If you think NFL players only come out of the FBS, take two aspirin and check the draft lists. The highly respected site NFLDraftScout.com already says the FCS features several top targets for the NFL Draft — in 2018. Why not peek ahead? It's never too early when the topic is college football, right?
In the 2017 NFL Draft, 15 FCS players were selected in the NFL Draft, and dozens more were brought into training camps as priority free agents. There will be many opportunities for some of the elite FCS prospects — and there is still time to 'trend upwards' this list for players like Sam Houston State QB Jeremiah Briscoe, who will surely see his stock rise over the next year.
Top 2018 NFL Draft Prospects by Conference
SEC East | SEC West | ACC | Big Ten | Pac-12 | Big 12 | AAC | MAC
What we've done is found FCS stars from the class of 2018, their projected position rank from NFLDraftScout and used the 2017 draft from a few months ago to give us a ballpark feeling for where the "No. 12 running back" got drafted in 2017. It's a starting point. So that will give our readers the "projected round".
Use the arrow buttons above and below, or your arrow keys to navigate the list.
NOTE: Please note that big-time DB prospect Deion Harris of North Dakota suffered a season-ending injury this summer and will very likely be with the 2019 draft class, while Harvard's Larry Allen Jr. will also sit out this fall and is expected to be back next fall and will be a draft prospect for 2019. Also note that North Dakota State senior LB Nick DeLuca was injured early in 2016 and obtained a medical redshirt to come back to play for the Bison in 2017. He will be in the mix for the 2018 NFL Draft now, and had been projected as such for 2017 before.
