Wake Forest has produced 65 NFL draft picks since 1980, including 3 first-rounders — 64th all-time among college programs.
ACC · NFL draft picks 1980–2026 · 64th nationally
Wake Forest College Draft History
Wake Forest has produced 65 NFL draft picks since 1980, including 3 first-rounders — 64th all-time among college programs.
- Total picks
- 65
- First-rounders
- 3
- No. 1 overall
- 0
- Pro Bowlers
- 58% of picks
- Pro Bowl nods
- 8
- Hall of Famers
- 0
Notable Wake Forest draft picks
Ranked by Hall of Fame status, Pro Bowls, and career value.
Tony Mayberry
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
3× Pro Bowl
160 games · 9 yrs as starter
Michael McCrary
Seattle Seahawks
2× Pro Bowl
136 games · 6 yrs as starter
Jessie Bates III
Cincinnati Bengals
1× Pro Bowl
130 games · 8 yrs as starter
John Henry Mills
Houston Oilers
1× Pro Bowl
100 games
Ovie Mughelli
Baltimore Ravens
1× Pro Bowl
107 games · 5 yrs as starter
Calvin Pace
Arizona Cardinals
187 games · 10 yrs as starter
Ricky Proehl
Phoenix Cardinals
244 games · 6 yrs as starter
Fred Robbins
Minnesota Vikings
180 games · 10 yrs as starter
Wake Forest draft trends
Picks by class year, position group, and the NFL clubs that shop here most.
Picks by draft class
Earlier classes
Positions produced
- DB 13
- G 10
- LB 8
- WR 6
- DE 6
- RB 4
- DT 3
- TE 3
- C 2
- OL 2
- P 2
- QB 1
NFL clubs that draft here
- GB Green Bay Packers 5
- MIN Minnesota Vikings 5
- NO New Orleans Saints 5
- SEA Seattle Seahawks 5
- KC Kansas City Chiefs 3
- DAL Dallas Cowboys 3
- ARI Phoenix Cardinals 3
- DEN Denver Broncos 3
Every Wake Forest draft pick
65 selections, newest class first.
| Pick | Player | Pos | NFL team | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |
Karon Prunty
Portsmouth, VA
|
DB | NE New England Patriots | Awaiting debut |
| 2026 |
Demond Claiborne
Aylett, VA
|
RB | MIN Minnesota Vikings | Awaiting debut |
| 2024 |
Malik Mustapha
Charlotte, NC
|
DB | SF San Francisco 49ers | 28 games · 2 yrs as starter 8 career AV |
| 2024 |
Caelen Carson
Waldorf, MD
|
DB | DAL Dallas Cowboys | 14 games 2 career AV |
| 2024 |
Michael Jurgens
Damascus, MD
|
OL | MIN Minnesota Vikings | 18 games 2 career AV |
| 2023 |
Kobie Turner
Clifton, VA
|
DT | LAR Los Angeles Rams | 51 games · 2 yrs as starter 20 career AV |
| 2023 |
A.T. Perry
Lake Worth, FL
|
WR | NO New Orleans Saints | 10 games 2 career AV |
| 2022 |
Zach Tom
Prairieville, LA
|
OL | GB Green Bay Packers | 55 games · 3 yrs as starter 26 career AV |
| 2022 |
Ja'Sir Taylor
Asbury Park, NJ
|
DB | LAC Los Angeles Chargers | 65 games 8 career AV |
| 2021 |
Boogie Basham
Roanoke, VA
|
DL | BUF Buffalo Bills | 43 games 4 career AV |
| 2020 |
Justin Strnad
Palm Harbor, FL
|
LB | DEN Denver Broncos | 83 games 14 career AV |
| 2020 |
Justin Herron
Silver Spring, MD
|
T | NE New England Patriots | 35 games 7 career AV |
| 2019 |
Phil Haynes
Raleigh, NC
|
G | SEA Seattle Seahawks | 31 games 6 career AV |
| 2018 |
Jessie Bates III
1× Pro Bowl
|
S | CIN Cincinnati Bengals | 130 games · 8 yrs as starter 55 career AV |
| 2018 |
Duke Ejiofor
Houston, TX
|
DE | HOU Houston Texans | 12 games 1 career AV |
| 2017 |
Marquel Lee
Waldorf, MD
|
LB | LV Oakland Raiders | 45 games · 1 yrs as starter 9 career AV |
| 2015 |
Kevin Johnson
Clarksville, MD
|
CB | HOU Houston Texans | 64 games 11 career AV |
| 2014 |
Michael Campanaro
Clarksville, MD
|
WR | BAL Baltimore Ravens | 24 games 4 career AV |
| 2013 |
Tommy Bohanon
North Fort Myers, FL
|
RB | NYJ New York Jets | 68 games · 1 yrs as starter 1 career AV |
| 2012 |
Chris Givens
Wylie, TX
|
WR | LAR St. Louis Rams | 60 games · 2 yrs as starter 12 career AV |
| 2012 |
Kyle Wilber
Apopka, FL
|
LB | DAL Dallas Cowboys | 135 games · 1 yrs as starter 13 career AV |
| 2012 |
Joe Looney
Lake Worth, FL
|
G | SF San Francisco 49ers | 104 games · 2 yrs as starter 21 career AV |
| 2012 |
Josh Bush
Lexington, NC
|
DB | NYJ New York Jets | 45 games 3 career AV |
| 2010 |
Brandon Ghee
|
DB | CIN Cincinnati Bengals | 29 games 2 career AV |
| 2010 |
Chris DeGeare
Kernersville, NC
|
G | MIN Minnesota Vikings | 8 games 2 career AV |
| 2009 |
Aaron Curry
|
LB | SEA Seattle Seahawks | 48 games · 3 yrs as starter 16 career AV |
| 2009 |
Alphonso Smith
|
DB | DEN Denver Broncos | 42 games · 1 yrs as starter 8 career AV |
| 2009 |
Chip Vaughn
|
DB | NO New Orleans Saints | 3 games |
| 2009 |
Stanley Arnoux
|
LB | NO New Orleans Saints | 9 games 1 career AV |
| 2008 |
Jeremy Thompson
|
DE | GB Green Bay Packers | 15 games 1 career AV |
| 2008 |
Kenny Moore
|
WR | DET Detroit Lions | 14 games 1 career AV |
| 2008 |
Steve Justice
|
C | IND Indianapolis Colts | 8 games 1 career AV |
| 2007 |
Josh Gattis
|
DB | JAX Jacksonville Jaguars | 4 games |
| 2007 |
Steve Vallos
|
G | SEA Seattle Seahawks | 59 games 7 career AV |
| 2006 |
Ryan Plackemeier
|
P | SEA Seattle Seahawks | 43 games 5 career AV |
| 2005 |
Eric King
|
DB | BUF Buffalo Bills | 63 games 4 career AV |
| 2003 | Calvin Pace | DE | ARI Arizona Cardinals | 187 games · 10 yrs as starter 61 career AV |
| 2003 | Ovie Mughelli 1× Pro Bowl | FB | BAL Baltimore Ravens | 107 games · 5 yrs as starter 6 career AV |
| 2003 | Montique Sharpe | DT | KC Kansas City Chiefs | 5 games |
| 2000 | Fred Robbins | DT | MIN Minnesota Vikings | 180 games · 10 yrs as starter 51 career AV |
| 2000 | Dustin Lyman | TE | CHI Chicago Bears | 55 games · 1 yrs as starter 2 career AV |
| 2000 | Reggie Austin | DB | CHI Chicago Bears | 18 games 3 career AV |
| 1999 | Desmond Clark | TE | DEN Denver Broncos | 162 games · 6 yrs as starter 27 career AV |
| 1993 | Ben Coleman | G | ARI Phoenix Cardinals | 135 games · 7 yrs as starter 45 career AV |
| 1993 | John Henry Mills 1× Pro Bowl | LB | TEN Houston Oilers | 100 games 8 career AV |
| 1993 | Michael McCrary 2× Pro Bowl | DE | SEA Seattle Seahawks | 136 games · 6 yrs as starter 54 career AV |
| 1990 | Ricky Proehl | WR | ARI Phoenix Cardinals | 244 games · 6 yrs as starter 56 career AV |
| 1990 | Tony Mayberry 3× Pro Bowl | C | TB Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 160 games · 9 yrs as starter 52 career AV |
| 1989 | Mike Elkins | QB | KC Kansas City Chiefs | 1 games |
| 1989 | David Braxton | LB | MIN Minnesota Vikings | 71 games 5 career AV |
| 1989 | A.J. Greene | DB | NYG New York Giants | 2 games |
| 1988 | Greg Scales | TE | NO New Orleans Saints | 44 games 2 career AV |
| 1988 | Darryl McGill | RB | WAS Washington Commanders | No regular-season snaps |
| 1987 | Paul Kiser | G | ATL Atlanta Falcons | 1 games |
| 1987 | Gregg Harris | G | GB Green Bay Packers | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Topper Clemons | RB | DAL Dallas Cowboys | 3 games |
| 1986 | Gary Baldinger | DE | KC Kansas City Chiefs | 44 games 4 career AV |
| 1986 | Tony Garbarczyk | DE | BUF Buffalo Bills | 2 games |
| 1985 | Harry Newsome | P | PIT Pittsburgh Steelers | 140 games 19 career AV |
| 1985 | Ronnie Burgess | DB | GB Green Bay Packers | 7 games |
| 1982 | Kenny Duckett | WR | NO New Orleans Saints | 36 games 6 career AV |
| 1982 | Rich Baldinger | G | NYG New York Giants | 157 games · 6 yrs as starter 45 career AV |
| 1981 | Billy Ard | G | NYG New York Giants | 148 games · 8 yrs as starter 51 career AV |
| 1981 | Carlos Bradley | LB | LAC San Diego Chargers | 54 games 6 career AV |
| 1980 | Syd Kitson | G | GB Green Bay Packers | 50 games · 1 yrs as starter 9 career AV |
ACC programs by draft picks
How Wake Forest compares with the rest of the league.
About this program's draft record
Last updated Aug 24, 2026
Wake Forest in the NFL draft
Wake Forest has produced 65 NFL draft picks between 1980 and 2026, including 3 first-round selections. 5 of those picks (8%) went on to make a Pro Bowl.
Wake Forest ranks among college football’s most productive NFL pipelines. FantasyHQ lists every Wake Forest draft pick from 1980 through 2026 — 65 selections, 3 first-rounders, 5 Pro Bowl alumni. Current conference: ACC.
How to use this page
- Scan the notable alumni for the program's highest-impact NFL careers.
- Read the class-by-class bars to spot the peak recruiting-to-draft cycles.
- Open a draft year to see the full class, or a conference peer to compare pipelines.
Frequently asked questions
How many NFL draft picks has Wake Forest produced?
Wake Forest has 65 NFL draft picks in FantasyHQ’s archive (1980–2026), including 3 first-rounders. See the full list at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history/schools/wake-forest-demon-deacons.
Who are the most accomplished NFL players from Wake Forest?
Notable Wake Forest draftees include Tony Mayberry, Michael McCrary, Jessie Bates III, John Henry Mills. Browse career outcomes at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history/schools/wake-forest-demon-deacons.
When was Wake Forest’s most recent NFL draft pick?
Wake Forest’s most recent pick in the archive is from the 2026 NFL Draft. See year-by-year totals at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history/schools/wake-forest-demon-deacons.