NFL Draft: Hakeem Butler picked No. 103 by Arizona Cardinals
April 25, 2019
Entering Friday, Iowa State hadn’t seen a football player get selected in the NFL Draft since 2014.
After running back David Montgomery snapped that streak, wide receiver Hakeem Butler became the first Cyclone wide receiver selected since 1985. He was picked by the Arizona Cardinals with the No. 103 overall pick. Butler was the first pick of the fourth round to start day three.
As a Cyclone, Butler finished with 2,149 receiving yards in three years. He caught 18 touchdowns and became nationally recognized as a redshirt junior in 2018 for making dramatic catches downfield, often times barreling over defenders on his way to the end zone.
He tallied 60 catches, 1,318 yards and nine touchdowns in his final season in a Cyclone uniform as the offense worked to replace the production of Allen Lazard after the 2017 season.
Butler will join former Big 12 rivals Kyler Murray (Oklahoma) and Kliff Kingsbury (Texas Tech) in Arizona. Murray was selected Thursday as the No. 1 overall pick to play quarterback for the Cardinals while Kingsbury was hired as the team’s head coach.