Becoming an Alabama football player is the best course for landing in the NFL. That has been true since the benefits of Nick Saban’s player identification and development began yielding NFL selections in the 2009 Draft.
The Crimson Tide had a solid NFL Draft history before Nick Saban. Riley Smith was the second NFL Draft pick ever in 1936 to the Boston Redskins. It does not appear on the nfl.com list for 1936, but other Alabama football players were selected that year. A Paul Bryant went in the fourth round to the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Since the Saban factory delivered Andre Smith, Glen Coffee, Antoine Caldwell and Rashad Johnson to the NFL in 2009, 83 more Crimson Tide players have been selected.