Coming off of a 5-7 season, BYU Football fans felt like there wasn’t much going positive for the team and their future. Yet, today, when the NFL announced their NFL Combine invites, three Cougars were on the list. Sure, for a team like Alabama, Georiga, or another blueblood, three may seem like an extremely low number, but for the Cougars, that is actually higher than they’ve typically had.
For example, following the 2022 season, when BYU went 8-5, the Cougars also had three NFL Combine invites, and that was a very senior-heavy class. Following the 2021 season, when they finished 10-3, only Tyler Allegier was invited.
There have been some years, when nobody was invited. What does this all mean? Let’s dive in.
Big 12 Exposure Bump
There is no question that the Big 12 brings a certain amount of exposure to BYU Football. As a fan, you may be thinking that BYU has always been considered a P5 program because most of the P5 leagues recognized BYU as a P5 nonconference opponent, but from an outsider looking in, I can assure you that nobody saw BYU as a P5.
That being said, the Cougars were always a mystery. On one hand, they played a somewhat tough schedule, normally playing four to six P5 throughout a season, but on the other side, they rarely faced the kind of gauntlet of a schedule that they saw in the Big 12 last year when they ended up losing five of their last six games.
There is no question anymore. In a weird way, it’s possible that a 5-7 Big 12 BYU team is more attractive to NFL scouts than an 8-4 Independent BYU team, or at least that is what early signs show.
Players Invited to the NFL Combine
BYU’s quarterback Kedon Slovis, struggled this past season, throwing for 1,716 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. His QBR was 52.9, which ranked 85th in the nation. However, he has the intangibles that make him an attractive NFL prospect. At 6’3″ and with an arm that can throw for easily past 50 yards, Slovis is the kind of player that may struggle in college, but play well in the NFL. Think of him like a Tom Brady or Brett Farve kind of player. No, I’m not saying that Slovis will be an all-time great, but he could be a better pro than a college player.
Punter Ryan Rhekow is one of two punters to be invited to the NFL Combine. This is quite the recognition but it was well deserved. In 2023, Rhekow ranked third in the nation with a 48.3 punt average. Even more impressive, he had 25 punts inside the 20, but only four touchbacks all season. His longest punt of the season was 70 yards against Texas Tech.
Finally, Kinglsey Suamataia, a former five-star offensive lineman, was the most obvious and expected player to be invited to the NFL Combine. Suamataia didn’t have the kind of season he was hoping for, likely falling from a first-round pick to a day-two pick, but Suamataia is clearly the most likely player to get drafted in this year’s NFL Draft.
Odds of BYU Football Players Getting Drafted
About 82% of all draft picks are taken from the pool of players that come from the NFL Combine. There are 321 NFL Combine invitees and 259 NFL Draft picks. If 82% of the 259 picks are from the combine, that means about 210 or about 61% of the NFL Combine participants will end up getting drafted.
For BYU, it feels like outside of Suamataia, there may not be any sure picks. There are typically three to four punters taken, which makes Rhekow’s chances high, but not a sure thing. Slovis feels like a bit more of a longshot, but there may be a team or two willing to take a late draft pick on him if they are looking for a potential diamond in the rough. On most boards, Slovis ranks between 12-14 for QB prospects. Some years, that means getting drafted, and other years, it is just on the outside.
As for other players who may get drafted for BYU, the odds seem slim. Isaac Rex seems like the most likely but with his injury history and lack of usage during his final two years at BYU, he seems more like an undrafted free agent. The only other name that even seems remotely possible is Aidan Robbins, but similar to Rex; he may need to have an amazing Big 12 Pro Day to have a chance to be looked at as a late-round draft pick.
Conclusion
It appears that being in the Big 12 has turned a page for BYU Football, not just on the field, but with the NFL. The fact that the Cougars went 5-7 in 2023 yet still have three NFL Combine invitations shows how important being in a P4 conference is for a program and can be a great recruiting tool for the Cougars going forward.
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