The 2026 NFL Draft has arrived, and that means another chance for the top talents from Historically Black Colleges and Universities to make their mark.
HBCUs have produced some of the best players in NFL history, including Jerry Rice, Walter Payton and Michael Strahan.
This year’s HBCU draft class isn’t projected to be that impactful, but there are notable players expected to be drafted at some point.
The NFL Draft begins with the first round on Thursday, followed by the second and third rounds on Friday and the fourth through seventh rounds on Saturday.
Below, we’ll keep track of the HBCU players who are selected.
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HBCU NFL Draft picks 2026
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No players from HBCUs were selected in Thursday night’s first round.
On Friday night, there were no HBCU players chosen in Friday’s second or third rounds.
Saturday will feature the fourth through seventh rounds, and some HBCU players will likely be chosen.
Top HBCU NFL Draft prospects 2026
There are four players from HBCUs listed on The Jugo Mobile’ NFL Draft sleepers list put together by Daniel Mader.
Kaleb Proctor ranks the highest of that quarter. He’s a defensive tackle from SE Louisiana who ran a 4.79-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.
Next, those rankings include Erick Hunter, a linebacker from Morgan State. He’s 6-foot-4 and had 101 tackles in 2025.
Best names in the draft: Ephesians Prysock | R Mason Thomas | DeVonta Smith | Zxavian Harris
It stays defensive with Quincy Ivory, a lineman from Jackson State (who actually began his college career as a junior college quarterback). Ivory was the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year as an edge-rushing linebacker.
As far as HBCU offense goes, the name to know is Curtis Allen from Division II Virginia Union. He ran for a D-II record 2,409 yards with 30 touchdowns in 2025.