SEC Football by the Numbers is looking at the 2023 NFL draft in four parts. Today’s initial installment examines the first round. On Tuesday, it’ll be a breakdown by positions. On Wednesday, NFL teams will be the focus. And on Thursday, some stats and streaks about the conference and the draft lead into this year’s first round of picks that night.

1 Alabama player has been the No. 1 pick in an NFL Draft — QB Harry Gilmer, who was chosen in 1948 by the Washington Redskins. Alabama QB Bryce Young has the lowest betting odds to go to the Carolina Panthers at No. 1 on Thursday night. Young would become the 22nd SEC player to be the first pick. The SEC has produced more No. 1 players than any other conference, with the Pac-12 (and its ancestral conferences) second with 16. The SEC players who have been the No. 1 pick have come from Georgia five times, Auburn four, LSU three, Tennessee twice and Alabama, Kentucky, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Tulane and Vanderbilt once. The 21 SEC players who have been the No. 1 pick in an NFL Draft include:

· Tennessee B George Cafego — Chicago Cardinals in 1940

· Georgia RB Frank Sinkwich — Detroit Lions in 1943

· Georgia B Charley Trippi — Chicago Cardinals in 1945

· Alabama QB Harry Gilmer — Washington Redskins in 1948

· Vanderbilt QB Billy Wade — Los Angeles Rams in 1952

· Georgia E Harry Babcock — San Francisco 49ers in 1953

· LSU RB Billy Cannon — Los Angeles Rams in 1960

· Tulane RB Tommy Mason — Minnesota Vikings in 1961

· Auburn RB Tucker Frederickson — New York Giants in 1965

· Auburn RB Bo Jackson — Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1986

· Auburn LB Aundray Bruce — Atlanta Falcons in 1988

· Tennessee QB Peyton Manning — Indianapolis Colts in 1998

· Kentucky QB Tim Couch — Cleveland Browns in 1999

· Ole Miss QB Eli Manning — San Diego Chargers in 2004

· LSU QB JaMarcus Russell — Oakland Raiders in 2007

· Georgia QB Matthew Stafford — Detroit Lions in 2009

· Auburn QB Cam Newton — Carolina Panthers in 2011

· South Carolina DE Jadeveon Clowney — Houston Texans in 2014

· Texas A&M DE Myles Garrett — Cleveland Browns in 2017

· LSU QB Joe Burrow — Cincinnati Bengals in 2020

· Georgia DE Travon Walker — Jacksonville Jaguars in 2022

3 SEC quarterbacks are considered probable first-round picks in 2023 – Kentucky’s Will Levis, Florida’s Anthony Richardson and Alabama’s Bryce Young – with Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker also considered a possibility. No conference has produced more than two first-round quarterbacks in a single draft, although three quarterbacks from independent programs were chosen in the first round of the 1983 draft — Penn State’s Todd Blackledge at No. 7 by the Kansas City Chiefs, Miami (Fla.)’s Jim Kelly at No. 14 by the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh’s Dan Marino at No. 27 by the Miami Dolphins. The most SEC quarterbacks picked in the first round of a single NFL draft is two — Alabama’s Harry Gilmer and LSU’s Y.A. Tittle in 1948, Vanderbilt’s Billy Wade and Kentucky’s Babe Parilli in 1952 and LSU’s Joe Burrow and Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa in 2020. Twenty-nine SEC players have been selected in the first round with the designation QB for quarterback.

The Alabama quarterbacks selected in the first round include:

· Harry Gilmer at No. 1 — Washington Redskins in 1948

· Joe Namath at No. 12 — St. Louis Cardinals in 1965

· Richard Todd at No. 6 — New York Jets in 1976

· Tua Tagovailoa at No. 5 — Miami Dolphins in 2020

· Mac Jones at No. 15 — New England Patriots in 2021

The Florida quarterbacks selected in the first round include:

· Steve Spurrier at No. 3 — San Francisco 49ers in 1967

· John Reaves at No. 14 — Philadelphia Eagles in 1972

· Rex Grossman at No. 22 — Chicago Bears in 2003

· Tim Tebow at No. 25 — Denver Broncos in 2010

The Kentucky quarterbacks selected in the first round include:

· Babe Parilli at No. 4 — Green Bay Packers in 1952

· Tim Couch at No. 1 — Cleveland Browns in 1999

The Tennessee quarterbacks selected in the first round include:

· Heath Shuler at No. 3 — Washington Redskins in 1994

· Peyton Manning at No. 1 — Indianapolis Colts in 1998

3 Consecutive No. 9 and No. 15 selections have been used on an SEC player. At No. 9, the Jacksonville Jaguars picked Florida CB C.J. Henderson in 2020, the Denver Broncos chose Alabama CB Patrick Surtain II in 2021 and the Seattle Seahawks selected Mississippi State OT Charles Cross in 2022. At No. 15, the Broncos picked Alabama WR Jerry Jeudy in 2020, the New England Patriots chose Alabama QB Mac Jones in 2021 and the Houston Texans selected Texas A&M G Kenyon Green in 2022. The Chicago Bears hold the No. 9 pick and the Green Bay Packers will make the No. 15 selection on Thursday night.

5 Consecutive NFL drafts have included at least one Georgia player in the first round, matching the longest streak in school history. Georgia DT Jalen Carter, OT Broderick Jones and OLB Nolan Smith are considered first-round possibilities in the 2023 draft. The Bulldogs had a first-round player in the 2001 through 2005 drafts to establish its record. Twelve of the 43 Georgia players who have been first-round selections have entered the NFL in the past five drafts.

8 NFL drafts have passed since an SEC player has been selected with the second choice in the first round. In 2014, the St. Louis Rams used the second pick on Auburn OT Greg Robinson. The rest of the 32 slots in the first round have been used on an SEC player at least once since the 2017 draft. Fourteen SEC players have been the No. 2 pick. The Houston Texans have the No. 2 pick on Thursday night. (This year’s draft will have only 31 selections after the Miami Dolphins forfeited their pick for violating NFL tampering rules.)

11 Consecutive first rounds have featured at least one SEC LB, with the selection of Georgia’s Quay Walker by the Green Bay Packers with the 22nd pick extending the streak last year. The most recent draft without an SEC linebacker occurred in 2011. Since then, the other SEC players drafted in the first round as linebackers have included Alabama’s Dont’a Hightower, C.J. Mosley, Reuben Foster and Rashaan Evans; Auburn’s Dee Ford, Florida’s Dante Fowler and Jarrad Davis, Georgia’s Alec Ogletree, Jarvis Jones, Leonard Floyd and Roquan Smith; Kentucky’s Bud Dupree, Josh Allen and Jamin Davis; LSU’s Barkevious Mingo, Devin White and Patrick Queen; and Missouri’s Charles Harris. Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. is expected to be among the first handful of selections on Thursday night.

14 Consecutive first rounds have included at least one Alabama player, tied for the longest streak in draft history. The most recent first round without an Alabama player came in 2008. Miami (Fla.) also went 14 consecutive first rounds (1995 through 2008) with a first-round pick. Alabama’s first-round players during its streak have been:

· OT Andre Smith in 2009, LB Rolando McClain and CB Kareem Jackson in 2010

· DT Marcell Dareus, WR Julio Jones, OT James Carpenter and RB Mark Ingram in 2011

· RB Trent Richardson, S Mark Barron, CB Dre Kirkpatrick and LB Dont’a Hightower in 2012

· CB Dee Milliner, G Chance Warmack and OT D.J. Fluker in 2013

· LB C.J. Mosley and S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in 2014

· WR Amari Cooper in 2015

· C Ryan Kelly in 2016

· CB Marlon Humphrey, DE Jonathan Allen, TE O.J. Howard and LB Reuben Foster in 2017

· S Minkah Fitzpatrick, DT Daron Payne, LB Rashaan Evans and WR Calvin Ridley in 2018

· DT Quinnen Williams, OT Jonah Williams and RB Josh Jacobs in 2019

· QB Tua Tagovailoa, WRs Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy and OT Jedrick Wills Jr. in 2020

· WRs Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith, CB Patrick Surtain II, QB Mac Jones, OT Alex Leatherwood and RB Najee Harris in 2021

· OT Evan Neal and WR Jameson Williams in 2022

Twenty-five of the NFL’s 32 teams have drafted an Alabama player in the first round during the streak, with the Raiders selecting five. During its 14-year streak, Alabama has had 41 players picked – eight more than Miami had in its 14-year streak.

14 Consecutive NFL drafts have passed without a Vanderbilt player selected in the first round, the longest active first-round drought in the SEC. The most recent Commodore to be drafted in the first round is OT Chris Williams, who went to the Chicago Bears at No. 14 in 2008. No other SEC team has more than a five-year first-round drought entering the 2023 draft. Vanderbilt owns the longest streak without a first-round pick in SEC history, too, going 23 drafts in a row without one between the Green Bay Packers’ selection of RB Tom Moore with the fifth pick in 1960 and the Indianapolis Colts’ choice of DB Leonard Coleman with the eighth pick in 1984.

26 SEC players have been drafted with the 29th pick, the most for any of the first-round slots in this year’s draft. Not all of those players were first-round selections, though. The 29th pick became a first-round slot for the first time in 1993, and nine SEC players have been chosen at No. 29 since. The New Orleans Saints hold the 29th choice on Thursday night.

30 Consecutive drafts have failed to have the first SEC player picked come from the same school in back-to-back years. The same SEC member hasn’t produced the first player picked from the conference in consecutive drafts since Tennessee OT Charles McRae in 1991 and DB Dale Carter in 1992. Georgia DE Travon Walker was the first SEC player picked in the 2022 NFL Draft.

The first SEC player selected in each draft (arranged by school) includes:

• Alabama: 13 (DT Quinnen Williams in 2019, RB Trent Richardson in 2012, OT Chris Samuels in 2000, LB Keith McCants in 1990, LB Derrick Thomas in 1989, LB Cornelius Bennett in 1987, LB E.J. Junior in 1981, LB Barry Krauss in 1979, QB Richard Todd in 1976, RB Wilbur Jackson in 1974, QB Harry Gilmer in 1948, B Joe Kilgrow in 1938 and B Riley Smith in 1936)
• Arkansas: 1 (RB Darren McFadden in 2008)
• Auburn: 6 (QB Cam Newton in 2011, RB Ronnie Brown in 2005, OT Willie Anderson in 1996, LB Aundray Bruce in 1988, RB Bo Jackson in 1986 and RB Tucker Frederickson in 1965)
• Florida: 10 (TE Kyle Pitts in 2021, OLB Dante Fowler in 2015, DT Gerald Warren in 2001, WR Ike Hilliard in 1997, DE Kevin Carter in 1995, OT Lomas Brown in 1985, DB Steve Tannen in 1970, RB Larry Smith in 1969, QB Steve Spurrier in 1967 and RB Chuck Hunsinger in 1950)
• Georgia: 10 (DE Travon Walker in 2022, LB Roquan Smith in 2018, OLB Leonard Floyd in 2016, QB Matthew Stafford in 2009, RB Garrison Hearst in 1993, G Royce Smith in 1972, E Harry Babcock in 1953, QB Johnny Rauch in 1949, B Charley Trippi in 1945 and RB Frank Sinkwich in 1943)
• Kentucky: 6 (DT Dewayne Robertson in 2003, QB Tim Couch in 1999, DE Art Still in 1978, OT Warren Bryant in 1977, T Lou Michaels in 1958 and E Steve Meilinger in 1954)
• LSU: 11 (QB Joe Burrow in 2020, QB JaMarcus Russell in 2007, QB Bert Jones in 1973, B Jerry Stovall in 1963, B Wendell Harris in 1962, RB Billy Cannon in 1960, DT Earl Leggett in 1957, QB Y.A. Tittle in 1951, B Red Knight in 1947, RB Steve Van Buren in 1944 and E Gaynell Tinsley in 1937)
• Missouri: 0
• Mississippi State: 5 (RB Michael Haddix in 1983, LB Johnie Cooks in 1982, DT Jimmy Webb in 1975, B Billy Stacy in 1959 and B Art Davis in 1956)
• Ole Miss: 5 (QB Eli Manning in 2004, QB Archie Manning in 1971, OT Stan Hindman in 1966, B Merle Hapes in 1942 and B Parker Hall in 1939)
• South Carolina: 1 (DE Jadeveon Clowney in 2014)
• Tennessee: 11 (S Eric Berry in 2010, DT John Henderson in 2002, QB Peyton Manning in 1998, QB Heath Shuler in 1994, DB Dale Carter in 1992, OT Charles McRae in 1991, CB Roland James in 1980, C Bob Johnson in 1968, OT Dick Evey in 1964, T Abe Shires in 1941 and B George Cafego in 1940)
• Texas A&M: 2 (DE Myles Garrett in 2017 and OT Luke Joeckel in 2013)
• Vanderbilt: 3 (QB Jay Cutler in 2006, DB Leonard Coleman in 1984 and QB Bill Wade in 1952)

Former SEC member Tulane provided the conference’s top pick in 1961 (RB Tommy Mason) and 1946 (B Dub Jones), and Georgia Tech did so in 1955 (C Larry Morris).

74 Players from Alabama have been selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, the most in the SEC thanks to 41 first-rounders in the past 14 years for the Crimson Tide. Alabama has risen to third on the all-time first-round list behind Ohio State’s 87 and Southern Cal’s 83. In the SEC, Florida has had 56 players selected in the first round, LSU 48, Tennessee 45, Georgia 43, Auburn 31, Ole Miss 22, Kentucky 16, Mississippi State 14, South Carolina 11, Vanderbilt and Arkansas nine apiece, Texas A&M eight and Missouri three. Former SEC members Georgia Tech and Tulane had three apiece, bringing the number of SEC players who became first-round draft picks to 395. Including players picked before their SEC membership, Texas A&M has had 36 first-rounders, Arkansas 24, Missouri 19 and South Carolina 15.

75 Consecutive NFL drafts have included at least one SEC player in the first round. The most recent NFL Draft in which an SEC player was not selected in the first round was 1947, although the first SEC player picked that year, LSU B Red Knight, was taken by the Washington Redskins with the 17th choice, which would put him in the middle of the first round this year. Three other drafts — 1937, 1938 and 1941 — did not include an SEC player in the first round, although an SEC player was selected by the 14th pick in each of them.

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This look at the SEC’s draft numbers includes only players picked in the regular NFL Draft — no special supplemental, expansion, non-NFL or separate dispersal drafts are included in the tabulations. For Arkansas and South Carolina, which joined the league in 1992, the numbers include players drafted since 1993, unless noted. For former member Georgia Tech, players drafted from 1936 to 1964 are included. For former member Tulane, it’s through the 1966 draft. Missouri and Texas A&M have provided SEC players for the past 10 drafts. Former SEC member Sewanee has had one player drafted — RB William Johnson by the Falcons in 1966, long after the school left the conference following the 1940 season.

The NFL Draft starts on Thursday with the first round. The second and third rounds are set for Friday, with the remaining four rounds on Saturday. ABC, ESPN and NFL Network will televise the draft, starting at 7 p.m. CDT Thursday, 6 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.