With players like Colin Kaepernick, Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck leading their teams to the playoffs in 2012, the NFL is increasingly becoming a young man's league. That trend was continued on Saturday as 73 underclassmen were approved for April's NFL draft, an all-time record.
According to ESPN, the total was eight more than last season and includes a number of high profile players, including six first-team All-Americans.
The top players on the list include safety Matt Elam of Florida, tight end Zach Ertz of Stanford, tackle Luke Joeckel of Texas A&M, defensive end Bjoern Werner of Florida State, linebacker Jarvis Jones of Georgia and cornerback Dee Milliner of national champion Alabama.
Many of the underclassmen that entered the draft have the potential to go in the top 10 picks, including Jones, Ertz, Joeckel, Werner, and Milliner. Louisiana State lost the most players with 11, followed by Florida State, Tennessee and Florida, each with four. Michigan State, Stanford, Georgia and Oklahoma each lost three players. In total, 38 schools lost players early to the draft.
The most notable name for LSU was cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, a 2011 All-American who was kicked off team following issues with drugs. Last year he was arrested along with three other former LSU players, including quarterback Jordan Jefferson and linebacker Karnell Hatcher, who were both charged with simple possession of marijuana.
Nicknamed the "Honey Badger", Mathieu busted out onto the football scene last year after having a stellar season during LSU's run to the national championship game. His stats last season included 71 total tackles, 1.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 2 fumbles returned for a touchdown, and 2 interceptions.
Mathieu was also a skilled punt returner, amassing 420 yards, with 2 returned for a touchdown. He won the prestigious Chuck Bednarik Award, which is awarded to the year's best defensive player in college football. Mathieu also was the MVP of the 2011 SEC Championship game. Although he had legal issues, he is likely to go in the early parts of the draft.
The SEC took a big hit, with names like Jarvis Jones from Georgia and Eddie Lacy from Alabama leaving.
Jones, the 6-foot-3, 241-pound Georgia native, was a dominant defender throughout the season and led the team in sacks with 14.5 and tackles for a loss with 24.5, both school records. Over two seasons with the Bulldogs, Jones has amassed 28 sacks and 44 tackles for a loss in 26 games.
Jones redshirted one season for the Bulldogs in 2010 before having an excellent season in 2011, leading the SEC in sacks with 13.5 and tackles for loss, recording 19.5 while making 70 tackles. He was also named first-team all-SEC.
Jones was a finalist for the Bednarik, Lombardi, Nagurski, Butkus and Lott awards this season and is rated as the No. 1 prospect in the draft by ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. CBS Sports has Jones rated as the no. 3 overall prospect, behind Texas A&M offensive tackle Luke Joeckel and Florida State defensive end Bjoern Werner.
Apart from Lacy, the BCS champion Crimson Tide will be losing junior cornerback Dee Milliner right tackle D.J. Fluker.
All three players contributed to Alabama's title run this season, especially Lacy, who won the offensive MVP of the national championship game after rushing for 140 yards and scoring two touchdowns. Lacy was durable all year despite dealing with injuries, playing in all 14 games and rushing for 1,322 yards and 17 touchdowns to lead the team.
Lacy was stellar for Alabama this season and played his best when the games mattered the most. He finished the season with three straight 100-yard games and scored one touchdown while gaining 83 yards against LSU in a crucial 21-17 comeback win in early November. He had a season-high 181 yards and two touchdowns in the SEC championship win over Georgia and had three scores twice this year, including in a 52-0 drubbing of Arkansas.
Milliner was one of the top cornerbacks in the nation and was a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award as the top defensive back in the country after finished in the top five nationally in passes defended. He had 34 tackles with two interceptions and one fumble recovery this season to go with 20 passes defenses and one blocked kick. The Alabama passing defense was one of the best in the nation and the unit finished the season ranked number one in the nation in scoring, overtaking Notre Dame with 10.9 points allowed per game.
Fluker was one of the best lineman in the country and blocked for six 100-yard rushers this season and a total of 21 in his career at Alabama. He helped block for the two 1,000-yard backs (which was a first for the school in Alabama history) and kept quarterback A.J. McCarron clean for the majority of the season, including in the national championship game when the offensive line gave up zero sacks in the 42-14 win over Notre Dame.
According to ESPN.com, some of the other notable players entering the draft early includes:
"Also leaving school and projected to go high in the draft: LSU DEs Barkevious Mingo and Sam Montgomery; Texas A&M DE Damontre Moore; Georgia LB Alec Ogletree; California WR Keenan Allen; Florida State CB Xavier Rhodes; Ohio State DT Johnathan Hankins; and LSU linebacker Kevin Minter."
"Other All-Americans entering early were second-teamers Moore, Hankins, Minter, WR Stedman Bailey of West Virginia, safeties Tony Jefferson of Oklahoma and Eric Reid of LSU. Third-teamers were Montgomery, RBs Giovani Bernard of North Carolina and Stefphon Jefferson of Nevada, WR DeAndre Hopkins of Clemson, and DT Sharrif Floyd of Florida."
The report also says that Tennessee quarterback Tyler Bray was the only underclassman to declare at his position. "In the last 10 years, the number of early entrants has risen from 43 to 73. A player must have been eligible to play in college for three years before he can enter the draft. He must petition the NFL in writing and renounce his college eligibility."
