ND vs Everybody: NFL Draft Picks

Notre Dame is and always has been in the unique position of measuring themselves against everybody. That’s what happens when you’re on Independent Island. There is no choice but to do that because regional comparisons just won’t cut it.

We can throw those out (sorry, most of the Big Ten), but narrowing it down to Notre Dame football versus the top programs in college football feels much more natural. In my opinion it’s something that should be discussed frequently because those are the programs that the Irish are most often going up against for the best recruits in the nation.

The coaching staff always tries to communicate things that make Notre Dame different when approaching a recruit. Often that has to do with academics or campus life. They can point to things like graduation rate or the ranking of a specific academic program. It's typically pretty rare that Notre Dame would not have an edge when they do this. That’s why they are able to win so often with recruits who are looking to set themselves up for life after football.

But, let’s be honest here, most of the best athletes they are after care just as much or more about the football aspect of it.

That’s what they are going to be on scholarship for. They are hoping to one day take the next step and play in the NFL. A lot of them just want to know that playing Notre Dame football can get them there.

It can and it has. There is no argument against that with 495 examples of NFL Draft picks (second behind USC) as evidence. However, recruiting has always been about selling recent history more than nostalgia. And let’s face it, the program isn’t pumping out as many draft picks as it used to.

The question is, how do they compare against other power programs when it comes to developing players into NFL Draft picks? We know where they stand when looking at all-time numbers, but that kind of thing isn’t going to help very much with the recruits of today.

I went back and compiled the numbers of draft picks from fifteen power programs, including Notre Dame, to see where they stack up since 2011 (the first year players who played for Brian Kelly were selected).

The results were not shocking, but definitely interesting.

Being 13th on this list isn't ideal, but to be fair, the difference between Notre Dame and 8th (Oklahoma) isn't very large. It's pretty much one more player drafted per year, so the talent disparity is minimal. The fact that Notre Dame is tied for 7th in the number of first round picks also helps make up for that a bit. 

Whenever anyone has a program beat in something like this, it's alway tough to recruit against. It's tough to play against that talent too. Kelly is 14-20 versus the programs listed above Notre Dame on this list. 

Kelly improved the total number of draft picks from the previous seven years by three. The Irish had 26 players drafted between 2004-2010. The 1st rounders went up significantly from 1 (Brady Quinn) to 6. 

These numbers will change going forward with the upcoming NFL Draft and the Irish could add two more 1st round picks to their total, but these other programs are going to add too. Especially Georgia, Texas, and Penn State over the next few years if they continue to recruit the way they have.

Things are better than they were, but it's not where they want to be, though. We'll just have to see where Notre Dame fits when this list gets updated later on.