The Pac-12 had a meek start and modest finish to what was generally a forgettable NFL Draft in the penultimate year of its current existence.
The conference produced fewer first-round picks and total selections than its Power Five peers.
But the weak April suggests a strong September. The Pac-12 has the highest percentage of returning all-conference honorees among the power leagues.
Of the 51 players named first- or second-team all-conference at the end of the 2022 season, 25 are set to return next season. No other league comes close, according to data provided by the Pac-12.
Returning all-conference players (first- and second-team):
Pac-12: 25 of 51 (49%)
SEC: 21 of 55 (38.1%)
ACC: 20 of 53 (37.7%)
Big 12: 21 of 59 (35.6%)
Big Ten: 18 of 52 (34.6%)
(Note: All-conference players who transferred within that league were counted as returnees.)
No school better reflects the divergent present and future than Washington, which failed to produce a draft pick for the first time since 2009 but has a loaded roster for the ’23 season.
Granted, the wave of returning plays — both in Seattle and across the footprint — doesn’t guarantee success in the crucial early-season non-conference matchups. But it adds context to the results from this NFL Draft and frames the outlook for the 2024 version.
Arizona once again had no players selected in the draft, although UA coach Jedd Fisch is in the process of fixing that.
If the Pac-12 sputters in September and again next April, something will have gone very wrong.
To the 2023 NFL Draft winners and losers …
Winner: SEC
The conference dominated once again, with more total picks and picks per school than any other league. Alabama and Georgia led all schools with 10 selections, followed by Michigan with nine.
The totals:
SEC: 62 selections (4.4 per school)
Big Ten: 54 selections (3.9 per school)
ACC: 32 selections (2.3 per school)
Big 12: 30 selections (3.0 per school)
Pac-12: 27 selections (2.3 per school)
Loser: Texas A&M
The Aggies finished fourth nationally in recruiting in 2019 and sixth in 2020, according to the 247Sports database. Those two classes included 31 players with blue-chip labels (i.e., four or five stars). Yet the Aggies had just three players selected — same as Minnesota, Iowa State and Kentucky.
Winner: winding paths
The Pac-12’s three-first round selections reflect the new era of college football: Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez started his career at Colorado; USC’s Jordan Addison starred for Pittsburgh before transferring; and Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid began his journey as a walk-on at the University of San Diego.
Loser: Half the Pac-12
Arizona State, Cal, Washington State, Washington, Arizona and Colorado were unable to even match the draft production of Appalachian State, Tulane and Eastern Michigan, which claimed two selections each.
Winner: Oregon
The Ducks led all Pac-12 schools with six selections, including a first-rounder for the fourth consecutive year: Gonzalez went No. 17 to New England, following in the Day One shoes of Justin Herbert, Penei Sewell and Kayvon Thibodeaux.
Loser: Stanford
The Cardinal generated five draft picks, the second-highest total in the Pac-12 (and on the second tier nationally). And you know what that talent helped produce? An atrocious season.
Winners: Utah and Oregon State
The conference’s anti-Stanfords generated 10-win seasons despite a low number of picks — the Utes had three, the Beavers two — and strengthened the case that they do more with what they have than any programs in the Pac-12.
Loser: Cal
It’s difficult to fathom, but the Bears have gone five consecutive years without an offensive player being drafted. (Or maybe it’s not difficult to fathom.)
Winner: Cal
However, the Bears had a defensive back selected (Daniel Scott) for the fourth consecutive draft.
Loser: Arizona State
The final draft of the Herm Edwards era resulted in just one selection, a fitting conclusion to the chaotic, misguided, grab-bag nature of recruiting under Edwards and former “mastermind” Antonio Pierce.
Winners: Pac-12 cornerbacks
The conference isn’t known nationally as a haven for cornerbacks, but the single position was responsible for five of the 27 players selected.
Loser: Arizona
No draft picks for the third time in the past four years. If that trend continues next spring, let the Jedd Fisch-era handwringing begin.
Winner: Zach Charbonnet
The Pac-12’s best all-around running back since Christian McCaffrey was picked in the second round (by the Seahawks), a well-deserved placement for Charbonnet despite the low draft value associated with his position.
Tucson native and former Texas running back Bijan Robinson was taken eighth overall by the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday. (Video by Justin Spears / Arizona Daily Star)
