With the NFL Draft beginning Thursday evening, it could be a few days before we hear an HBCU player’s name called.
It wasn’t always this way, as NFL teams selected HBCU players and got a good return on their investment in the form of Super Bowl champions, all-pros and Hall of Famers.
The Analyst noticed the call for HBCU representation and recently compiled a list of the top FCS programs (since 1979) with the most draft picks. Defending HBCU national champion Jackson State tops the list with 43 selections.
In fact, the top four programs on the list are HBCUs; next after JSU is Grambling, with 36 picks, and South Carolina State and Tennessee State are tied with 33 picks each.
Southern is tied with Eastern Kentucky for sixth on the list with 26 draft selections, and Florida A&M is ninth with 21 picks.
Alcorn State is tied with Chattanooga for 13th on the list with 17 draft picks, and rounding out the top 15 is North Carolina, which is tied with Richmond with 16 selections.