Reggie Wayne Draft Flashback

Reggie Wayne – WR – University of Miami 2001 Draft / 1st Round / Indianapolis Colts

Coming out of the “U” in 2001, Reggie Wayne was part of a resurgence for Miami football that would lead to an onslaught of former Hurricanes being drafted in the first round of the NFL draft. Between the 2001 and 2004 NFL drafts there would be 20 Miami Hurricanes selected in the first round, which is an astonishing number for any one school. Wayne, who would finish his four years as the school’s leader in career receptions (176), would join former Canes Lamar Thomas and Michael Irvin as one of only three players to ever record more than 20 receiving touchdowns in school history.

Wayne’s rookie season with the Colts was a big transition for him as he would not make much of an impact recording only 27 receptions for 345 yards. Playing opposite of Marvin Harrison obviously wasn’t helpful in his adjustment to the NFL, but he worked hard to gain the trust of QB Peyton Manning and to date has 494 receptions for 6,984 receiving yards and 47 touchdowns for his career, which is good for second place amongst his draft class. Graduating from Miami a year before they beat Nebraska in the BCS National Championship game Wayne made up for it by being a key contributor to the Colts’ Super Bowl XLI championship team. The two time Pro Bowler caught a 53 yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to help the Colts beat the Chicago Bears.

The 2001 draft was an interesting one at the wide receiver position. Six players, including Wayne, were drafted in the first round. Three players are currently out of the league and of the three still playing only Wayne is still with the team that drafted him. This draft class is headlined by bust David Terrell (Michigan, 1st, 8th overall) who had so much promise coming out of college. Terrell is joined by Rod Gardner (Clemson, 1st, 15th overall) and Freddie Mitchell (UCLA, 1st, 25th overall) as players that couldn’t live up to their draft position.
The sweet spot for the 2001 draft with respect to the receiving position is between the 30th overall selection (Wayne) and the 74th overall selection. Between these 44 selections the NFL careers of Wayne, Chad Johnson (Oregon State, 2nd, 36th overall), Chris Chambers (Wisconsin, 2nd, 52nd overall) and Steve Smith (Utah, 3rd, 74th overall) would begin. Another notable alumni from this draft class is Ocho Cinco’s college teammate, TJ Houshmandzadeh (Oregon State, 7th, 204th), who like Johnson went to the Bengals – only 168 picks later.

Judging by his on field production, Wayne is clearly the most accomplished receiver in his draft class. While he may trail Chad Johnson in certain receiving statistics, he has not been the primary receiver during his career with the Colts. Additionally, Wayne further showcased his talent by stepping in admirably into the #1 receiver role due to Harrison’s injury struggles in 2007.

(draftnuggets.com)