NFL Draft Thursday-Saturday

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The 2021 NFL Draft will be televised live on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network this Thursday-Saturday, April 29 – May 1. Thursday's first round is slated to begin at 5 pm PT, while Friday's second day featuring the second and third rounds starts at 4 pm PT. Rounds four through seven get underway Saturday at 9 am PT.

Three former Cal players – Camryn Bynum, Jake Curhan and Zeandae Johnson – who played their last season of collegiate football with the Golden Bears in 2020 have professional football aspirations. Bynum and Curhan were official invites to the 2021 NFL Combine but the primary portion of the event was canceled due to COVID-19. All three took part in Cal's Pro Day scheduled on March 18 with Bynum's 4.49 time in the 40-yard dash highlighting the proceedings.

The Golden Bears have had at least one player selected in 32 of the last 34 years of the NFL Draft.

Extensive coverage of all former Cal football players selected in the 2021 NFL Draft and those that sign undrafted free agent contracts following the draft will be provided via the Cal Athletics social media outlets listed below and online at CalBears.com. Undrafted free agent signings will not be publicized by Cal Athletics prior to an official announcement from the NFL team.
 
Camryn Bynum, CB, 6-0, 200, Corona, CA (Centennial HS)
Cal – 2016-20; Undergraduate Degree – American Studies (December 2020)
– The only Cal player to start all 42 games from 2017-20 with each of his starts at cornerback as he posted career totals of 188 tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss (-16 yards), 0.5 sacks (-5 yards), six interceptions that he returned for a combined 20 yards, 29 pass breakups and 35 passes defended, with his 29 career pass breakups ranking fifth in school history
– Recorded a career-high 63 tackles and 3.0 tackles for loss (career-high-tying -5 yards) while playing in and starting a career-high-tying all 13 games as a junior
– Earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors in a vote of the league's coaches as a 2020 senior when he started all four games and contributed 19 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss (-3 yards), one interception that he returned for a career-high and career-long 20 yards, and two pass breakups in a season shortened to four games for Cal due to the COVID-19 pandemic
 
Jake Curhan, OL, 6-6, 330, Larkspur, CA (Redwood HS)
Cal – 2016-20; Undergraduate Degree – Business Administration (December 2020)
– A two-time honorable mention All-Pac-12 selection in his final two campaigns as a 2019 junior and 2020 senior
– Started 40 of 42 possible games all at right tackle including a career-high-tying all 13 as both a 2018 sophomore and junior
– Had a string of 39 consecutive starts that spanned all 38 games of three consecutive seasons from 2017-19 and his 2020 season-opener as a senior at UCLA snapped when he did not start the next two back-to-back contests at Oregon State and vs. Stanford due to COVID-19 protocols but did return to the starting lineup for the final collegiate contest of his career in a home win against Oregon
 
Zeandae Johnson, DL, 6-4, 290, Fresno, CA (Central HS)
Cal – 2015-20; Undergraduate Degrees – American studies and Legal Studies (December 2020)
– Played in 41 career games and started 18 contests during six seasons at Cal from 2015-20
– Posted career totals of 59 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss (-40 yards), 5.5 sacks (-32 yards), one forced fumble, nine quarterback hurries, three pass breakups and two passes defended
– Granted a sixth season of eligibility by the NCAA in 2020 due to a medical hardship that caused him to miss both the entire 2015 and 2017 campaigns due to injury
– Had career highs of 29 tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss (-26 yards), 3.5 sacks (-25 yards), two pass breakups, two passes defended, one forced fumble and five quarterback hurries while playing in a career-high-tying all 13 games for the second consecutive campaign as a junior in a season that culminated with a Defensive Player of the Game performance in a Redbox Bowl victory over Illinois
– Started all four games in a 2020 senior season shortened by COVID-19 and contributed eight tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss (-1 yard) and one quarterback hurry

Cal Football NFL Draft Notes

• Cal has had 241 players selected in the NFL Draft since the event began in 1936 including 27 first-round selections and two No. 1 overall picks in quarterbacks Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams, 2016) and Steve Bartkowski (Atlanta Falcons, 1975).
• Cal's six quarterbacks selected in the first round of the NFL Draft is tied for the third-most by any college football program behind only Notre Dame (9) and USC (7) while equaling Stanford (6). Cal's list of first-round quarterbacks includes Craig Morton (1965 – No. 5, Dallas Cowboys), Bartkowski, Rich Campbell (1981 – No. 6, Green Bay Packers), Kyle Boller (2003 – No. 19, Baltimore Ravens), Aaron Rodgers (2005 – No. 24, Green Bay Packers) and Goff.
• Prior to Goff's 2016 selection the most recent first-round NFL Draft pick from Cal was defensive end Cameron Jordan, who was taken by the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft with the No. 24 overall selection.
• Cal has five first-round NFL Draft picks currently on rosters. Jordan and Rodgers remain with the teams they were drafted by in the first round of their respective drafts while Alex Mack (2009 – No. 21, Cleveland Browns), Tyson Alualu (2010 – No. 10, Jacksonville Jaguars) and Jared Goff (2016 – No. 1, Los Angeles Rams) – have been with more than one team with Mack now a member of the San Francisco 49ers after having also played with Atlanta Falcons and Alualu on the roster of the Pittsburgh Steelers. A sixth – Marshawn Lynch – is currently a free agent.
• The most Cal players selected in a single NFL Draft were the 10 chosen in 1952, while Cal's six players picked in the 1977, 2008 and 2012 drafts are tied for the second-most in school history.

Cal Football This Day In The NFL Draft

• January 28, 1975 – Steve Bartkowski (Atlanta Falcons) became first Cal player to be selected No. 1 overall
• April 19, 1997 – Cal had two players selected in first round of NFL Draft and two in the top 20 for second straight year – Tony Gonzalez (#13, Kansas City Chiefs) and Tarik Glenn (#19, Indianapolis Colts) … second time in school history and two in the top 20 for second straight year
• April 20, 1996 – Cal had two players selected in first round of NFL Draft for first time – Regan Upshaw (#12, Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Duane Clemons (#16, Minnesota Vikings) … also first time in school history two in the top 20
• April 21, 2001 – Andre Carter became Cal's first top-10 overall selection in 20 years when he was taken #7 overall by the hometown San Francisco 49ers
• April 22, 2010 – Last time Cal had two players selected in first round of NFL Draft - Tyson Alualu (#10, Jacksonville Jaguars) and Jahvid Best (#30, Detroit Lions)
• April 26, 2003 – Cal had two players selected in first round of NFL Draft - Kyle Boller (#19, Baltimore Ravens) and Nnamdi Asomugha (#31, Oakland Raiders)
• April 27, 2012 – Last time Cal had two players selected in second round – Mitchell Schwartz (Cleveland Browns) and Mychal Kendricks (Philadelphia Eagles)
• April 27, 1983 – John Tuggle became Cal's only player to ever be selected as Mr. Irrelevant (final player taken in NFL Draft) when he was drafted by the New York Giants in the 12th round (#335 overall)
• April 28, 2016 – Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams) becomes second Cal player to be selected No. 1 overall
• April 28-29, 2011 – Last time Cal had a player selected in each of first three rounds – Cameron Jordan first round (New Orleans Saints), Shane Vereen second round (New England Patriots), Bryan Anger third round (Jacksonville Jaguars)