After Arizona did not have anyone selected in the 2022 NFL Draft, the second time in three years and third in six without a player picked, coach Jedd Fisch made a bold prediction on Twitter:
Never Again https://t.co/q8P4SnVUGm
— Jedd Fisch (@CoachJeddFisch) May 1, 2022
And then it happened again, the Wildcats getting shut out of the 2023 Draft to mark the first time the program had gone consecutive years with a draft pick since 2004-05. It didn’t help that a surefire pick suffered a season-ending injury and opted to play another year of college, while other draft-eligible players chose to come back and be part of one of the greatest teams in school history.
There will not be a 3-peat. The 2024 NFL Draft, which runs Thursday through Saturday in Detroit, multiple Arizona players are expected to hear their names called including the program’s first drafted offensive lineman in 15 years and possibly its first taken in the 1st round since 2008.
The first round will be held Thursday night, and offensive lineman Jordan Morgan is in the mix to be picked toward the end. If that happens he would be the UA’s first 1st-round pick since cornerback Antoine Cason went 27th overall to the San Diego Chargers in 2008, and if he goes higher than that it would be the highest since DB Chris McAlister went 10th to the Baltimore Ravens in 1999.
If it doesn’t happen this year it almost certainly will in 2025, when Tetairoa McMillan could be the first receiver selected.
At the very least, Morgan will be the first Wildcat offensive linemen selected since 2009, when Eben Britton went in the second round to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Other members of the 2023 UA team that could get drafted include tight end Tanner McLachlan, wide receiver Jacob Cowing, running back Michael Wiley and defensive end Taylor Upshaw.
Arizona hasn’t had more than two players chosen in a draft since 2014. The school record is seven, back before the event was reduced to seven rounds.
Arizona football’s draft history, by the numbers
All-time selections: 184
1st-round picks: 10
Highest selection: LB Ricky Hunley was picked 7th overall by Cincinnati Bengals in 1984
Last 1st round pick: DB Antoine Cason, 2008 (27th, San Diego Chargers)
Last 2nd round pick: LB Brooks Reed, 2011 (42nd, Houston Texans)
Last Arizona player drafted by position
QB: Nick Foles, 2012 (3rd round, Philadelphia Eagles)
RB: Gary Brightwell, 2021 (6th round, New York Giants)
WR: Juron Criner, 2012 (5th round, Oakland Raiders)
TE: Rob Gronkowski, 2010 (2nd round, New England Patriots)
OL: Eben Britton, 2009 (2nd round, Jacksonville Jaguars)
DL: Roy Lopez Jr., 2021 (6th round, Houston Texans)
LB: Scooby Wright III, 2016 (7th round, Cleveland Browns)
DB: Dane Cruikshank, 2018 (5th round, Tennessee Titans)
K/P: Nick Folk, 2007 (6th round, Dallas Cowboys)