Sanders Cult of Personality and Traveling Circus. Simply put, they didn’t like the dictatorial fashion in which he and Shedeur handled the pre-draft process; they didn’t view Shedeur as a first-round talent, especially when he refused to participate in important workouts; and they wanted no part of employing a backup quarterback who would attract relentless media attention. Even the Las Vegas Raiders, whose part-owner, Tom Brady, is close to the Sanders family, passed on Shedeur repeatedly. Eventually, the Browns determined he was worth a fifth-round pick.
Winners: SEC and Big Ten. The heavyweight conferences combined to produce 150 of the 257 picks, an impressive total that requires context in the post-realignment world. Remove the number of FCS players selected (eight), and the Big Ten and SEC accounted for 60 percent of the total FBS selections while possessing just 25 percent of the FBS schools. Their growing dominance is visible in every aspect of major college football, from TV ratings to playoff participants … to draft selections.
Losers: ACC and Big 12. The ACC generated 42 picks, its highest total since 2021, while the Big 12 had 31 selections, equalling its total from 2024. Both conferences are larger than ever before, so the number of picks per team has decreased. But far more telling was the paucity of Day 1 picks: Each conference had two players drafted in the first round. Meanwhile, the SEC and Big Ten combined for 26 first-rounders.
Winner: Oregon. The Ducks set a school record with 10 selections, a total topped only by Ohio State, Georgia and Texas — rarified air, indeed. The development serves as a reminder that Oregon’s loss in the CFP quarterfinals came to one of the few opponents with superior personnel (the Buckeyes) and followed a three-and-a-half-week layoff. Any postseason format in which the No. 1 seed would be better off losing its conference championship game — to avoid a competitive disadvantage — is a bad format.
Loser: Utah. Only one player, tight end Caleb Lohner, was selected — and in the seventh round, no less. It was Utah’s lowest total since the 2018 draft (with the exception of those impacted by COVID) and reflects a program battered by both injuries and losses to the transfer portal. But also: The Utes need to sharpen their player development skills if they hope to return to relevance.
Winner: Former Pac-12 QBs. With Cam Ward and Sanders included, seven quarterbacks who played in the conference during its final two seasons of existence (2022-23) went on to become NFL draft picks: Dorian Thompson-Robinson (UCLA), Tanner McKee (Stanford), Caleb Williams (USC), Michael Penix Jr. (Washington), Bo Nix (Oregon), Ward (Washington State) and Sanders (Colorado). It didn’t collapse because of the quality of play.
Loser: Current Pac-12 teams. Washington State and Oregon State combined for … wait for it … one selection in the 2025 draft: WSU receiver Kyle Williams, who went in the third round to the Patriots. (We expected Beavers lineman Joshua Gray to be selected, but his name wasn’t called.) The lack of draft talent for the so-called Pac-2 reflects the treacherous existence the schools have endured since the summer of 2023. Prior to the Pac-12’s collapse, WSU and OSU regularly produced multiple draft picks.
Winner: Cal. Four players were selected, including three defensive backs. The total marks Cal’s highest draft output since 2016 and offers a reminder of how well positioned the Bears were for their first season in the ACC — if only they could have made a few more field goals.
Loser: NFL media. His name is Tetairoa McMillan, not ‘Tet.’ Sheesh.
Winner: NFL marketing. College football could learn a thing (or 10) from the master marketers of the sports universe. The NFL devoted a few minutes Thursday night, when millions of fans were tuned in, to unveiling the date of its next big event: The 2025 schedule release, on May 14.
Loser: USC. The Trojans produced just three selections, none of them in the top two rounds. That reflects poorly on coach Lincoln Riley, who should, after three seasons, be churning out a half-dozen selections each year given the program’s inherent advantages. The greatest indictment of the Trojans’ evaluation and development: UCLA had five players picked.
Winner: Arizona State. The Big 12 champions produced a single draft selection, tailback Cam Skattebo (fourth round to the Giants), further illustrating that coach Kenny Dillingham and staff did a masterful job making the most of their personnel. Then again, the dearth of high-end talent across the Big 12 opens a path to the conference title for teams that have only one draft pick on the roster.
Loser: Arizona. The Big 12 bottom-feeders — technically, the Wildcats finished tied for 13th — generated four draft picks, including a first rounder (receiver Tetairoa McMillan). That marks the school’s highest total in 17 years and additional evidence that coach Brent Brennan and his staff did a poor job maximizing the talent at hand. The 2024 season could not have unfolded in more contrasting fashion in Tucson and Tempe, especially when accounting for the draft totals.
Winner: Todd McShay. The former ESPN analyst, who now has a podcast on The Ringer Network, was ahead of the pundit curve with his pre-draft prediction that Shedeur Sanders could slide — not only into the late first round but out of the first round entirely. Well done, McShay. Well done.
Loser: Mel Kiper. The Hotline has been a Kiper fan for decades. He played an enormous role in the draft becoming a phenomenon and helped make the evaluation process accessible for mainstream fans. But Kiper embarrassed himself on ESPN this weekend with his hysterical protestations of Shedeur Sanders’ slide. The performance will deeply stain his legacy, unfortunately.
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