Three former TCU football players were selected in the 2024 National Football League (NFL) Draft, which was held in Detroit.
Offensive lineman Brandon Coleman was the highest-drafted Horned Frog. Coleman was taken in the third round by Washington. Tight end Jared Wiley was selected by Kansas City in the fourth round. Cincinnati took cornerback Josh Newton in the fifth round.
Five former TCU football players signed undrafted free agent contracts. They were Millard Bradford, Emani Bailey, Mark Perry, Andrew Coker and Willis Patrick.
Coleman, who was a TCU team captain, was a two-time All-Big 12 selection and 2023 Honorable-Mention Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year. He also was Academic All-Big 12.
Coleman started 34 of the last 35 games he played for the Horned Frogs. During his TCU career, he played every position on the offensive line except center.
Coleman is the first Horned Frog drafted by Washington since wide receiver Josh Doctson was a first-round selection in 2016.
Wiley joins former TCU offensive lineman Lucas Niang in Kansas City. The Chiefs are the two-time defending Super Bowl Champions.
Wiley is the first TCU tight end drafted since Matt Schobel in 2002 by the Bengals.
A team captain, two-time All-Big 12 Conference selection and 2023 Honorable-Mention Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, Wiley had a team-best 47 receptions to rank fourth nationally for Power Five tight ends in 2023. He topped TCU with eight touchdown catches, to tie for the national lead among players at his position.
Wiley set a career-high in receptions in each of the final three games
of the season. His 178 yards receiving in a 42-17 win over Baylor broke
TCU and Big 12 records for a tight end and were the most nationally by a
player at that position for the year. He
totaled seven catches, including touchdowns of 81 and 28 yards, in the
rout of the Bears. The 81-yard score was the longest reception of his
career. He closed the season with a personal-best eight catches and two
touchdowns at Oklahoma. He recorded at least
one catch in all 12 contests with multiple receptions in 10 games.
Newton earned All-Big 12 Conference honors his last two seasons with TCU. A team captain in 2023, he started all 27 games over his two years at TCU.
Newton recorded a team-best nine pass breakups to
go with an interception and 33 tackles in 2023. His pick was
returned 53 yards in the 34-17 win over SMU.
In TCU’s 2022 run to the College Football Playoff National Championship,
Newton ranked second on TCU and in the Big 12 with 12 pass breakups. His three interceptions tied for second on the Horned Frogs. One
of his picks was returned 57 yards for a touchdown
in the 62-14 victory over Iowa State. He totaled 35 stops on the year,
including three tackles with one for loss in the CFP Semifinal win over
Michigan. He also recorded a tackle for loss on his first snap as a
Horned Frog in the season opening 38-13 win at
Colorado.
Newton gives the Horned Frogs four defensive backs in the NFL, a total that includes former Jim Thorpe Award winners Tre'von Moehrig (Las Vegas Raiders) and Tre Tomlinson (Los Angeles Rams). Newton is the first TCU player selected by the Bengals since Paul Dawson in 2015.
Under Head Coach Sonny Dykes, TCU has had 11 players drafted in the last two seasons.
Bradford was signed as a free agent by the New Orleans Saints. At TCU, Bradford was an honorable mention All-Big 12 safety after being fifth on the team in tackles in 2022 and 2023. Bradford started all 12 games he appeared in during the run to the national title game in 2022.
The Kansas City Chiefs signed Bailey to a free-agent contract. In 2023, he was one of the top running backs in the Big 12 with over 1,200 yards and eight touchdowns in his lone season as a starter at TCU.
Perry signed as a free agent with the Miami Dolphins. The safety was a two-year startedr for the Horned Frogs after transferring in from Colorado before the 2022 season. Perry was second on in the team in tackles in the 2022 season with 84 stops and 6.5 tackles for loss.
Coker signed as a free agent with the Las Vegas Raiders. Coker started over 40 games during his time at TCU.
The Los Angeles Chargers signed Patrick as a free agent. Patrick transferred to TCU from Jackson State and was TCU’s best interior offensive lineman in 2023.
The
Horned Frogs have 31 players active in the NFL.
Twenty NFL teams have at least one Horned Frog on the roster. The Los
Angeles Chargers have the most TCU players, with four (Derius Davis, Max
Duggan, Quentin Johnston, Willis Patrick).
