IMG Academy extends streak of first-round picks to five consecutive years with J.C. Latham and J.J. McCarthy.
For the second consecutive year the state of Florida had the most first-round selections in the NFL Draft with six. J.C. Latham was the first off the board when the Tennessee Titans selected him with the seventh pick. Latham's
IMG Academy (Bradenton) teammate J.J. McCarthy was taken three picks later by the Minnesota Vikings.
IMG Academy has now produced a first-round pick in each of the past five drafts. Latham and McCarthy made it 20 selections overall for the Ascenders since 2018.
Michael Penix Jr., Dallas Turner, Quinyon Mitchell and Terrion Arnold were the other four players selected that played high school football in the Sunshine State. Turner was the 19th player taken from
St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale) since 2014.
California had the second most selections with four headlined by Jayden Daniels, who was taken at No. 2 by the Washington Commanders. The former
Cajon (San Bernardino) standout finished his career as the all-time passing leader in Southern Section history with 13,827 yards. Brock Bowers, Laiatu Latu and Xavier Worthy were the three other selections from the Golden State.
Caleb Williams became the first player from the District of Columbia to be selected No. 1. The former
Gonzaga standout led the Eagles to a WCAC title as a sophomore with a 46-43 win over DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) after accounting for 480 yards of total offense and seven touchdowns. He threw a game-winning Hail Mary from 53 yards out as time expired. His Gonzaga teammate Olu Fashanu was selected 11th overall by the New York Jets.
Gonzaga and IMG Academy were the only schools that had multiple selections in the first round.
Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Texas joined Washington, D.C. with two picks each in the opening round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. joined Odell Beckham Jr., Ja'Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson and DeVonta Smith as wide receivers selected in the first round round from Louisiana since 2014.
Rome Odunze became the eighth player from
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) to be selected over the last eight years and first in the opening round since the Baltimore Ravens took Ronnie Stanley at No. 6 in 2016. Odunze was selected ninth overall by the Chicago Bears.
The Seattle Seahawks selected Byron Murphy II 16th overall, making him the seventh player from
DeSoto (Texas) to be drafted since 2015.
Alabama, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Washington all had one selection.
Bo Nix became the first quarterback from Alabama to be taken in the first round since Jameis Winston went No. 1 in 2015. The Denver Broncos selected Nix with 12th pick.
Alabama — 1
Arizona — 2
California — 4
District of Columbia — 2
Florida — 6
Georgia — 2
Louisiana — 2
Maryland — 1
Michigan — 1
Minnesota — 1
Nevada — 2
North Carolina — 1
Pennsylvania — 2
South Carolina — 1
Tennessee — 1
Texas — 2
Washington — 1
