FCS shut out in first three NFL Draft rounds for first time since 1978
FCS went blank through the first 100 picks, then Southeastern Louisiana's Kaleb Proctor broke the drought at No. 104. Only four former FCS players were drafted.
The first three rounds of the NFL Draft passed without an FCS player hearing his name, and the dry spell did not end until Southeastern Louisiana defensive tackle Kaleb Proctor went to Arizona at No. 104 in the fourth round in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. By then, the damage to the subdivision’s draft footprint was already clear.
Only four former FCS players were selected in the entire 2026 draft, a steep drop from 15 the year before. The first 100 picks belonged almost entirely to the sport’s biggest programs, with 97 prospects coming from Power Four schools and just three from Group of Six teams. For an FCS level that has long sold itself as a place where elite talent can still rise, the first two days of this draft told a far different story.
The shutout through Day 1 and Day 2 marked the first time in the FCS era, which began in 1978, that no player from the subdivision was taken in the first three rounds. The historical list of FCS first-rounders still includes Phil Simms of Morehead State, Steve McNair of Alcorn State, Jerry Rice of Mississippi Valley State and Carson Wentz of North Dakota State, names that once helped keep the subdivision visible on draft weekend. Since 1978, FCS programs have produced 24 first-round picks, a reminder of how often smaller-school stars once broke into the top of the league.
The new reality is being shaped well before draft night. The NCAA approved a single winter football transfer window from Jan. 2 to Jan. 16, 2026, and more than 10,000 college football players entered the portal that offseason. HERO Sports tracked more than 420 FCS-to-FBS transfers for the 2026 season after more than 500 the previous year. That churn has pushed many of the best FCS prospects toward Power Four and Group of Six rosters before they can put together the kind of multiyear resume that once made them draft-weekend fixtures.
That leaves FCS coaches selling a tougher pitch. The subdivision still develops NFL talent, and some top stars stayed home despite lucrative offers, but the broader trend is unmistakable: the portal is draining the most NFL-ready players out of FCS lineups earlier, thinning the draft pipeline and narrowing the window for the level to showcase its best against the country’s biggest brands.
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