The 2018 NFL Draft will be held in Dallas from April 26 through April 28. There are seven rounds and 256 selections in the draft. You can see the complete draft order here.
Several former IU players will either be drafted or signed as free agents this year. Indiana has never had more than three players selected in the first seven rounds of the NFL draft. This year it is possible that they will have more than three players drafted, although a few are on the fence. Yesterday we looked at the five former players that were invited to the NFL Draft Combine last month and appear to be the more likely players to be drafted.
Today we will look at the remaining six Hoosiers that were not invited to the Combine but participated in the IU NFL Pro Day. These players appear less likely to be drafted, but by participating in the NFL Pro Day, they are on the radar of NFL coaches and executives and therefore have a reasonable chance of being picked up as undrafted free agents (“UDFA”) upon the conclusion of the draft.
As soon as the draft is over, teams are able to sign UDFAs. Once UDFAs are signed, they go through the offseason program, training camp and preseason with a chance to make an NFL team. Watch for these former Hoosier names upon the conclusion of the draft on Saturday.
CHASE DUTRA – SAFETY
Dutra led the team in tackles and was an Honorable Mention All-Big Ten selection. He was also the team MVP of the Old Oaken Bucket Game and was voted as the team’s special teams player of the year. Dutra had this to say about his opportunity to showcase his abilities at the Pro Day:
“We were just able to fuel off each other and keep going day by day,” Dutra said. “It was fun, it was competitive, it was everything you want when you’re training for something that’s the pinnacle in your life, the biggest day in your life so far.”
TONY FIELDS – SAFETY
Fields is the only player in program history to play in 50 games. He started 20 times. He was a two-time IU defensive team player of the week (Michigan and Rutgers) in 2017. Fields won the team’s Harold Mauro “Loyalty to IU Football” Award.
The Florida native played in the Tropical Bowl and led his team with 4 tackles.
GREG GOOCH – DL
Gooch was a 2017 team captain, and he earned the team’s Chris Dal Sasso Award (Outstanding Lineman).
RICHARD LAGOW – QB
Lagow started 8 games at quarterback in 2017. He is the program’s all-time leader in 400 yard passing games. Lagow was a 2017 team captain, and he was reported to have had workouts with NFL teams including the Cowboys and Colts.
Lagow participated in the Tropical Bowl and completed seven of nine passes for 62 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown.
ROBERT McCRAY – DL
McCray was 2017 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten. He led Indiana in sacks with 6, which was good for 14th overall in the Big Ten. McCray ran a 4.6 40 yard dash at his Pro Day which has reportedly caught the eye of NFL teams.
GRIFFIN OAKES – K
Oakes was the Big Ten’s Bakken-Andersen Kicker of the Year and a first team All-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and media. He is IU’s all-time leader in field goals made.
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