Drake Dunsmore (7th Round, Pick 233 by Tampa Bay) Selected in 2012 NFL Draft
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern football alums Drake Dunsmore (Lenexa, Kan./Saint Thomas Aquinas) andJeremy Ebert (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Darby), the Wildcats' two most prolific pass-catchers a season ago, each were selected in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL Draft on Saturday afternoon. Dunsmore was chosen by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 26th pick of the seventh round (233rd overall) while Ebert was taken just two picks later at No. 235 overall by the defending AFC champion New England Patriots.
"We are thrilled for both Jeremy and Drake, two guys who put everything they had into their Northwestern careers and into preparing as best as they could for the NFL Draft," said head coach Pat Fitzgerald. "To get that phone call is something neither one of them will ever forget. The entire Northwestern Football family wishes them all the success in the world moving forward."
Dunsmore, who filled the superback position in Northwestern's offense, was named the Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year in the Big Ten and a consensus first-team all-conference honoree following a senior season in which he caught 45 passes for 522 yards and six touchdowns. Dunsmore set a school standard for most career receiving yards by a tight end, compiling 1,567 yards on 143 catches in 50 games played.
One of Dunsmore's most memorable plays as a Wildcat came in the home of his new team during the 2010 Outback Bowl in Raymond James Stadium, when Dunsmore caught a swing pass and rumbled 66 yards to paydirt, breaking numerous tackles along the way.
Ebert in 2011 became the first Northwestern receiver to top 1,000 yards through the air in a season since 1998, finishing with 1,060 yards and 11 touchdown catches. His 2,400 career receiving yards and 21 TD receptions each rank third all-time at NU, while his touchdown catches of 90 and 81 yards during the 2011 season rank as the second- and third-longest pass plays in Northwestern football history.
Ebert garnered second-team All-Big Ten recognition from the media in 2011.
Dunsmore and Ebert are Northwestern's first draftees in the NFL Draft since Corey Wootton, Mike Kafka and Sherrick McManis all were selected in 2010.
Northwestern Athletic Site