Three Former Alabama Players Selected on Opening Night of 2023 NFL Draft

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The University of Alabama football program had three former players selected in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday night in Kansas City, Mo., including the first overall pick in quarterback Bryce Young. He was joined by linebacker Will Anderson Jr. (No. 3) and running back Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 12).

With three selections on the opening night of the Draft, head coach Nick Saban has now produced 49 first-rounders in his career, including 44 at Alabama. Those 44 selections, which have all come in the last 15 years, are as follows:

2009 – Andre Smith (No. 6, Cincinnati)
2010 - Rolando McClain (No. 8, Oakland), Kareem Jackson (No. 20, Houston)
2011 - Marcell Dareus (No. 3, Buffalo), Julio Jones (No. 6, Atlanta), James Carpenter (No. 25, Seattle), Mark Ingram (No. 28, New Orleans)
2012 – Trent Richardson (No. 3, Cleveland), Mark Barron (No. 7, Tampa Bay), Dre Kirkpatrick (No. 17, Cincinnati), Dont'a Hightower (No. 25, New England)
2013 – Dee Milliner (No. 9, New York Jets), Chance Warmack (No. 10, Tennessee), D.J. Fluker (No. 11, San Diego)
2014 – C.J. Mosley (No. 17, Baltimore), Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (No. 21, Green Bay)
2015 – Amari Cooper (No. 4, Oakland)
2016 – Ryan Kelly (No. 18, Indianapolis)
2017 – Marlon Humphrey (No. 16, Baltimore), Jonathan Allen (No. 17, Washington), O.J. Howard (No. 19, Tampa Bay), Reuben Foster (No. 31, San Francisco)
2018 – Minkah Fitzpatrick (No. 11, Miami), Da'Ron Payne (No. 13, Washington), Rashaan Evans (No. 22, Tennessee), Calvin Ridley (No. 26, Atlanta)
2019 – Quinnen Williams (No. 3, New York Jets), Jonah Williams (No. 11, Cincinnati), Josh Jacobs (Oakland, No. 24)
2020 – Tua Tagovailoa (No. 5, Miami Dolphins), Jedrick Wills Jr. (No.10 Cleveland Browns), Henry Ruggs III (No. 12, Las Vegas Raiders), Jerry Jeudy (No. 15, Denver Broncos)
2021 – Jaylen Waddle (No. 6, Miami Dolphins), Patrick Surtain II, (No.9 Denver Broncos), DeVonta Smith (No. 10, Philadelphia Eagles), Mac Jones, (No. 15, New England Patriots), Alex Leatherwood, (No. 17, Las Vegas Raiders), Najee Harris, (No. 24, Pittsburgh Steelers)
2022 – Evan Neal (No. 7, New York Giants), Jameson Williams (No. 12, Detroit Lions)
2023 – Bryce Young (No. 1, Carolina Panthers), Will Anderson Jr. (No. 3, Houston Texans), Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 12, Detroit Lions)

Draft Notes

Alabama has had at least one player selected in the first round of 15 straight drafts (2009 – present), which is the new NCAA record. The Crimson Tide was previously tied with Miami (1995-08), who owned the old mark of 14 consecutive first round draft picks.
Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban holds the NCAA record for the most first round draft picks in a career at 49 and for the most first-round picks from a single school at 44. The next closest coach in each of those categories is the late Joe Paterno with 33 first-round picks in both his career and from a single school (Penn State).
With Alabama's three selections this evening, the Crimson Tide has produced multiple first-round picks in 12 of the last 15 NFL Drafts. The Crimson Tide had just one first-round pick in 2009, 2015 and 2016.
Since 2000, the Crimson Tide has produced an NCAA-leading 46 first-rounders, a number that is nine better than the next closest school Ohio State (37).
Since 2010, the Crimson Tide has had an NCAA-leading 43 players selected in the first round, a number that nearly doubles the next closest school Ohio State (24).
Bryce Young became the only player in Alabama history to be selected first overall in the Common Draft Era (since 1967). Young is also the only player to go 1-1 during head coach Nick Saban's career.
Will Anderson Jr.'s third-overall selection matched Quinnen Williams (2019) and Marcell Dareus (2011) for the highest defensive selection during Saban's tenure at Alabama.
With Young at No. 1 and Anderson Jr. at No. 3, the Crimson Tide had the first offensive and defensive players selected in the 2023 Draft.
Jahmyr Gibbs was taken at No. 12 overall in this year's Draft to make him the second-highest running back selected during Saban's tenure. He trails only Trent Richardson's No. 3 selection in 2012.

The second and third rounds will take place on Friday at 6 p.m. CT. The 2023 NFL Draft concludes with rounds four through seven on Saturday starting at 11 a.m. CT. The remaining rounds will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network.

Alabama First Round Recap

Player	Pick	Team
Bryce Young	1	Carolina Panthers
Will Anderson Jr.	3	Houston Texans
Jahmyr Gibbs	12	Detroit Lions

Bryce Young, Quarterback (No. 1 | Carolina Panthers)

A two-time permanent team captain, Young finished his time in Tuscaloosa as one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in program history. He ranked second for career passing yards (8,356) and passing touchdowns (80) and was also the only Tide signal-caller to throw for 3,000-plus yards in two seasons. In his junior campaign, Young amassed 3,328 yards passing on the way to second team All-America accolades from Pro Football Focus and USA Today. He burst onto the scene as a sophomore in 2021, winning the starting job at quarterback after sitting behind eventual first-rounder Mac Jones in 2020. Young took full advantage of his opportunity, setting Alabama's single-season records for passing yards (4,872) and touchdowns (47) on the way to claiming the 2021 Heisman Trophy. He also claimed the Maxwell Award, recognizing college football's top player, along with the Davey O' Brien and Manning awards while being named a consensus first team All-American by the Associated Press, FWAA and The Sporting News. Young was also named the 2021 SEC Offensive Player of the Year by the AP and league coaches after pacing the SEC and ranking second nationally in both passing yards and passing touchdowns.

Will Anderson Jr., Linebacker (No. 3 | Houston Texans)

One of the most decorated defenders to come through Tuscaloosa, Anderson Jr. was named a two-time permanent team captain and left Alabama ranked second in program history for both career sacks (34.5, -201 yards) and tackles for loss with (62, -272 yards), trailing only Derrick Thomas. The Crimson Tide's lone two-time unanimous All-American, he also earned back-to-back SEC Defensive Player of the Year accolades in 2021 and 2022. Anderson Jr. cleaned up during awards season as a junior, joining Manti Te'o as just the second player ever to win the Bednarik, Lombardi, Lott and Nagurski in the same year. He led the conference with 17 tackles for loss (-72 yards) and totaled a league-best 10 sacks (-54 yards) in 2022, one-year removed from leading the nation in tackles for loss with 34.5 (-148 yards), including 17.5 sacks (-108 yards) to pace all Division I defenders in 2021. In his first season at the Capstone, Anderson Jr. was selected as the Shaun Alexander-FWAA Freshman of the Year after earning the starting job at linebacker. The 2020 campaign saw the Hampton, Ga., native start every contest and pick up Freshman All-America honors while also being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team after contributing 52 tackles alongside seven sacks (-39 yards) and 10.5 tackles for loss (-52 yards) as a rookie.

Jahmyr Gibbs, Running Back (No. 12 | Detroit Lions)

An explosive playmaker on the Tide offense in 2022, Gibbs made an immediate impact after transferring to Alabama from Georgia Tech. He proved his versatility not only as a runner but also as a pass-catcher during his junior campaign. Gibbs finished second in program history for receptions by a running back in a single season while contributing a team-high 926 rushing yards. He earned second team All-America honors at the all-purpose spot by USA Today and third-team accolades from the Associated Press. He was also tabbed a second team All-SEC honoree at running back and in the all-purpose slot by both the AP and the league coaches. He totaled 1,628 all-purpose yards to pace the Tide offense and rank third in the SEC on the way to being named a Maxwell Award semifinalist and Hornung Award finalist.

Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabamaFTBL on Twitter and Facebook and AlabamaFBL on Instagram. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.

University of Alabama Athletics