View a list of every Kentucky Wildcat selected in NFL Draft history

Quarterback Will Levis is projected to become the fourth University of Kentucky player during the Mark Stoops coaching era at Kentucky to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft.

The 2023 draft takes place April 27-29 in Kansas City, Mo., and Wildcats fans should expect the Blue and White to play prominently on opening night as several teams enter the seven-round event in search of signal callers.

Levis is expected to be the first Kentucky QB drafted since Andre Woodson in 2008 (sixth round) and the first to be chosen in the first round since Tim Couch was the No. 1 overall pick in 1999. Previous UK quarterbacks to be drafted include Bill Ransdell (1987, 12th round), Rick Norton (1966, second round), Babe Parilli (1952, first round), George Blanda (1949, 12th round) and Ermal Allen (1947, third round). (Norton was also picked in the first round of the AFL Draft in 1966.)

Since Stoops’ first season at Kentucky in 2013, the Wildcats have produced three first-round draft picks: linebackers Jamin Davis (No. 19 in 2021), Josh Allen (No. 7 in 2019) and Bud Dupree (No. 22 in 2015).

In addition to Levis, a few other UK names will be worth watching for during the three-day 2023 draft. Defensive back Carrington Valentine, running back Chris Rodriguez and offensive lineman Tashawn Manning were invited to this year’s NFL scouting combine along with Levis.

Last year, Wan’Dale Robinson, Josh Paschal, Luke Fortner and Darian Kinnard joined a list of more than 200 UK players drafted into the pro ranks going back to 1937.

(The most Wildcats ever picked in a single NFL Draft was nine, in 1951. That draft was conducted over 30 rounds with a total of 362 picks. There are 259 selections to be made in this year’s draft.)

Who are the other Wildcats that have preceded this year’s class of candidates? Below you’ll find a chart of every UK player drafted into either the NFL or the American Football League, a defunct organization whose history is officially counted as part of the NFL’s since the two leagues merged in the 1960s. Players who were drafted into the AFL are marked with an asterisk.

Every one of the current 32 NFL franchises has drafted at least one Wildcat through the years. Couch remains the only player drafted first overall in Kentucky history; he went to the Cleveland Browns in 1999. Bert Johnson, a fullback, was the first UK player drafted; he was the 42nd overall pick in the fifth round by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1937.

Note: Information cited from Pro Football Reference. Some players are listed twice, as they were selected by both an AFL and NFL franchise in a given year.

This story was originally published April 20, 2023 at 10:00 AM.