Davenport, Wilson to attend NFL Draft on ThursdayDavenport, Wilson to attend NFL Draft on Thursday
Football

Davenport, Wilson to attend NFL Draft on Thursday

NEW YORK — Former UTSA standout Marcus Davenport and Roadrunners head coach Frank Wilson will attend the 2018 NFL Draft, which gets underway on Thursday, April 26, and continues through Saturday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Davenport and Wilson will take part in the NFL Draft Red Carpet event at 4:30 p.m. Thursday outside AT&T Stadium and then move inside for the first round, which is slated to begin at 7 p.m. Davenport is one of 22 prospects and Wilson, who has coached or recruited 29 NFL players, is one of 15 college head coaches who have been invited to attend the draft.

The draft will continue at 6 p.m. Friday with the second and third rounds and conclude with Rounds 4-7 beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday.

The draft officially kicks off with the NFL Draft Experience from noon to 10 p.m. Thursday. The free event located just east of the stadium also will be open from noon to 10 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Fans of all ages may participate in interactive exhibits, immersive games, virtual reality experiences, free player autograph sessions and more. 

UTSA Cheer and members of the Spirit of San Antonio band will take part in the NFL Draft Experience's College Corner on Thursday.

Davenport, a defensive end, is the first Roadrunner to be invited to attend the NFL Draft and is projected to be the program's second all-time draft pick, joining 2016 sixth-round selection and current Minnesota Vikings tight end David Morgan II.

The NFL Draft's First Round will be televised nationally by NFL Network, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes. 

The second and third rounds will air on NFL Network, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2 beginning at 6 p.m Friday, while Rounds 4-7 will be shown on NFL Network, ABC and ESPN starting at 11 a.m. Saturday.

ESPN's Thursday coverage will include a special two-hour College GameDay broadcast beginning at 4 p.m. from the NFL Draft Experience outside AT&T Stadium prior to Round 1. Then, College GameDay will be part of ESPN2's college-themed viewing option of the first round starting at 7 p.m., supplementing the traditional pick-by-pick coverage on ESPN. 

On Friday, College GameDay will have a one-hour special at 4 p.m. before the draft telecast of Rounds 2-3 airs on ESPN and ESPN2 at 6 p.m. 

ESPN Deportes will carry a Spanish-language telecast of Round 1, while Rounds 2-3 will air in Spanish on ESPN3.

The NFL Draft can be heard nationwide on Westwood One Radio, SiriusXM NFL Radio and TuneIn Radio.

NFL Now Live will provide comprehensive online coverage of each round of the 2018 NFL Draft NFL Now Live can be accessed at NFL.com/Draft and through the official mobile app of the NFL, NFL Mobile from Verizon, as well as the NFL app on connected TV devices and on desktop and tablet.

Live NFL Network coverage of the 2018 NFL Draft is available across devices (smartphone, PC, tablet and connected TVs) through the NFL app or NFL.com/watch for subscribers of participating NFL Network providers.

Davenport, the 2017 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year, participated in the NFL Scouting Combine in early March in Indianapolis. He measured six feet, six inches and 264 pounds and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds, the 3-cone drill in 7.2 seconds and the 20-yard shuttle in 4.41 seconds. Davenport also recorded 22 reps in the bench press, 33.5 inches in the vertical jump and 124 inches in the broad jump.

The first Roadrunner to compete in the Reese's Senior Bowl, Davenport registered a sack of Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield on the first series and a 19-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the third quarter to help the South defeat the North, 45-16, on Jan. 27 in Mobile, Ala. The three-time all-conference selection, who set UTSA career records for tackles for loss (38.0), sacks (22.0) and QB hurries (21), also was credited with an assisted tackle and one quarterback hurry in the game.

Davenport was one of 17 UTSA players to participate in the program's annual Pro Day on March 28 in front of representatives from all 32 NFL franchises. That list also included LB La'Kel Bass, DS Matt Bayliss, OL Stefan Beard, WR Dannon Cavil, CB Devron Davis, DB Michael Egwaugu, S Nate Gaines, WR Brady Jones, CB Austin Jupe, OL Austin Pratt, WR Josh Stewart, QB Dalton Sturm, WR JaBryce Taylor, WR Kerry Thomas Jr., DL Franklin Uesi and TE Shaq Williams. 

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