Myles Garrett Becomes Program's First No. 1 Overall Draft Pick

PHILADELPHIA--Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett became the program's first No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick when the Cleveland Browns selected him with the first pick of the 2017 NFL Draft Thursday evening.

Garrett was the highest NFL Draft pick in school history, surpassing the previous best of No. 2 overall by five Aggies: Luke Joeckel in 2013, Von Miller in 2011, Quentin Coryatt in 1992, John David Crow in 1958 and John Kimbrough in 1941.
 
 
"He is very deserving and worthy of this honor and has earned being the first Aggie to ever be drafted No. 1 overall in the NFL draft," Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin said. "He is an outstanding football player, a terrific teammate and an even better person. We are very proud of Myles."
 
In addition to being the school's first-ever No. 1 overall pick, Garrett's selection extends the team's streak of years with at least one first-round pick to seven seasons, which is a school record and ranks as the second-longest active streak in college football.  
 
"Cleveland is getting a smart young player who wants to be the very best," Sumlin added. "He will work hard in the film room, the weight room and on the field. He is very coachable and is eager to learn. He took that approach his entire time with the Aggies.
 
"Myles is a tremendous teammate. A great example of his perseverance and willingness to compete was after he was injured in our Arkansas game. He could have shut it down the rest of the season, but he worked hard to get back on the field. Even though he wasn't 100 percent, he gave everything he had the remainder of the season including the bowl game."
   
Garrett becomes the seventh NFL first-round pick of the Sumlin era at Texas A&M, joining Joeckel in 2013, Jake Matthews, Mike Evans and Johnny Manziel in 2014, Cedric Ogbuehi in 2015 and Germain Ifedi in 2016. Garrett is the 14th Texas A&M player to be drafted since Sumlin took over the reins at the school in 2012.
 
Garrett, who was an all-state selection at Arlington Martin High School, concluded his Texas A&M career as one of the most decorated and disruptive defenders in school history. Garrett became the ninth player in school history to earn unanimous first-team All-America honors in 2016, and he also was a finalist for the Bednarik and Rotary Lombardi Awards. He led the Aggies with 8.5 quarterback sacks and 15.0 tackles for loss in 2016 and also contributed two forced fumbles and 10 QB hurries.
 
He finished his three-year Texas A&M career with 145 total tackles, including 48.5 tackles for loss and 32.5 QB sacks. He also generated 30 QB pressures and seven forced fumbles. During his career, Garrett was a Freshman All-American, two-time first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection, two-time first-team All-American and a finalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award, the Chuck Bednarik Award and the Ted Hendricks Award. He was voted the team's Defensive MVP all three seasons at Texas A&M (he shared the 2016 honor with Justin Evans).
 
Texas A&M's NFL First-Round Picks (by order)
 

Player	Pos.	Overall	Team	Year
Myles Garrett	DE	1	Cleveland Browns	2017
Luke Joeckel	OL	2	Jacksonville Jaguars	2013
Von Miller	LB	2	Denver Broncos	2011
Quentin Coryatt	LB	2	Indianapolis Colts	1992
John David Crow	RB	2	Chicago Cardinals	1958
John Kimbrough	RB	2	Chicago Cardinals	1941
Ray Childress	DL	3	Houston Oilers	1985
Curtis Dickey	RB	5	Baltimore Colts	1980
Jim Thomason	RB	5	Detroit Lions	1941
Jake Matthews	OL	6	Atlanta Falcons	2014
Mike Evans	WR	7	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	2014
Ryan Tannehill	QB	8	Miami Dolphins	2012
Sam Adams	DL	8	Seattle Seahawks	1994
Larry Stegent	RB	8	St. Louis Cardinals	1970
Bob Goode	RB	8	Washington Redskins	1949
Richmond Webb	OL	9	Miami Dolphins	1990
Bubba Bean	RB	9	Atlanta Falcons	1976
Charles Krueger	DL	9	San Francisco 49ers	1958
Jacob Green	DL	10	Seattle Seahawks	1980
Aaron Glenn	DB	12	New York Jets	1994
Patrick Bates	DB	12	Los Angeles Raiders	1993
Ty Warren	DL	13	New England Patriots	2003
Reggie Brown	LB	17	Detroit Lions	1996
Kevin Smith	DB	17	Dallas Cowboys	1992
Robert Jackson	LB	17	Cleveland Browns	1977
Maurice Moorman	OL	19	Kansas City Chiefs	1968
Cedric Ogbuehi	OL	21	Cincinnati Bengals	2015
Roger Vick	RB	21	New York Jets	1987
Tim Gray	DB	21	St. Louis Cardinals	1975
Johnny Manziel	QB	22	Cleveland Browns	2014
Rod Bernstine	TE	24	San Diego Chargers	1987
Greg Hill	RB	25	Kansas City Chiefs	1994
Billy Cannon	LB	25	Dallas Cowboys	1984
Sammy Davis	DB	30	San Diego Chargers	2003
Germain Ifedi	OL	31	Seattle Seahawks	2016

Texas A&M's NFL First-Round Picks (by year)
 

Player	Pos.	Overall	Team	Year
Myles Garrett	DE	1	Cleveland Browns	2017
Germain Ifedi	OL	31	Seattle Seahawks	2016
Cedric Ogbuehi	OL	21	Cincinnati Bengals	2015
Jake Matthews	OL	6	Atlanta Falcons	2014
Mike Evans	WR	7	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	2014
Johnny Manziel	QB	22	Cleveland Browns	2014
Luke Joeckel	OL	2	Jacksonville Jaguars	2013
Ryan Tannehill	QB	8	Miami Dolphins	2012
Von Miller	LB	2	Denver Broncos	2011
Ty Warren	DL	13	New England Patriots	2003
Sammy Davis	DB	30	San Diego Chargers	2003
Reggie Brown	LB	17	Detroit Lions	1996
Sam Adams	DL	8	Seattle Seahawks	1994
Aaron Glenn	DB	12	New York Jets	1994
Greg Hill	RB	25	Kansas City Chiefs	1994
Patrick Bates	DB	12	Los Angeles Raiders	1993
Quentin Coryatt	LB	2	Indianapolis Colts	1992
Kevin Smith	DB	17	Dallas Cowboys	1992
Richmond Webb	OL	9	Miami Dolphins	1990
Roger Vick	RB	21	New York Jets	1987
Rod Bernstine	TE	24	San Diego Chargers	1987
Ray Childress	DL	3	Houston Oilers	1985
Billy Cannon	LB	25	Dallas Cowboys	1984
Curtis Dickey	RB	5	Baltimore Colts	1980
Jacob Green	DL	10	Seattle Seahawks	1980
Robert Jackson	LB	17	Cleveland Browns	1977
Bubba Bean	RB	9	Atlanta Falcons	1976
Tim Gray	DB	21	St. Louis Cardinals	1975
Larry Stegent	RB	8	St. Louis Cardinals	1970
Maurice Moorman	OL	19	Kansas City Chiefs	1968
John David Crow	RB	2	Chicago Cardinals	1958
Charles Krueger	DL	9	San Francisco 49ers	1958
Bob Goode	RB	8	Washington Redskins	1949
John Kimbrough	RB	2	Chicago Cardinals	1941
Jim Thomason	RB	5	Detroit Lions	1941

On Myles Garrett being selected No. 1 overall in the NFL draft:
"He is very deserving and worthy of this honor and has earned being the first Aggie to ever be drafted No. 1 overall in the NFL draft. He is an outstanding football player, a terrific teammate and an even better person. We are very proud of Myles."
 
What is Cleveland getting?
"Cleveland is getting a smart young player who wants to be the very best. He will work hard in the film room, the weight room and on the field. He is very coachable and is eager to learn. He took that approach his entire time with the Aggies.
Myles is a tremendous teammate. A great example of his perseverance and willingness to compete was after he was injured in our Arkansas game. He could have shut it down the rest of the season, but he worked hard to get back on the field. Even though he wasn't 100 percent, he gave everything he had the remainder of the season including the bowl game."
 
How would you describe Myles off of the football field?
"Myles is one of kind. A lot of credit goes to his family. He is an intelligent person with a number of interests outside of football. He has a wide range of music interests, loves to write poetry and we all know of his interest in dinosaurs. And, what doesn't get talked about as much is his love of helping others. But make no mistake, he also loves to compete and wants to be the best at what he does."
 
On if he thought there might be a chance he would not be the No. 1 overall selection:
"You have to be ready for all possibilities. I was hoping for the best outcome. I was trying to just be ready for anything."
 
On his first reaction and emotions being the Browns' selection:
"It was really just a weight off of my shoulders to finally just get the announcement that what I have been working for is finally came to fruition and I can actually know where I am going, know who I am going up against and know the schedule. Now, it's time to put in that work so I can be prepared to go against the best."
 
On his phone call with Executive Vice President Sashi Brown and the Browns:
"He had to call my mother's phone. My phone kind of disappeared throughout the night, and I finally got it back. He asked if it was me, and I was like, 'Yeah.' He was like, 'Congratulations on being a Cleveland Brown.' I knew it was that time. They had not announced it yet, but I knew it was coming. Then he handed the phone to (Head Coach) Hue (Jackson) and he was like, 'I told you that I wouldn't leave you hanging. I told you that you were my guy.' That made my night. Now, I'm just ready to go to work."
 
On his first impression of defensive coordinator Gregg Williams when:
"He's intense. I know that he knows what he is talking about. He's definitely smart. He knows the game very well. He going to put me into position to make plays. I just have to listen and make sure that I become his right-hand man and make sure that I am there every day and after practice, before practice just trying to become a better player with my technique not only with my craft on the field but with my intelligence of the game off of the field."
 
On being a part of the Browns' new foundation:
"They picked me because they think they see something in me, and they know that I can help them rebuild and turn this program around. That's the mindset that we have to have. Starting next year, we can put the pieces together, not only the players but with a mindset that we can actually do this. I know that the players there have that same mindset. I am going to keep that feeling contagious. I'm just prepared for that."
 
On his NFL goals and how great he wants to be:
"I want to be the best. The only thing holding me back is me. I have to learn from the veterans, just pick everybody's brain to know what they did and to stay on track, to stay focused and not get off track at all with their goals and their dreams. Going for the rookie sack record and those lofty goals is something that I want to do, but I just want to be the best from Day 1. That takes hard work. That takes going against the best like (OL) Joe Thomas and listening and learning from your mistakes from the day before and picking up tips from him, the offensive tackles and my fellow D linemen."
 
On which NFL defensive ends he emulates:
"(Broncos DL) Von Miller, definitely, (Texans DL) JJ Watt, (Panthers DL Julius) Peppers, and (former NFL DL) Demarcus Ware. Those are the guys that I usually look up to the most and try to study the game the most."
 
On Jackson saying he was his guy all along, if he believed him and the draft process with the Browns:
"I believed him. I don't have any reason to think that he would do me wrong. I just believed in what he was saying. He said I was his guy after we had dinner and that he was not going to guarantee anything, but he said, 'If you do the right things, you have a great chance of being a Brown.' That is what I have been looking forward to, and I am ready to go."
 
On his reaction to Warren Sapp's comments and if criticisms in the pre-draft process motivate him, as well as his mom's comments on them:
"It definitely does. It adds more fuel to the fire. It is burning hot right now. Everybody thinks that they can count us out or count me out. That is not true for either of those statements. It does not matter what they say. It matters what the pads say, what the grind says when we finally get to the season – how much work you want to put in, how hard you want to prepare. That will speak volumes when you finally get there. It is another season, and nobody is the same."
 
On having his draft party at home with his family, friends, Bruce Smith and Randy Moss:
"Bruce Smith came to my door, and we went over film and had a little lunch – one of my very favorite pass rushers of all time. Just having him here, teaching me how I can do better, it was great. There is stuff I can work on. You saw the little plays where I did not give all my effort, and was tired and I did not sprint all the way through the ball. Those are plays that you can see, and that motivates you to do better. You are not going to have great plays every single time. You have to build off the little details and the weaknesses. Randy Moss is one of my favorite players of all time. To see him, it kind of blew my mind. It kind of showed me that this night was not only special for one reason."
 
On watching the rest of the first round closely to see who will join him on the Browns:
"This will probably be the first time I will watch the draft all the way through, but they are my team now. I am looking forward to becoming part of the family and getting to know them very well. I have to know who else they want to get and how they can affect my job and what we can do to make each other better."