Abdul Carter, Tyler Warren Could Reach a Penn State Milestone at the NFL Draft

Twenty-five years ago, Penn State's Courtney Brown and LaVar Arrington stood side-by-side at Madison Square Garden, where they initially headlined the 2000 NFL Draft. Brown and Arrington became just the third set of college teammates to go first and second overall in the same draft.

(Of course, the 2000 draft would become better known for its 199th overall pick: Tom Brady to the New England Patriots.)

This year, Penn State has the chance to deliver its highest tandem of NFL Draft picks since Brown and Arrington in 2000. On Thursday night in Green Bay, defensive end Abdul Carter and tight end Tyler Warren should become Penn State's latest first-round selections, with Carter mocked almost universally at No. 3 overall to the New York Giants.

Should that occur, Carter would become Penn State's highest-drafted defensive player since Brown and Arrington. Warren, meanwhile, seeks to become Penn State's highest-drafted tight end since Ted Kwalick went seventh overall to San Francisco in 1969. Penn State has not had two top-10 draft picks since Brown and Arrington.

Further. Carter and Warren should extend Penn State's first-round run to seven picks over the past five drafts. Micah Parsons and Odafe Oweh went 12th and 31st in 2021, Jahan Dotson was 16th in 2022 and Olu Fashanu and Chop Robinson went 11th and 21st last year.

With that in mind, how deep is Penn State's first-round draft history? NFL teams have picked 42 Nittany Lions in he first round since 1956, when Lenny Moore went ninth overall to Baltimore. Penn State ranks 13th in college football history in first-round picks, according to Winsipedia, five behind Florida State and Tennessee — and 49 behind leader Ohio State.

Penn State has had two No. 1 overall picks (Ki-Jana Carter to Cincinnati in 1995 and Courtney Brown to Cleveland in 2000) and 10 drafts with multiple first-rounders. The most productive was 2003, when four Nittany Lions were drafted in the first round: Jimmy Kennedy, Michael Haynes, Bryant Johnson and Larry Johnson Jr. And the highest concentration of top-10 picks came in 1995, when Carter went first, Kerry Collins fifth and Kyle Brady ninth.

Defense stands out in Penn State's recent first rounds. Since 2000, eight of Penn State's 16 first-round picks have been defensive linemen, a run Carter will continue in 2025. And 14 of Penn State's overall first-round picks have been running backs, which Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen seek to advance in 2026.

Here's a look at Penn State's first-round history in the NFL Draft:

Penn State First-Round NFL Draft Picks

• 1956: 9. Halfback Lenny Moore, Baltimore

• 1960: 4. Quarterback Richie Lucas, Washington (NFL)

• 1963: 14. Linebacker Dave Robinson, Green Bay (NFL)

• 1969: 7. Tight end Ted Kwalick, San Francisco

• 1970: 7. Defensive tackle Mike Reid, Cincinnati

• 1972: 13. Running back Franco Harris, Pittsburgh

• 1974: 8. Linebacker Ed O’Neil, Detroit

• 1974: 11. Running back John Cappelletti, Los Angeles Rams

• 1979: 10. Tackle Keith Dorney, Detroit

• 1980: 4. Defensive tackle Bruce Clark, Green Bay

• 1981: 28. Running back Booker Moore, Buffalo

• 1982: 8. Guard Mike Munchak, Houston

• 1982: 17. Guard Mike Farrell, Tampa Bay

• 1983: 3. Running back Curt Warner, Seattle

• 1983: 7. Quarterback Todd Blackledge, Kansas City

• 1984: 4. Wide receiver Kenny Jackson, Philadelphia

• 1987: 8. Linebacker Shane Conlan, Buffalo

• 1987: 14. Running back D.J. Dozier, Minnesota

• 1990: 2. Running back Blair Thomas, New York Jets

• 1993: 25. Wide receiver OJ McDuffie, Miami

• 1995: 1. Running back Ki-Jana Carter, Cincinnati

• 1995: 5. Quarterback Kerry Collins, Carolina

• 1995: 9. Tight end Kyle Brady, New York Jets

• 1996: 23. Guard Jeff Hartings, Detroit

• 1996: 30. Tackle Andre Johnson, Washington

• 1998: 5. Running back Curtis Enis, Chicago

• 2000: 1. Defensive end Courtney Brown, Cleveland

• 2000: 2. Linebacker LaVar Arrington, Washington

• 2003: 12. Defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy, St. Louis

• 2003: 14. Defensive end Michael Haynes, Chicago

• 2003: 17. Wide receiver Bryant Johnson, Arizona

• 2003: 27. Running back Larry Johnson, Jr., Kansas City

• 2006: 20. Defensive end Tamba Hali, Kansas City

• 2007: 5. Tackle Levi Brown, Arizona

• 2009: 11. Defensive end Aaron Maybin, Buffalo

• 2010: 28. Defensive tackle Jared Odrick, Miami

• 2018: 2. Running back Saquon Barkley, New York Giants

• 2021: 12. Linebacker Micah Parsons, Dallas

• 2021: 31. Defensive end Odafe Oweh, Baltimore

• 2022: 16. Wide receiver Jahan Dotson, Washington

• 2024: 11. Tackle Olu Fashanu, New York Jets

• 2024: 21. Defensive end Chop Robinson, Miami