Two former Missouri Tigers joined the ranks of the NFL on Thursday night, as quarterback Blaine Gabbert and defensive end Aldon Smith were selected in the first round. Gabbert was picked 10th overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Smith was drafted seventh by the San Francisco 49ers.
Gabbert won 18 games in two years as the starting quarterback for Missouri, throwing for 3,186 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2010 to help lead the Tigers to their fourth 10-win season in program history. Gabbert’s 6,822 career yards stands as the fourth-best for a Missouri quarterback, and his 40 touchdowns gives him third place in program history.
Jacksonville acquired the 10th pick from the Washington Redskins in a draft-day trade. Gabbert, projected as the top quarterback available in the NFL draft by ESPN analyst Mel Kiper, fell to the Jaguars after Tennessee drafted Washington quarterback Jake Locker. Former Missouri offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter will be Gabbert’s offensive coordinator in Jacksonville.
Although Gabbert will eventually get the opportunity to play for the Jaguars, Jacksonville general manager Gene Smith and coach Jack Del Rio both indicated before the draft that David Garrard will likely remain the starting quarterback for the foreseeable future.
“I’m honored to be a Jaguar,” Gabbert told NFL Network. “You’re going end up in the right place, and that’s where I did today. I was expecting to get drafted by end of night, no preconceived notions coming into tonight. Hey, I’m the number 10 overall draft pick in the NFL Draft, that’s not too bad.”
Although multiple draft prognosticators predicted Gabbert to be drafted early in the first round, it was his defensive teammate Smith who became the first Tiger drafted. Smith finished his three-year career at Missouri with 1,123 tackles, 29 for loss and 17 sacks. Missouri has had seven defensive linemen drafted since 2001, and Smith will join former Tiger Justin Smith on the 49ers defensive line.
Gabbert and Smith became the fourth and fifth, first round selections from Missouri in the past three years, joining Jeremy Maclin, Sean Witherspoon and Ziggy Hood in the pros. Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said he was pleased for his two former players, and hoped their selections would shine a good light on the Missouri football program.
“I’m really happy and excited for Blaine and Aldon,” Pinkel said in a news release. “They have both had dreams for a long time to play in the NFL, and they’re great examples of how those goals can be reached through our program at Mizzou. They’re both going to quality franchises, and it’s really rewarding to continue to see more and more of our guys playing at the next level. “
Missouri center Tim Barnes might also be drafted in later rounds. The second round of the draft begins at 8 p.m. Friday, with the remaining rounds scheduled to resume during the weekend.