FCS has sent 198 players to the NFL Draft since 2013
Grey Zabel went No. 18, and the FCS sent 198 players to the NFL Draft from 2013-25, keeping its pro pipeline alive through every year but two.
The FCS sent 198 players to the NFL Draft from 2013 through 2025, and the line that stands out is how steady the stream was. The subdivision produced double-digit draft classes every year except 2020 and 2021, when COVID disrupted the predraft process and cut down the chances for prospects to prove themselves in front of scouts.
That matters because the 2025 class showed the pipeline still has punch. Fifteen FCS players were selected, the most since 2022 and the second-most since 2018, with North Dakota State tackle Grey Zabel leading the way as the No. 18 overall pick to the Seattle Seahawks in Round 1. The class also included Charles Grant, David Walker, Teddye Buchanan, Carson Vinson, Jackson Slater, Jackson Hawes, Marcus Harris, Luke Newman, Tommy Mellott, Cam Miller, Micah Robinson, Julian Ashby and Montana wideout Junior Bergen.
The draft board gave the story even more shape. Zabel was the premium headliner, but the later rounds still showed how the league keeps mining the subdivision for usable talent. Tommy Mellott went No. 213 to the Las Vegas Raiders, Cam Miller followed at No. 215 to the Raiders, Marcus Harris went No. 183 to the Tennessee Titans and Junior Bergen closed the group at No. 252 to the San Francisco 49ers. That spread, from first round to seventh, is exactly why the FCS remains part of the draft conversation in 2026: it is not one-school luck, but a repeatable channel for quarterbacks, linemen and playmakers who keep earning NFL shots.
HERO Sports’ methodology also sharpens the picture in an era when transfers blur the lines between subdivisions. If a player spent multiple seasons in the FCS before finishing at an FBS school, that selection counts as an FCS pick. If he started in the FCS and then spent multiple seasons in the FBS, it does not. That distinction matters because the modern draft board is more fluid than ever, and the real pipeline is not limited to a single route.
The larger NFL context explains why the numbers resonate. The league says only 1.6 percent of NCAA football players ever make it to the professional level, yet NFL Football Operations says talent can come from the FBS, the FCS or Division II. For scouts, the message is unchanged: the FCS is still one of the most reliable places to find players who have been tested, developed and, more often than not, overlooked until draft weekend.
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