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Two Terps football players will join the Pittsburgh Steelers following their selection in the 2020 NFL draft on Saturday.
The team took running back Anthony McFarland Jr. in the fourth round with the No. 124th overall pick and defensive back Antoine Brooks Jr. in the sixth round with pick No. 198.
McFarland rushed for 1,648 yards and 12 touchdowns in 23 games as a Terp, ending his Maryland career ranking third all-time with an average 6.7 yards per carry. A 2018 Second Team All-Big Ten selection, the DMV product set UMD freshman records for rushing yards (1,034), rushing yards in a game (298 vs. Ohio State) and 100-yard rushing games (four).
He’s the 15th UMD running back to be selected in the NFL draft and the highest drafted Terp at the position since LaMont Jordan was chosen 49th overall by the New York Jets in the second round in 2001.
Brooks, who participated in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, was a Second Team All-Big Ten selection for the second straight year in 2019. He led the Big Ten and ranked ninth nationally with 69 solo tackles.
The Terps have had a defensive back selected in three of the last five NFL drafts, with Darnell Savage Jr. chosen in the first round last year and Sean Davis in the second round in 2016.
UMD has now had at least one player chosen in 24 of the last 26 NFL drafts. Multiple Terps have been selected in five of the last six years, including the past three.
The Steelers now have five former Maryland players on their roster; they drafted offensive lineman Derwin Gray in 2019 and also have running back Trey Edmunds and defensive lineman Cavon Walker.
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