Big Red In The NFL Draft

ITHACA, N.Y. – With the 2024 NFL Draft kicking off this evening, Cornell alumnus Hunter Nourzad is preparing to hear his name called. The 2022 graduate of the Big Red was a former two-time All-America offensive lineman, earning a third-team offensive line nod in the 2020 season and a second-team look in the 2021 season, a year when he was the long Ivy Leaguer to make the list. Nourzad was named an All-Ivy first-teamer and the Ivy League Offensive Lineman of the Year by Phil Steele in his final season with the Big Red. Since graduating, the Marietta, Ga., native finished out his final two years of eligibility at Penn State, where he appeared in 24 games, including making 21 starts, most often at center. He helped the Nittany Lions to a 21-5 overall record including two New Year's Six bowl game appearances.

A projected fourth-round pick by NFL.com, Nourzad would join JC Tretter as the only two Big Red selected in round four since 2000. Nourzad hopes to be the 33rd Big Red picked in the draft. Speaking of Tretter, let's take a look back at a few other Big Red draftees while we await Nourzad's new home.

JC Tretter, a former left tackle for the Big Red, was named a second-team Associated Press All-American in his senior season after helping the Big Red to set a new Cornell and Ivy League passing record in his two seasons with the Big Red. He was part of a line that allowed the passing game to pile up 3,748 yards, a mark that ranked third in the FCS in 2012. He started each of his final 20 games at left tackle and is the first offensive lineman to earn first-team All-Ivy honors since Kevin Boothe in 2005.

In the 2013 NFL Draft, Tretter was picked in the fourth round by Green Bay as pick 122. In the 2014 season, the Akron, N.Y., native appeared in eight games and began his rise in the league. In his second season, he began to earn his starting role and by 2016 he started all seven of his appearances, shifting from tackle to center. The move stuck, as he was traded to Cleveland for the next season, where he started all 80 of his career games with the Browns as the team's snapper, totaling over 100 snaps each of his five seasons in Ohio.

Tretter concluded his career in the NFL in August of 2022, but that did not stop his impact within the league from off the field. Elected for his first term in 2020, Tretter served as President of the NFL Players Association, helping to guide the league through the unprecedented challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. His leadership proved invaluable, and his colleagues elected him for a second term in 2022, which just recently concluded in March when he retired from the Players Association following his term.

A three-time All-Ivy League Selection, including first-team honors in 1996, Seth Payne was one of two Big Red to be selected in the 1997 draft. Payne still holds the Cornell career record for sacks (19) and tackles for loss (44.0). His 1996 season sacks of tackles for loss (26.0) still is the most in the Big Red record books. A team co-captain his final season, he was later named to Cornell's All-Time Football Team by the Cornell Football Association and selected by Vanity Fair magazine to its 1996 Ivy All-Star defensive team.

In the 1997 draft, Payne was selected in the fourth round as the 114th overall pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Payne worked his way into the rotation in his first season, appearing in 12 games and starting in five, accumulating 14 tackles, including 12 solos. By 1999, Payne was starting each game for the Jaguars and missed just two starts from then through the 2001 season. Houston acquired Payne in the offseason following the 2001 year. The Texans started him at nose tackle in his first season in the Lone Star State, where he posted 65 tackles, including 54 solos and six for loss. He also notched a safety in the '02 season.

In the 2003 season, Payne suffered an ACL tear in the second game of the season sidelining him for the rest of the year and throwing his NFL career in jeopardy. Complications with the recovery lengthened his time out of commission to nearly a full year. The Victor, N.Y. native returned to team action on August 10, 2004, and despite the 11 months of recovery, Payne appeared in each game of the 2004 season, including making 12 starts while posting 51 tackles. He played with the Texans through the 2006 season finally retiring in 2007 after 10 years in the league.

It would be remiss to address Big Red being selected in the NFL Draft without touching on the earliest Big Red draftee in program history.

Edward Marinaro can be found all over the Cornell record books. To date, he owns the most career rushing yards (4,715), career rushing touchdowns (50), career touchdowns (52), and most points scored (318) at Cornell. Each mark still ranks in the top five in Ivy League history. He is a three-time All-American and named the Ivy League Player of the Year twice in his career, sharing the honor in 1970 and winning it outright in 1971.

In the 1972 draft, Marinaro went 50th overall being drafted by Minnesota in the second round. The New Milford, N.J., native appeared in 10 games his rookie year, starting six. In his rookie year, he totaled 223 yards in the regular season. Over the next two seasons, he went to two Super Bowls with the Vikings, and in 1975 he became the primary running back for the team, starting 13 of 14 regular season games he appeared in, and making his first career start in the playoffs in a narrow loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The back made stops with the New York Jets and Seattle Seahawks in 1976 and 1977, respectively, before finally retiring from the sport in 1977.

The 2024 NFL Draft, hosted this year in Detroit, Mich., kicks off tonight, Thursday, April 25 at 8 p.m. with the announcement of the first round. Rounds two and three will be selected on Friday, April 26 beginning at 7 p.m., and rounds four through seven will be picked on Saturday, April 27, starting at 12 p.m. Fans looking to tune in to the action can find coverage on ESPN, ABC, and the NFL Network.