Alabama Football Finishes with a Record 12 Players Selected in 2018 NFL Draft

University of Alabama defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, defensive back Anthony Averett, punter JK Scott, linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton, center Bradley Bozeman, running back Bo Scarbrough and defensive lineman Joshua Frazier were selected on the final day of the 2018 National Football League Draft Saturday afternoon at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The seven selections on Saturday gives the Crimson Tide a school- and Southeastern Conference-record 12 players chosen in this year’s draft. The total is also the most for any school in the 2018 draft.

Hand was selected with the 14^th pick (114^th overall) in the fourth round by the Detroit Lions, Averett went four picks later with the 18^th pick (118^th overall) in the round to the Baltimore Ravens. Scott was chosen by the Green Bay Packers with the 35^th pick (172^nd overall) in the fifth round. Hamilton was the 23^rd pick (197 overall) in the sixth round by the Washington Redskins. Bozeman went 41^st (215^th overall) in the sixth round to the Ravens. Scarbrough went off the board at No. 18 (236^th overall) in the seventh round to the Dallas Cowboys, followed by Frazier at No. 28 (246^th overall) to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The seven players chosen Saturday join teammates Minkah Fitzpatrick (Round 1, Miami), Da’Ron Payne (Round 1, Washington), Rashaan Evans (Round 1, Tennessee), Calvin Ridley (Round 1, Atlanta) and Ronnie Harrison (Round 4, Jacksonville) in Alabama’s 2018 NFL Draft class.

The 12 selections is a record under Nick Saban and the most in school history, surpassing the 10 selected in 2017 and in the 32-round draft in 1945. The total is also the most for an SEC school in NFL Draft history.

Alabama’s 77 draftees over the last 10 years is the most by any program in college football in that span. LSU is second with 72, followed by USC at 66.

Alabama has now had 22 players selected in the last two NFL Drafts, including six on offense, 15 on defense and one specialist. The defensive draftee total from the last two drafts includes all 11 of Alabama’s 2016 season-opening defensive starters.

A powerful lineman who worked on the inside and outside for the Crimson Tide in his final season at the Capstone, Hand earned Second Team All-SEC honors from the conference coaches. The Woodbridge, Va., native saw time in 11 games with nine starts in 2017, collecting 27 stops with 3.5 tackles for loss (-25 yards) and three sacks (-23 yards) and a fumble recovery.

Averett earned a starting corner spot during his senior year and collected 48 tackles, including four for a loss (-23 yards) in 2017. The Woodbury, N.J., native tied for second on the team with eight pass breakups and added one interception with a return of 30 yards to his totals He registered 32 of his tackles against the pass to lead the Tide.

Scott was a four-year starter at punter for the Crimson Tide and finished his career as the UA career record holder for career punting yards (11,074), attempts (243)  and punting average (45.6 ypp). The Denver, Colo., native earned Second Team All-America honors from the AFCA in 2017 and was selected as a First Team All-SEC honoree from the coaches while being named to the conference’s second team by the Associated Press. Scott had only five punts returned against him as a senior for 36 yards with two of the five returns going for no gain. He dropped 27 of his 54 boots inside the 20-yard line, with only four touchbacks as a senior and forced 27 fair catches on his punts for a 50.0 fair-catch percentage.

Hamilton was voted a permanent team captain for the 2017 season. He tied for second on the Crimson Tide in total tackles (40) while ranking third on the team in tackles for loss with 5.5 (-22 yards) despite playing just nine games in his senior season due to a season-ending injury. Twenty-nine of his stops came against the run, a total that was fourth on the team at the time of his exit. The Montgomery, Ala., native added 2.5 sacks (-17 yards), two quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and one forced fumble to his senior numbers.

Bozeman was voted a permanent team captain by his teammates in 2017. He was the signal-caller for the Alabama offensive front over his 31 career starts. The Roanoke, Ala., native earned unanimous Second Team All-American honors from all five major outlets while also earning second-team honors from Sports Illustrated. He was tabbed to the All-SEC first team by the Associated Press while garnering second-team recognition from the conference coaches.  Bozeman graded out at an average of 86.2 percent as a senior with 19 knockdown blocks and just eight missed assignments and six mental errors in 866 snaps (98.4 success rate). He allowed just two sacks and just four pressures in 2017.

Scarbourgh rushed for 596 yards and eight touchdowns in 2017 on 124 carries to rank as the Tide’s No. 2 rusher. A force in short-yardage situations, 37 of the Northport, Ala., native’s rushes went for a first down or a touchdown in 2017. His 17 receptions ranked No. 2 on the team last season. As a sophomore, Scarbrough rushed for 364 yards and six touchdowns in the Tide’s three postseason games in 2016 against Florida (SEC Championship Game), Washington (Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl) and Clemson (CFP National Championship Game) before exiting the CFP Championship Game with a leg injury early in the third quarter.

Frazier provided veteran depth along the Tide defensive front, playing in every game during his senior season  and recorded 15 tackles with 2.5 for loss (-7 yards), added a forced fumble, one quarterback hurry and three pass breakups to his totals. He finished his career with 28 total tackles, 4.5 for a loss (-23), one quarterback hurry, two sacks, one forced fumble and three pass breakups.