Two IU players made the NFL draft Hot 100 picks

Indiana basketball has no doubt stolen the spotlight of Hoosier athletics over the year, but with the NFL draft now upon us, we can’t ignore the fact that not one — but two former IU football players are in the 2016 NFL Hot 100 draft picks.

Coming in at prospect number 34 — only two spots behind Heisman trophy winner Derrick Henry of Alabama — is Indiana’s left tackle Jason Spriggs.

Spriggs was named Indiana’s fifth All-American offensive lineman in the program’s history. He continued to impress everyone at the recent NFL Combine when he ran the fastest 40 yard dash time of all the offensive linemen, jumped the farthest broad jump, ran the second best shuttle run, and bench-pressed the fourth highest number of reps. These results along with his great four years here at IU have placed him as a prospected second round draft pick in this year’s NFL Draft.

The second Indiana football player to rank in this year’s Hot 100 Draft Picks is our beloved running back, Jordan Howard.

Although he was only at Indiana for a single season, he certainly made an impact — rushing an average of 134.8 yards/game (second in the Big Ten) and scoring ten total touchdowns. Jordan Howard is currently ranked as prospect number 71, expected to go bottom of the second round or top of third round of the draft.

Both of these players were outstanding assets to the Indiana University football team this past season. As a fellow Hoosier, I can’t wait to see where they may end up as their football careers continue and what teams they may impact next.