The Nicholls Colonels football team, representing Nicholls State University, has had 16 American football players drafted into the National Football League (NFL). The highest that a Colonel has ever been drafted is the 3rd round/57th overall, which happened in 1987 with the selection of wide receiver Mark Carrier by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The most Colonels selected in a single NFL Draft are two. In the 1987 NFL Draft, Carrier was selected by the Buccaneers and quarterback Doug Hudson by the Kansas City Chiefs. [1]
The Washington Redskins have drafted the most Colonels with a total of three. The Chiefs, Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers are next, drafting two players each. [2]
| B | Back | K | Kicker | NT | Nose tackle |
| C | Center | LB | Linebacker | FB | Fullback |
| DB | Defensive back | P | Punter | HB | Halfback |
| DE | Defensive end | QB | Quarterback | WR | Wide receiver |
| DT | Defensive tackle | RB | Running back | G | Guard |
| E | End | T | Offensive tackle | TE | Tight end |
| * | Inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame | ||||
| Year | Round | Pick | Overall | Player | Team | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 3 | 14 | 74 | Gary Barbaro | Kansas City Chiefs | DB | — |
| 1977 | 7 | 15 | 182 | Gerard Butler | Chicago Bears | WR | — |
| 1982 | 4 | 4 | 87 | Dwight Walker | Cleveland Browns | WR | — |
| 1984 | 3 | 2 | 58 | Johnny Meads | Houston Oilers | LB | — |
| 1985 | 4 | 13 | 97 | Anthony Tuggle | Cincinnati Bengals | DB | — |
| 7 | 17 | 187 | Lionel Vital | Washington Redskins | RB | — | |
| 1986 | 5 | 9 | 119 | Oscar Smith | Detroit Lions | RB | — |
| 1987 | 3 | 1 | 57 | Mark Carrier | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | WR | — |
| 6 | 18 | 186 | Doug Hudson | Kansas City Chiefs | QB | — | |
| 1989 | 5 | 5 | 117 | Jamie Lawson | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | FB | — |
| 1990 | 10 | 16 | 264 | Dee Thomas | Houston Oilers | DB | — |
| 1995 | 3 | 4 | 68 | Darryl Pounds | Washington Redskins | DB | — |
| 2004 | 5 | 18 | 110 | Chris Thompson | Jacksonville Jaguars | DB | — |
| 2007 | 6 | 3 | 177 | Jacob Bender | New York Jets | T | — |
| 2008 | 6 | 14 | 180 | Kareem Moore | Washington Redskins | DB | — |
| 2009 | 3 | 24 | 88 | Lardarius Webb | Baltimore Ravens | DB | — |
Note: No drafts held before 1920
| Debut year | Player name | Position | Debut NFL/AFL team | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Rusty Rebowe | LB | New Orleans Saints | |
| 1984 | Jay Pennison | C | Washington Redskins | |
| 1985 | Sheldon Andrus | DT | New Orleans Saints | |
| 1989 | Terrence Cooks | LB | New England Patriots | |
| 2010 | Antonio Robinson | WR | Chicago Bears | |
| 2012 | Bobby Felder | CB | Minnesota Vikings | |
| 2022 | Dai'Jean Dixon | WR | New Orleans Saints |
The 1986 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1986, at the Marriott Marquis in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
The 1987 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 28–29, 1987, at the Marriot Marquis in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
John Mark Carrier is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of the 1987 NFL Draft. He worked for the Carolina Panthers in their front office from 2011 to 2020, and was hired by the Buffalo Bills as their player engagement director in 2021.
Derrick Scott "Ricky" Reynolds is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 1987 NFL draft. Standing 6' 0" and 195-lb., he played college football for the Washington State Cougars. Reynolds played in the NFL from 1987 to 1996 for the Buccaneers and New England Patriots. Over the course of his career, Reynolds totaled 23 interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Reynolds spent most of his year as a left-side cornerback, though he played the right side in 1993 for the Buccaneers and in 1996 for the Patriots. Reynolds also returned two fumble recoveries for touchdowns and returned a blocked field goal attempt for a touchdown.
Lionel Vital is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins, Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions. He is currently the General Manager of the Houston Roughnecks of the United Football League (UFL). He was a member of the Calgary Stampeders and Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He also was a scout and director of personnel in the NFL. He played college football at Nicholls State University.
The 1987 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 12th season in the National Football League, the 12th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium, and the first under head coach Ray Perkins. It was a year of great change for the Buccaneers. Perkins had only needed three seasons (1979–1981) to build the New York Giants into a playoff team, and it was hoped that he would be able to repeat the feat with the Buccaneers. They improved over their 2–14 record from 1986 and finished 4–11.
Ervin L. Randle is a former American football linebacker. He played in the National Football League (NFL) from 1985 to 1992 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs. He attended Baylor University, where he played college football. He was selected by the Buccaneers in the third round of the 1985 NFL Draft. He is the older brother of Hall of Famer John Randle.
Benjamin Douglas Hudson is a former professional American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He graduated from Gulf Breeze High School and played collegiate football at Nicholls State University
Jason Andrew Pierre-Paul is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football for the South Florida Bulls and was selected by the New York Giants in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. With the Giants, Pierre-Paul made two Pro Bowls, was first-team All-Pro and won Super Bowl XLVI. With the Buccaneers, Pierre-Paul made his third Pro Bowl and won Super Bowl LV.
Jamie Lee Lawson is a former professional American football fullback in the National Football League for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1989–1990 and New England Patriots in 1990. He played college football at Nicholls State University and was drafted in the fifth round of the 1989 NFL Draft.
Michael Lynn Evans III is an American football wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). Evans played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies, earning consensus All-American honors after recording a school record of 1,394 receiving yards on 69 receptions. He was selected by the Buccaneers in the first round with the seventh overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft.
Roberto Jose Aguayo is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles, where he was the most accurate kicker in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) history and third in NCAA history. He won the Lou Groza Award in 2013. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft, unusually high for a special teams player. Despite an accomplished collegiate career at Florida State, Aguayo is considered to be among the biggest busts in recent NFL history. Aguayo served as the starting kicker for the Buccaneers for only the 2016 season. He then had stints with the Chicago Bears, the Carolina Panthers, the Los Angeles Chargers and the New England Patriots between 2017 and 2021 without seeing any regular season game action.
Oterrius Jabari "O. J." Howard is an American football tight end who is a free agent. He played college football at Alabama, and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Rakeem Nathan Nuñez-Roches is a Belizean born American football defensive end for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft. He played college football at Southern Miss.
Carlton Davis III is an American football cornerback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Auburn and was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft.
Tevita Tuliʻakiʻono Tuipulotu Mosese Vaʻhae Fehoko Faletau Vea, otherwise known as Vita Vea, is an American football nose tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington and was selected by the Buccaneers in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft.
Jamel Dean is an American football cornerback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Auburn.
Mike Edwards is an American football safety for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Kentucky, and was selected in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He won Super Bowl LV with Tampa Bay in 2020 and Super Bowl LVIII with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2023.
Tyler Johnson is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Minnesota, and was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He also briefly played for the Houston Texans.