Texas has produced 50 first round NFL draft picks and three No. 1 overall selections, and the last four drafts have produced more Longhorns than any four year span since the common draft began in 1967. The 2026 class was the quietest of that stretch: six players, none in the first round.
| First round picks all time | 50 |
| No. 1 overall picks | Tommy Nobis 1966, Earl Campbell 1978, Kenneth Sims 1982 |
| Most picks in one draft | 12, in 2025 |
| Most first rounders in one draft | 3, in 1980 and 2025 |
| Picks under Sarkisian, 2022 to 2026 | 34 |
| Picks in the ten years before him | 27 |
Picks by Year Under Sarkisian
| Draft | Players taken | First round |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 6 | 0 |
| 2025 | 12 | 3 |
| 2024 | 11 | 2 |
| 2023 | 5 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 |
The 2022 draft, reflecting Sarkisian’s first season, produced no Longhorns at all. The four drafts since have produced 34, the most in any four year span in the common draft era.
The 2026 Draft
Six Longhorns were selected, the earliest in the second round. It was the first draft since 2022 without a Texas first rounder, ending a three year streak, and four of the six went to the Miami Dolphins, where they join former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers.
| Round | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd, No. 60 | LB Anthony Hill Jr. | Tennessee Titans |
| 4th | CB Malik Muhammad | Chicago Bears |
| 4th | EDGE Trey Moore | Miami Dolphins |
| 5th | S Michael Taaffe | Miami Dolphins |
| 6th, No. 200 | OG DJ Campbell | Miami Dolphins |
| 7th, No. 221 | TE Jack Endries | Cincinnati Bengals |
The 2025 Draft
A program record twelve Longhorns were selected, with three in the first round: tackle Kelvin Banks to New Orleans at No. 9, cornerback Jahdae Barron to Denver at No. 20 and receiver Matthew Golden to Green Bay at No. 23. Three first rounders tied the school record set in 1980. Texas sent 14 players to the combine that year, also a record, and four of them ran the 40 in under 4.4 seconds, which no program had done before.
The Sarkisian Effect
Texas had 14 players drafted in the four years before Steve Sarkisian arrived and 34 in the four years since. The 2024 and 2025 drafts combined for ten first and second round picks, more than any other program over those two years, ahead of Georgia and Ohio State with nine.
The 2027 draft is expected to be larger. Quarterback Arch Manning and edge rusher Colin Simmons are both projected as first round picks.
The Three No. 1 Picks
Tommy Nobis went first to Atlanta in 1966, the Falcons’ first ever draft choice. Earl Campbell went first to Houston in 1978 after winning the Heisman and won three straight NFL rushing titles. Kenneth Sims went first to New England in 1982. Only a handful of programs have produced three top overall selections.
The Bottom Line
Texas has 50 first round picks and three No. 1 overall selections in its history. The last four drafts have produced 34 Longhorns, a program record, with 12 in 2025 alone. The 2026 class of six with no first rounder was a pause rather than a decline, with a heavily projected 2027 group behind it. Our Texas Heisman winners page covers Campbell’s 1977 season.