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NFL Draft Day 3: Brent Urban to Baltimore, Luke Bowanko to Jacksonville

Two more Hoos were picked on Saturday in the NFL Draft

By Brian Schwartz
Paul Frederiksen-USA TODAY Sport

After Morgan Moses was drafted by the Washington Redskins early in the third round of the NFL Draft on Friday, two more Virginia Cavaliers joined him when they were selected in Saturday's draft conclusion.

DT Brent Urban was picked by the Baltimore Ravens in the 4th round, the 134th pick of the draft.  John Harbaugh believe Urban would be chosen in the "second round at the latest," per Baltimore Beatdown; he's thrilled with the value he received in round 4.  Urban joins fellow Hoos in the NFL Chris Canty (also on the defense line), and Eugene Monroe, who starts at tackle on the offensive side.

Baltimore is getting a player who UVA fans have really enjoyed watching develop over the past year or so.  Before his senior season, Urban was a solid player but barely a fringe NFL prospect, until he became a team leader on defense this year.  His 6'7", 295 pound frame makes him a physical presence at the line of scrimmage, and when things clicked for him this season, he put it to good use.  Urban had 40 tackles in the 8 games he played, while knocking down 9 passes this year.

The Canadian commonly has words like "late-bloomer" and "raw" associated with him, and he's got more work to do to stick in the NFL for good, but he finds a nice landing spot in the Raven's 3-4 defense, where he'll probably shift to DE.  His height will also be an asset on the line on the kick and punt return teams.  Our full analysis of Urban's NFL potential from earlier this week is right here.

Luke Bowanko rounded out Virginia's list of NFL draft picks, when he went  in the 6th round at #205 to Jacksonville.  Bowanko played both guard and center at times for Virginia in college, and his versatility and size were major draws for NFL teams.

Big Cat Country wrote, "Fans shouldn't expect Bowanko to start for the Jaguars as a rookie; however, there's no reason to be shocked if he ends up winning the job, as he'll compete with Mike Brewster, Patrick Lewis and Jacques McClendon for the role."  It...doesn't sound like the Jaguars' offensive line is a tough one to break into, so it's a nice spot for Luke to end up and compete for playing time.

Jaguars GM Dave Caldwell cited that Bowanko "fits in our blocking scheme."  Like Urban, Bowanko joins a familar face on his own unit, as Austin Pasztor started at right tackle for Jacksonville last year.

Congrats to Brent Urban and Luke Bowanko (as well as Morgan Moses) on their well-earned selections to the NFL, and best of luck to them in the future; we'll be following closely!

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