Texas A&M history was made on Saturday in the final day of the 2019 NFL Draft with five Aggies earning a new home and the first 12th Man in the school’s history drafted in round seven.
This draft season proved to be the most successful for A&M. It saw the most picks in school history with seven, most picks in the state of Texas and the second most in the SEC.
Defensive end Kingsley Keke was the first of the former A&M players to go when he was picked by the Green Bay Packers in round five as the 12th pick and 150th overall. Keke will join A&M teammate tight end Jace Sternberger who was selected in round three as the 75th overall pick.
“He’s been on my radar for a while. He’s a guy that school has talked about for a long time as a guy to be excited about for the future,” college scout for the Packers Charles Walls said. “They played him more on the edge, and you could see his athleticism come through little more as a pass rusher, which was intriguing.”
Just ten picks later, defensive tackle Daylon Mack was selected by the Baltimore Ravens as the 22nd pick in round five and the 160th pick overall.
“He’s a big strong guy that we saw at the East West Game as well as the Senior Bowl,” Ravens General Manager Eric DeCosta said. “He has two gap ability as a nose tackle and is also a sneaky pass rusher. For a big guy, he ran a five-flat forty yard dash and moves pretty well.”
Trayveon Williams, former A&M running back and a player projected to go early in his position, was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals as the ninth pick (182th overall) in the sixth round.
Rounding out the sixth round, safety Donovan Wilson was the 41st pick and 213th overall going to the Dallas Cowboys.
The last Aggie to be picked made A&M history after being the only 12th Man to be selected in an NFL Draft. Fullback Cullen Gillaspia heard his name called as the Houston Texans’ final pick of the draft, after being the sixth pick (220th overall) in round seven.
Although the draft has come to an end, there are A&M prospects who still remain un-drafted. Players who are now free agents include, linebackers Tyrel Dodson and Otaro Alaka, defensive end Landis Durham and offensive lineman Keaton Sutherland.
However, shortly after the draft ended, it was announced that Sutherland will sign with the Cincinnati Bengals, Alaka will sign with the Baltimore Ravens and former tight end Trevor Wood will sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers.