The SEC remains on top of the college football world, and Thursday night was just the latest example.

The conference flexed its muscles, as 12 former SEC players were picked in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft — including the No. 1 overall player in Georgia’s Travon Walker to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ironically, UGA also had the last pick in the first round at No. 32 in Lewis Cine.

In fact, 5 Georgia defenders were picked in the first round, and none of them were named Nakobe Dean. Dean may wind up being the best of the bunch, too. Kirby Smart’s defense was incredible in 2021, and it helped propel the Dawgs to a national title.

Georgia had more first-round picks (5) than the entire ACC (4), Pac-12 (4) or Big 12 (0). No wonder Texas and Oklahoma are leaving the conference for the SEC.

Here were the SEC players picked in Round 1 from Las Vegas on Thursday night:

  • No. 1: Travon Walker, DL, Georgia (Jacksonville Jaguars)
  • No. 3: Derek Stingley, Jr, LSU (Houston Texans)
  • No. 7: Evan Neal, Alabama (New York Giants)
  • No. 9: Charles Cross, Mississippi State (Seattle Seahawks)
  • No. 12: Jameson Williams, Alabama (Detroit Lions)
  • No. 13: Jordan Davis, Georgia (Philadelphia Eagles)
  • No. 15: Kenyon Green, Texas A&M (Houston Texans)
  • No. 18: Treylon Burks, Arkansas (Tennessee Titans)
  • No. 22 Quay Walker, Georgia (Green Bay Packers)
  • No. 23 Kaiir Elam, Florida (Buffalo Bills)
  • No. 28. Devonte Wyatt, Georgia (Green Bay Packers)
  • No. 32 Lewis Cine, Georgia (Minnesota Vikings)

Here’s a final breakdown of the first-round picks by conference:

  • SEC: 12
  • Big Ten: 7
  • ACC: 4
  • Pac-12: 4
  • AAC: 2
  • Independent: 1
  • Missouri Valley: 1
  • Southern Conference: 1