Michigan’s Graham drafted No. 13 overall in NFL draft

Former Michigan defensive end Brandon Graham came off the board early Thursday night, check out Grand Central sports writer Josh Berenter's predictions for the remaining Michigan products still available in the draft.

There was a single former Michigan Wolverine selected last night in the first round of the 75th NFL draft.

The draft, which switched to a three-day format for the first time ever began last night in primetime, and continues today with the second and third rounds, and concludes Saturday morning with rounds four through seven.

The most highly touted prospect this year to dawn the winged helmet is AP All-American second team selection, Brandon Graham.

Graham, who was named MVP of the Senior Bowl in January, came off the board very early in the first round after being selected by the Philadelphia Eagles with 13th overall pick. ESPN’s draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. had Graham as the 25th best player in the draft.

The 6’3”, 268lb linebacker is rated the ninth best at his position according to nfldraftbible.com

Other Wolverines that are expected to have their names called throughout the draft are punter Zoltan Mesko, running back Brandon Minor and junior defensive back Donovan Warren.

Mesko was also named to the All-American second team and was a finalist for the Ray Guy Award in 2009, an award for the nation’s best punter.

Punters and kickers are not usually fortunate enough to get drafted. Usually they find a team through free agency after the draft but Mesko could be one of the few specialists to come off the board on Saturday.

Cbssports.com rated Mesko as the best punter prospect in this year’s draft and projects him to fall somewhere in the sixth round.

Minor battled the injury bug his senior year at Michigan. He was able to play in nine of 12 games, but only started two.

As a senior, Minor carried the ball 96 times for 502 yards which led the team despite sporadic action. He also scored a team-high eight touchdowns in 2009. He rushed for 1,658 yards on 331 carries during his career and scored 20 rushing touchdowns.

Cbssports.com has Minor has the 16th best running back prospect, and projects him to be drafted in the sixth to seventh round.

Warren was an anomaly during his tenure at Michigan. One of the highest touted defensive recruits since Charles Woodson, Warren was expected to be a high draft pick.

But inconsistency and position changes hindered Warren’s time at Michigan, and his decision to leave after his junior year has caused his draft status to slip.

Warren played free safety for most of his career for the Wolverines, but due to the suspension of cornerback Boubacar Cissoko midway through the 2009 season, Warren had to fill in.

The 6’0”, 185lb defensive back is rated the eighth best free safety by cbssports.com and is projected to come off the board sometime on day three, in rounds five or six.

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