The 2023 NFL Draft starts Thursday night with the first-round picks at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri. The SEC has produced 395 first-round selections and another 108 choices among the top 32 picks who were not first-rounders. AL.com is counting down to the draft by highlighting the SEC players chosen in the first 32 picks.

During the 15 seasons after being the seventh selection in the 1999 NFL Draft, cornerback Champ Bailey received 12 Pro Bowl invitations and made first-team All-Pro three times.

In his first year of eligibility, Bailey entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019.

The 14 other SEC stars selected with the seventh choice have combined for seven Pro Bowl invitations.

The 15 SEC players drafted with the No. 7 pick include:

· Auburn back Travis Tidwell, Giants, 1950

· LSU defensive back Ebert Van Buren, Eagles, 1951

· Georgia Tech linebacker Larry Morris, Rams, 1955

· Auburn back Joe Childress, Cardinals, 1956

· Georgia running back Tim Worley, Steelers, 1989

· Tennessee tackle Charles McRae, Buccaneers, 1991

· Florida wide receiver Ike Hilliard, Giants, 1997

· Georgia defensive back Champ Bailey, Redskins, 1999

· South Carolina wide receiver Troy Williamson, Vikings, 2005

· Florida defensive back Joe Haden, Browns, 2010

· Alabama safety Mark Barron, Buccaneers, 2012

· Texas A&M wide receiver Mike Evans, Buccaneers, 2014

· Kentucky outside linebacker Josh Allen, Jaguars, 2019

· Auburn defensive tackle Derrick Brown, Panthers, 2020

· Alabama offensive tackle Evan Neal, Giants, 2022

Morris, Hilliard and Haden played 12 seasons apiece. Morris won an NFL championship with the Chicago Bears in 1963, and Haden received three Pro Bowl invitations.

Evans also is a three-time Pro Bowler as he has reached 1,000 receiving yards in each of his nine NFL seasons.

A former Abbeville High School standout, Allen was a Pro Bowler as a rookie.

RELATED:

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 8 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 9 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 10 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 11 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 12 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 13 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 14 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 15 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 16 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 17 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 18 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 19 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 20 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 21 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 22 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 23 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 24 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 25 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 26 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 27 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 28 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 29 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 30 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 31 PICK

· THE SEC’S BEST NO. 32 PICK

(The list includes only players selected in the regular NFL draft. The drafts from other leagues are not included nor are any supplemental drafts that have been held by the NFL.)

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

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