#NFLKnights: Former Players Reflect on Draft Day Memories

Apr 22 | Football

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Sixty-three Rutgers football players have been selected in the NFL draft since it began in 1936. The list includes three first-round selections, 17 picked within the first three rounds and 26 who played under current head coach Greg Schiano.

Several Scarlet Knights took time to reflect on when they heard their name called at the podium - a culmination of all the hard work they put in during their time "On the Banks".

I came out in 2010 and thought that I could to be a first-round pick. ESPN spoke about bringing a camera in my house for draft night, but then they pulled it. When they pulled it, I thought to myself 'I guess I'm not going in the first round'. I just remember the experience being a long night. I had family and friends over - my mom, my brothers and some of my closest friends. There were so many ups and downs. I remember sitting there as the first round was getting towards the end and everyone was there watching you and wondering how you are going to react. I then stepped away and went to the bathroom and at that exact moment, the New England Patriots called. [Robert] Kraft spoke with J-Mac and told him he was going to put [Bill] Belichick on and they were going to take me with the 27th pick. So J-Mac ran to me and gave me the phone. My mom now had two boys in the NFL and the rest is history.

DB Devin McCourty - Round 1, Pick 27 (2010)

Draft day was one of the best days of my life. Playing in the NFL had been a dream since childhood. A lifetime of hard work and the pressure of achieving a dream, all to be determined in one night in hopes that a team would believe in me enough on draft day. When my name was called with the 52nd pick in the second round of the 2007 NFL draft it was a rush of emotion. After I got off the phone with the St. Louis Rams and walked back into my parents garage I was met with a huge celebration from family, friends, and champagne. It still to this day is one of the greatest feelings I have ever experienced.

FB Brian Leonard - Round 2, Pick 52 (2007)

You can't describe the feeling of being drafted. You go through an array of emotions, it's like a roller coaster. But when the dust settles, you realize you just accomplished one of your biggest dreams. It's UNEXPLAINABLE!

Sebastian Joseph-Day - Round 6, Pick 195 (2018)

My draft experience was nerve racking. I was drafted in the third round by the Miami Dolphins on the second day. I was expected to go during the second day so I had 500 people at my house on that night. As the second round went past I started to get a little nervous. Then the third started. I was sitting in my mom's room and I tried to isolate myself from everyone to save the embarrassment just in case I wasn’t drafted. Then the phone rang and I was on the phone and everyone started screaming and yelling. I cried like a baby and the party began!

WR Leonte Carroo - Round 3, Pick 86 (2016)

The entire draft process from the end of our bowl game through the NFL combine was a very exciting time. It felt like all of your hard work
and sacrifice was about to pay off. Despite not knowing if I was going to get drafted or not, I spent the weekend with my parents, my now wife and my agent. It was Saturday, May 2 in the mid afternoon when I finally got the call from the Detroit Lions. I was beyond excited. The call comes a little bit before the pick, so when I got the call I walked out of the room, got my family’s attention and just pointed to the TV. My name came across the screen and they were ecstatic. It was a very surreal moment that I will never forget.

FB Michael Burton - Round 5, Pick 168 (2015)

Regardless of what round I was selected, I knew I wanted to have a draft party with my family and friends at my aunt's house. I had a lot of faith in myself that I was going to fall within the first three rounds, but your heart is racing the whole time. After I wasn't selected in the first round on Thursday, my coach cheered me up and said I was just going to get selected on Friday.

Being Muslim, I went and prayed on Friday and when I came back, for some reason, I was getting ready and I had a pile of all of the NFL shirts from my pre-draft visits with teams and I chose the Colts' shirt. I wore that under my dashiki and surrounded myself again with my family, friends and coaches. Then I got the call from [Colts' GM] Chris Ballard and he told me they were going to take me with the next pick. I was just so excited. It was the best moment of my life and it was even better having my whole family there. I took a risk on a sport that I did not play growing up and all of my hard work coming to light from behind closed doors made it a shocking moment and a proud moment for everyone.

Kemoko Turay - Round 2, Pick 52 (2018)

It was a pretty low-key night for me. I just had my brothers, my mom and my wife at my apartment to watch. Once I got the call from [then Tampa Bay head coach Jon] Gruden, everyone was really excited. After I was drafted, we just went out to dinner to celebrate. I was a sense of accomplishment, but I was mostly excited for the opportunity to play football at the highest level there is."

OL Jeremy Zuttah - Round 3, Pick 83 (2008)

“The surreal feeling of it all is something I still haven’t been able to wrap my head around. I remember being able to hear a pin drop in a room filled with all my immediate family and closest friends. It went from that to everyone running out the house with a whole bunch of mixed emotions of excitement when my name was called. I was happy to see my life’s hard work pay off. It's funny because a while after that I vividly remember walking to the store that same day laughing and telling myself 'Enjoy the last of these routine walks to the store, because this walk might be a little different this time around next year'.

DB Blessuan Austin - Round 6, Pick 196 (2019)