Everyone knew Clemson had a special thing going last year when defensive ends Clelin Ferrell and Austin Bryant, along with defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, decided to come back to school for one more year.
Throw in the fact it already had defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence for his junior year in the middle of the defensive line, and it was going to be tough for teams to move the Tigers’ talented front four.
After being a part of a Clemson team that not only won the national championship but became the first college team since 1897 to go 15-0, Ferrell’s, Wilkins’ and Lawrence’s special year continued Thursday when they were all drafted with the first 17 picks of the 2019 NFL Draft.
Their top 17 picks mark the first time in Clemson history three players were taken in the first round of an NFL Draft. Ferrell went No. 4 overall by the Oakland Raiders, Wilkins was selected No. 13 by the Miami Dolphins and Lawrence was the No. 17 overall pick by the New York Giants.
“I am big into numbers,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said to ESPN during its broadcast. “Philippines 4-13 says ‘We can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ We went four and thirteen, and four plus thirteen is seventeen. First time, I think, in history to have three D-linemen (from the same school) drafted in the first round.
“They came back to make a statement and I don’t know of any better way to do it. These are great young men, and this is just a special night for them and their families. I am just so happy for them.”
Swinney was right, by the way. The selections marked the first time in NFL Draft history that a single school produced three players selected as defensive linemen in a single draft.
The only other draft to feature three college defensive linemen from a single school in the first round was in 2006, when NC State’s Mario Williams, Manny Lawson and John McCargo went with the Nos. 1, 22 and 26 picks, respectively, though Lawson was officially submitted as a linebacker.
Ferrell’s selection at No. 4 tied for the highest selection from Clemson all-time, matching the fourth overall selections of Banks McFadden (1939), Gaines Adams (2007) and Sammy Watkins (2014).
Wilkins was next off the board to Miami at No. 13, becoming the first player from Clemson to be selected in the first round in Dolphins’ history. Of Clemson’s nine all-time selections by Miami, each of the last four (DE Phillip Merling, S Chris Clemons, CB Cordrea Tankersley and Wilkins) have come from the defensive side of the ball.
Lawrence became Clemson’s historic third selection of the evening at No. 17 overall. Lawrence’s selection continued a pipeline of Clemson players being drafted by the Giants, representing the franchise’s 18th selection from Clemson all-time, moving past the Pittsburgh Steelers (17) for the most of any franchise.
With the three selections, Clemson has now had 54 players selected since Dabo Swinney became head coach in December of 2008. With six rounds still remaining, the 2019 draft already represents the 12th consecutive year Clemson has had at least three players selected in the NFL Draft.
CLEMSON NOTES
· Produced three first-round picks for the first time in school history, surpassing the previous record of two, set in the 1979, 1982, 2015 and 2017 NFL Drafts.
· Responsible for producing three players selected as defensive linemen from a single school in a single draft for the first time in NFL Draft history. (Note: In 2006, NC State’s Mario Williams, Manny Lawson and John McCargo went with the Nos. 1, 22 and 26 picks, respectively, though Lawson was officially submitted as a linebacker professionally.)
· Pushed its total of defensive linemen selected in the Head Coach Dabo Swinney era (since the 2009 NFL Draft) to 16.
· Has now had multiple defensive linemen selected five times in the last nine drafts (2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2019).
· Was one of only three schools to produce three first-round picks in 2019 (Alabama and Mississippi State).
· Had two players selected in the Top 15 for the first time in a single draft for the third time in school history, joining the 1960 (Lou Cordileone and Harold Olson) and
· Has now had at least one draft selection in each of the last 17 drafts since 2003, representing the second-longest streak in school history behind a 24-year streak across the 1951-74 NFL Drafts.
· Has now had at least one first-round selection in six of the last seven NFL Drafts.
CLELIN FERRELL NOTES
· Became the 52nd player to have played for Head Coach Dabo Swinney to be drafted into the NFL, including the ninth first-round pick of his tenure.
· Was selected with the fourth overall pick, tying Banks McFadden (1939), Gaines Adams (2007) and Sammy Watkins (2014) for the highest selection by a Clemson Tiger all-time.
· Was selected by Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden, the same head coach who selected Adams at No. 4 overall in 2007 during his tenure with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
· Became the seventh player selected by the Raiders all-time and the fifth to be selected in the standard NFL Draft (quarterback Lowndes Shingler was selected by the Raiders in the AFL Draft in 1961, and guard James Farr was selected by the Raiders in the NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL Players in 1984).
· Represents the second first-round pick from Clemson in Raiders history, joining Chester McGlockton (No. 16 overall in 1992).
· Was the ninth Clemson defensive lineman all-time to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft (Jim Stuckey, Jeff Bryant, William Perry, Chester McGlockton, Trevor Pryce, Gaines Adams, Vic Beasley, Shaq Lawson).
· Represents Clemson’s 30th first-round pick in the NFL Draft all-time, dating back to Banks McFadden’s selection by the NFL’s Brooklyn Dodgers with the fourth overall pick in the 1940 NFL Draft.
· Became the third defensive lineman from Clemson selected in the first round since the 2015 NFL Draft (Vic Beasley in 2015; Shaq Lawson in 2016).
CHRISTIAN WILKINS NOTES
· Became the 53rd player to have played for Head Coach Dabo Swinney to be drafted into the NFL, including the 10th first-round pick of his tenure.
· Marks the Dolphins’ ninth all-time selection from Clemson, joining Don Testerman (1976), William Devane (1984), Robert O’Neal (1993), Lorenzo Bromell (1998), Jim Bundren (1998), Phillip Merling (2008), Chris Clemons (2009) and Cordrea Tankersley (2017).
· Surpasses Merling (No. 32 overall) as the highest pick from Clemson in Dolphins draft history and becomes Clemson’s first first-round pick in that franchise’s annals.
· Became the fourth defensive lineman from Clemson selected in the first round since the 2015 NFL Draft (Vic Beasley in 2015; Shaq Lawson in 2016; Ferrell in 2019).
· Was the 10th Clemson defensive lineman all-time to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft (Jim Stuckey, Jeff Bryant, William Perry, Chester McGlockton, Trevor Pryce, Gaines Adams, Vic Beasley, Shaq Lawson, Clelin Ferrell).
· Represents Clemson’s 31st first-round pick in the NFL Draft all-time.
DEXTER LAWRENCE NOTES
· Became the 54th player to have played for Head Coach Dabo Swinney to be drafted into the NFL, including the 11th first-round pick of his tenure.
· Is the 18th Clemson player selected by the Giants in the NFL Draft all-time, moving out of a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most of any NFL franchise.
· Is the third first-round pick from Clemson in Giants’ draft history, joining Lou Cordileone (No. 12 overall in 1960) and Terry Kinard (No. 10 in 1983).
· Became the fifth defensive lineman from Clemson selected in the first round since the 2015 NFL Draft (Vic Beasley in 2015; Shaq Lawson in 2016; Ferrell and Wilkins in 2019)
· Was the 11th Clemson defensive lineman all-time to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft (Jim Stuckey, Jeff Bryant, William Perry, Chester McGlockton, Trevor Pryce, Gaines Adams, Vic Beasley, Shaq Lawson, Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins).
· Represents Clemson’s 32nd first-round pick in the NFL Draft all-time.
–Clemson Athletic Communications contributed to this story