Updated August 28, 2020 |
Infoplease Staff
Table of contents
Thirty-four players forfeited the remainder of their college eligibility and declared for the NFL draft in 1997. NFL teams drafted 25 underclassmen. Players listed in alphabetical order; first round selections in bold type.
| Pos | Drafted by | Overall pick | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reidel Anthony, Florida | WR | Tampa Bay | 16 |
| Darnell Autry, Northwestern | RB | Chicago | 105 |
| Ronde Barber, Virginia | CB | Tampa Bay | 66 |
| Terry Battle, Arizona St. | RB | Detroit | 206 |
| Will Blackwell, San Diego St. | WR | Pittsburgh | 53 |
| Peter Boulware, Florida St. | DE | Baltimore | 4 |
| Chris Canty, Kansas St. | CB | New England | 29 |
| Jason Caudill, Ohio U. | OT | not selected | — |
| Tony Daniels, Texas Tech | DE | not selected | — |
| Troy Davis, Iowa St. | RB | New Orleans | 62 |
| Corey Dillon, Washington | RB | Cincinnati | 43 |
| Tony Gonzalez, California | TE | Kansas City | 13 |
| Yatil Green, Miami-FL | WR | Miami | 15 |
| Byron Hanspard, Texas Tech | RB | Atlanta | 41 |
| Ike Hilliard, Florida | WR | NY Giants | 7 |
| Hudhaifa Ismaeli, Northwestern | DB | Miami | 203 |
| Walter Jones, Florida St. | OT | Seattle | 6 |
| Kenard Lang, Miami-FL | DE | Washington | 17 |
| Tremain Mack, Miami-FL | S | Cincinnati | 111 |
| LeVance McQueen, Duke | LB | not selected | — |
| Jamie Nails, Florida A&M | OT | Buffalo | 120 |
| Orlando Pace, Ohio St. | OT | St. Louis | 1 |
| Pearce Pegross, Baylor | WR | not selected | — |
| Trevor Pryce, Clemson | DE | Denver | 28 |
| Derrick Rodgers, Arizona St. | DE | Miami | 92 |
| Dwayne Rudd, Alabama | LB | Minnesota | 20 |
| Darrell Russell, USC | DT | Oakland | 2 |
| Alex Smith, Indiana | RB | not selected | — |
| Shawn Springs, Ohio St. | DB | Seattle | 3 |
| Maurice Staley, Tennessee | WR | not selected | — |
| Broderick Thomas, So. Miss. | DB | not selected | — |
| Rodney Wells, Florida St. | DB | not selected | — |
| Kenny Wheaton, Oregon | DB | Dallas | 94 |
| C.J. Williams, Georgia Tech | RB | not selected | — |
| Consensus All-America Team | 1996-97 Season | NCAA Division I-AA Final Standings |
