It turns out the Seattle Seahawks chose Alabama tight end Robbie Ouzts in the fifth round of the NFL Draft on Saturday as part of a package deal – not with Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe, who joined Seattle in the third round on Friday, but with Ouzts’ moustache.

“You come in here and compete for the job to be our starting fullback, OK?” said Aaron Hineline, the Seahawks’ director of college scouting, when he called Ouzts to tell him he was being chosen. “Don’t shave the mustache. That just stays. That’s part of the contract.”

Ouzts’ moustache took a star turn in NFL Network’s coverage of the NFL Scouting Combine, and during his introductory press conference, Ouzts was asked if he or Seahawks first-round pick Grey Zabel, a center from North Dakota State, had the best moustache.

“We’ll see in person,” Ouzts said. “… We’re rocking with it. Bringing it to Seattle.”

Also at the NFL Scouting Combine, Ouzts ran a 4.91-second 40-yard dash, covering the first 10 yards in 1.64 seconds, and measured 6-foot-3 and 274 pounds.

So even though Ouzts recorded 16 receptions for 192 yards and three touchdowns in four seasons at Alabama, Seattle eagerly added him to its roster. But while the Seahawks want no changes for the moustache, they’re changing Ouzts’ position.

“We added a 275-pound fullback that runs 19 miles an hour,” Seattle general manager John Schneider said. “That’s pretty cool. It’s a lot of — What does Pat (Ward of the Seahawks’ Research and Development Department) say? — a lot momentum heading downhill.”

Ouzts said he hadn’t played fullback since he was a sophomore, but he’s done a lot blocking, which would be his primary duty in his new spot.

“I’ve played a lot of H-back, a lot of off-the-ball stuff, which correlates,” Ouzts said. “But in terms of traditional I-formation, I played a little bit freshman and sophomore year with coach (Bill) O’Brien as offensive coordinator. I didn’t really get too many reps these past two years.”

Ouzts said not many teams were interested in him in the draft as a tight end or a fullback. Seattle used the 175th of the draft’s 257 selections to acquire Ouzts.

“There was only a handful of teams that were really interested in me to begin with just as kind of how I am as a player,” Ouzts said. “But it was about half and half in terms of fullback versus kind of a blocking tight end.”

The Seahawks have a fullback on their roster. Also a tight end in college, Brady Russell has had 49 offensive snaps and 542 special-teams plays in his two seasons for Seattle.

But coach Mike Macdonald indicated the Seahawks plan to use a fullback more often in the 2025 season.

Seattle used a fullback on only 1.1 percent of its offensive snaps last season. But the Seahawks have a new offensive coordinator for 2025. As offensive coordinator for New Orleans last season, Klint Kubiak had a fullback on the field for 16 percent of the Saints’ snap, which ranked fourth in the NFL.

“(Ouzts) is going to compete with Brady,” Macdonald said. “… There’s options to be in different personnel groups, so all those guys are kind of competing for those roles and how we want it to come to life, so we got a lot of great players that kind of fit that tight end/fullback mold, and special teams are going to be a big part of it, too.”

Ouzts said he had talked with Seahawks running back coach Kennedy Polamalu before the draft, so he knew what Seattle had in mind when it picked him.

“He’s just really excited to get his hands on me and work with me, make this transition to the next step,” Ouzts said. “… He was excited because they’re making this transition to more of a physical football team. They want to run the ball, and he thinks my identity as a player correlates perfectly with how they want to be as an offense this next year, so he thinks the transition will be great for me.”

Macdonald said the selections of Ouzts and seventh-round running back Damien Martinez were made with the intention of bringing a more physical ground game to Seattle. Martinez is a 217-pound ball-carrier from Miami (Fla.) who ran a 4.51-second 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine.

“I’m really excited to see our run game come to life,” Macdonald said. “These guys fit what we’re trying to do how we want to do it. You got to move people, man, and you got to get downhill and play north and south, and that’s what they’re going to help us do. And so I can’t wait for them to get here and just teach them all the stuff and let’s get rocking and rolling.

“But, yeah, they’re going to be a big part of what we’re doing and competing with the rest of the guys we’ve got on our roster right now that we’re really excited about, and it’s going to be an awesome competition.”

Adding Ouzts and Milroe in the draft doubled the Alabama alumni on the Seahawks’ roster. They join defensive lineman Jarran Reed and cornerback Josh Jobe.

“Jalen Milroe is going to work his ass off,” Ouzts said. “I mean, nobody works harder than that guy. Nobody gets there earlier. Nobody leaves later. And he’s going to make the most of his opportunity, and I’m thrilled to be with my boy, man. We’re rolling in. We got chemistry already, and we’re going to attack this thing, hit the ground running.”

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

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