The draft has officially arrived, and for some select Cyclones, dreams may be about to come true.
The 2024 NFL Draft is a three-day event starting Thursday and going through Saturday. In those three days, all 32 NFL teams look to fill out their rosters by adding talented college players.
In recent years, Iowa State has seen a handful of players make it to the next level and find major success. Notable names out of recent drafts are Breece Hall, a high second-round draft pick that instantly rose to the lead running back role on the Jets, Will McDonald IV, the first Cyclone taken in the first round in decades, and Brock Purdy, the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft who brought his team to the Super Bowl a season ago.
Now that the senior class at Iowa State has said its goodbyes, it looks to the next challenge at hand. One player in particular has garnered interest from across the league.
With the importance of the cornerback position, T.J. Tampa is a player that has the potential of being drafted early. Although Tampa is expected to be the first Cyclone off the board, the odds of him sneaking into day one of the draft are slim. He is expected to follow a similar route to Hall two years ago, and fall early on day two.
Gerry Vaughn is another player that could hear his name called sometime during the three-day event. Vaughn was a senior leader of the Cyclones’ linebacker room and proved throughout the 2023 season that he could compete well against even the toughest competition.
Even if Vaughn does not go off the board on day three, he could still get an invite to a team’s training camp, similar to the path O’Rien Vance took a season ago.
One player that gained a lot of attention throughout the pre-draft process was walk-on turned scholarship player, Ben Nikkel. The defensive back tested off the charts at the Big 12’s Pro Day, as he was one of the surprising standout players.
Although just doing well in the pre-draft events does not tend to be enough to draw eyes from NFL teams, his impact throughout his limited snaps could be enough to gain interest from someone.
Lastly, two players that are worth noting are kicker Chase Contreraz and tight end Easton Dean. Contreraz was a big factor in Iowa State’s success throughout the 2023 season, and with the NFL’s need for kickers, he could get some love after the draft.
Dean is also interesting in the fact that NFL teams tend to favor multiple tight ends and can find use in Dean’s skill sets. His blocking abilities and game knowledge are tough to find in many receiving tight ends.
There is no telling what may go down on draft day, as more or less Cyclones could go off the board than expected. With all that being said, Cyclone fans should still be in for a treat.
The NFL Draft is set to begin at 11 a.m. Thursday in Detroit with round one. It will be aired on ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes and NFL Network.
