The last season of the Pac-12 was a big success in the NFL draft, just like it was on the football field.
Even though the Pac-12 is splitting up, with 10 schools heading to new leagues next season, they had a record number of players drafted over the weekend. The top pick overall, Caleb Williams from USC, led the way.
Six of the top 15 players and eight first-rounders overall came from the Pac-12, second only to the SEC’s 11. This was the Pac-12’s best draft since 2015 when they had nine first-round picks.
Overall, 43 players from the Pac-12 were drafted, breaking the previous record of 39 set in 2015. Washington had the most players drafted with 10.
While the Pac-12 was second in total players drafted, behind the SEC’s 59, it’s important to note that the conference is changing in 2024.
Oregon State and Washington State each had three players drafted, but the rest will join other major conferences due to the conference shakeups, including Oklahoma and Texas, moving to the SEC from the Big 12.
The SEC remains at the top, mainly due to the contributions of its new members, with a total of 73 picks. Following closely is the Big Ten with 69 picks, boosted by the selections from Washington, Oregon, UCLA, and USC.
More than half, 55.3%, of the players drafted in the weekend, completed their college careers at schools that will compete in the SEC and Big Ten next season.
The top five schools with the most picks were also the top five teams in the final College Football Playoff rankings.
Michigan led with 13 picks, marking the fourth-highest in the seven-round era. Texas followed with 11, reaching the semifinals.
Washington and Alabama, both semifinalists, had 10 picks each. Florida State ranked fifth in the final CFP rankings, also had 10 draftees.
Surprisingly, 11 teams from the Power Five conferences last season had no players drafted over the weekend. These include Syracuse, Georgia Tech, and Virginia Tech from the ACC; Indiana, Nebraska, and Northwestern from the Big Ten; Arizona State and Colorado from the Pac-12; Baylor and Oklahoma State from the Big 12; and Vanderbilt from the SEC.
