The University of Central Florida first fielded a varsity football team in 1979, and ascended to Division I–A, now known as the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), in 1996. The Knights entered an Automatic Qualifying conference in 2013, and won the program's first major bowl game. In 1987, Ted Wilson became the first Knight to be selected in an NFL Draft when he was selected in the tenth round by the Washington Redskins. Since Wilson's selection, thirty-four Knights have been drafted into the National Football League, including four first round selections. The highest a UCF player has been drafted is third overall in 2014, when quarterback Blake Bortles was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Key
Selections
Blake Bortles was drafted 3rd overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2014 NFL Draft
Brandon Marshall was drafted 120th overall by the Denver Broncos in the 2006 NFL Draft
Draft year
|
Round
|
Overall
|
Player name
|
NFL team
|
Position
|
Notes
|
1987
|
10
|
274
|
Ted Wilson[1]
|
Washington Redskins
|
WR
|
—
|
12
|
330
|
Elgin Davis
|
New England Patriots
|
RB
|
—
|
1988
|
3
|
65
|
Bernard Ford
|
Buffalo Bills
|
WR
|
—
|
5
|
136
|
Corris Ervin[2]
|
Denver Broncos
|
DB
|
—
|
1991
|
9
|
225
|
Raymond Irvin
|
Cleveland Browns
|
DB
|
—
|
9
|
240
|
Shawn Jefferson
|
Houston Oilers
|
WR
|
—
|
1992
|
3
|
66
|
Bob Spitulski
|
Seattle Seahawks
|
LB
|
—
|
1993
|
3
|
71
|
Rick Hamilton
|
Washington Redskins
|
LB
|
—
|
1995
|
3
|
72
|
Greg Jefferson
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
DE
|
—
|
1996
|
5
|
142
|
Marquette Smith
|
Carolina Panthers
|
RB
|
—
|
1999
|
1
|
11
|
Daunte Culpepper*
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
QB
|
Pro Bowl (2000, 2003, 2004)
|
4
|
96
|
Paul Miranda
|
Indianapolis Colts
|
DB
|
—
|
2000
|
7
|
242
|
Charles Lee
|
Green Bay Packers
|
WR
|
—
|
2002
|
2
|
64
|
Travis Fisher
|
St. Louis Rams
|
DB
|
—
|
2003
|
4
|
120
|
Asante Samuel*
|
New England Patriots
|
DB
|
Pro Bowl (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011) Super Bowl Champion (XXXVIII, XXXIX)
|
5
|
167
|
Doug Gabriel
|
Oakland Raiders
|
WR
|
—
|
7
|
250
|
Mike Mabry
|
Baltimore Ravens
|
C
|
—
|
7
|
259
|
Elton Patterson
|
Cincinnati Bengals
|
DE
|
—
|
2004
|
7
|
232
|
Michael Gaines
|
Carolina Panthers
|
TE
|
—
|
2006
|
4
|
119
|
Brandon Marshall*
|
Denver Broncos
|
WR
|
Pro Bowl (2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015)
|
2007
|
3
|
79
|
Mike Sims-Walker
|
Jacksonville Jaguars
|
WR
|
—
|
2008
|
3
|
64
|
Kevin Smith
|
Detroit Lions
|
RB
|
—
|
4
|
135
|
Josh Sitton*
|
Green Bay Packers
|
G
|
Pro Bowl (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016) Super Bowl Champion (XLV)
|
7
|
239
|
Mike Merritt
|
Kansas City Chiefs
|
TE
|
—
|
2009
|
5
|
168
|
Joe Burnett
|
Pittsburgh Steelers
|
DB
|
—
|
2010
|
2
|
41
|
Torell Troup
|
Buffalo Bills
|
DT
|
—
|
2011
|
3
|
85
|
Jah Reid
|
Baltimore Ravens
|
T
|
Super Bowl Champion (XLVII)
|
7
|
211
|
Bruce Miller
|
San Francisco 49ers
|
LB
|
—
|
2012
|
3
|
66
|
Josh Robinson
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
DB
|
—
|
2013
|
6
|
181
|
Latavius Murray*
|
Oakland Raiders
|
RB
|
Pro Bowl (2015)
|
7
|
243
|
Kemal Ishmael
|
Atlanta Falcons
|
DB
|
—
|
2014
|
1
|
3
|
Blake Bortles
|
Jacksonville Jaguars
|
QB
|
—
|
7
|
222
|
Storm Johnson
|
Jacksonville Jaguars
|
RB
|
—
|
2015
|
1
|
26
|
Breshad Perriman
|
Baltimore Ravens
|
WR
|
—
|
4
|
109
|
Clayton Geathers
|
Indianapolis Colts
|
DB
|
—
|
2017
|
3
|
90
|
Shaquill Griffin*
|
Seattle Seahawks
|
DB
|
Pro Bowl (2019)
|
2018
|
1
|
30
|
Mike Hughes
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
DB
|
—
|
3
|
91
|
Tre'Quan Smith
|
New Orleans Saints
|
WR
|
—
|
3
|
98
|
Jordan Akins
|
Houston Texans
|
TE
|
—
|
5
|
141
|
Shaquem Griffin
|
Seattle Seahawks
|
LB
|
—
|
2019
|
2
|
58
|
Trysten Hill
|
Dallas Cowboys
|
DT
|
—
|
2020
|
4
|
128
|
Gabe Davis
|
Buffalo Bills
|
WR
|
—
|
2021
|
2
|
40
|
Richie Grant
|
Atlanta Falcons
|
DB
|
—
|
3
|
71
|
Aaron Robinson
|
New York Giants
|
DB
|
—
|
4
|
141
|
Jacob Harris
|
Los Angeles Rams
|
WR
|
—
|
6
|
223
|
Tay Gowan
|
Arizona Cardinals
|
DB
|
—
|
7
|
242
|
Tre Nixon
|
New England Patriots
|
WR
|
—
|
2022
|
6
|
220
|
Kalia Davis
|
San Francisco 49ers
|
DT
|
—
|
References
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Bowls & rivalries | |
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Culture & lore | |
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People | |
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Seasons | |
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National championship seasons in bold |