LSU Tigers

Which schools won the NFL draft's first round?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

Sports Illustrated, Colin Becht/Sports Illustrated

The feverous rush to grade Thursday’s first round of the NFL draft is underway with plenty of analysis of what each of the picks could mean for NFL teams’ futures. While much of that is impossible to accurately assess until the players spend a few seasons with their new pro teams, we can much more precisely break down which college programs won the draft. Sure, college programs benefit from their players not just making the NFL but also shining. Still, there is a huge value in merely getting the school’s name called early and often with millions of viewers tuning into the draft.

To determine which schools had the best night at the draft, I devised a point system. It works largely like the AP poll; the No. 1 pick is worth 32 points, the No. 2 pick is worth 31 points and so on down to the No. 32 pick, which is worth point. However, simply getting players into the first round is an achievement in and of itself with serious value for college programs, so each pick earned 10 extra points. In total, the first overall pick is worth 42 points while the final pick of the first round is worth 11 points.

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