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It is always cool to see a player you’ve followed for 4 years achieve his dream of playing professional football. That is why I will follow the NFL draft closely this year. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have quite a few guys who are sure to hear their name be called starting on Thursday and concluding on Saturday.
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Notre Dame has 5 guys that will for sure get drafted and 3 more that are on the fringe.
For this reason, I will guess that ND finishes this year with 6 players getting drafted. Let’s get into specifics.
Jerry Tillery
I think Tillery had a strong senior year. He played so many snaps and was consistent all year. Was he first round draft pick good? I’m not sure about that, but many mock drafts have him going in the first round, so I will listen to them.
Tillery- 1st round.
Julian Love
Love was arguable Notre Dame’s best defender last year. He had a great three year career and seems to be NFL ready. The lack of “NFL” size and less than elite speed are the only things that have him sliding down mock drafts.
Love- 3rd round.
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Miles Boykin
Boykin was not even on the NFL’s radar before the combine. He was looking at going undrafted until he wowed scouts with his speed and strength. Miles Boykin had a solid senior year but nothing that jumped off the page. Talk about stock rising, that’s Boykin.
Boykin- 4th round.
Te’Von Coney
Coney could have gone to the NFL after his junior season. He elected to come back to Notre Dame and build on what was already a good career. The athleticism is not equal to a top level NFL linebacker but this guy knows how to play football.
Coney- 4th round
Drue Tranquill
Tranquill’s projections don’t match his contributions to Notre Dame over the years — or his excellent workouts at the combine. Teams are still worried about his health despite good medical reports and and extraordinary recovery time. Drue could go as early as the 4th round and as late as the 6th.
Tranquill- 5th round
Dexter Williams
We all know the story about running backs in the NFL. They are easily replaceable and are getting drafted lower and lower. Williams had a great senior year that will prove to be the reason he gets drafted. A lot of running backs that are late round picks or even go undrafted make immediate impacts. I would roll the dice with Dexter Williams.
Williams- 6th round.
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Alex Bars
If it were not for an ACL injury this past season, Bars would be a sure fire NFL draft pick. The injury is cause for concern and could end up leaving him as an undrafted free agent. I’ll guess that one team uses a late pick to get Bars before the draft ends.
Bars- 7th round.
Just Missed the Cut
- Alize Mack- He could sneak into the 7th round but it is no guarantee. A team will give Mack a look with all his athletic ability.
- Sam Mustipher- Centers are not as coveted as other lineman but Mustipher should be able to join a practice squad after being a 3 year starter at Notre Dame.
Tryout Potential
- Justin Yoon- He will need to improve his range as NFL kickers are now consistent from 55+ but being a 4 year starter at Notre Dame will give him a chance.
- Tyler Newsome- Some consistency issues have held him back but I would not be surprised if one day Newsome puts it all together and is punting in the NFL.
Well, there it is, a 2019 NFL draft prediction for all the Notre Dame guys. I’m excited to see where the NFL journey goes for all of them.