In a bit of a surprise, Covington Catholic alum Michael Mayer was not taken in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday night.
The Covington Catholic alum and Notre Dame tight end had a first round draft grade from pretty much anyone and everyone that does those sort of things and with the position being so valuable to a new era of pass happy NFL offenses, Mayer was expected to have his name called somewhere in the 20’s. It turned out to be over a four-hour wait as he’ll await his destination come Friday night at 7 p.m. when the second round begins televised on ESPN.
Regardless of when his name is called, Mayer is set to make history. He’ll be the first Colonel ever drafted to the NFL. In his high school playing days, Mayer was the 2019 Kentucky Mr. Football and also won the 2019 Gatorade Kentucky Football Player of the Year after recording 50 receptions for 970 yards and 15 touchdowns. In his Colonels career, Mayer recorded 110 receptions, 2,231 yards and 30 touchdowns, winning Class 5A titles in 2017 and ’19.
Mayer has been the most productive tight end in Notre Dame history in his three seasons with the Irish, collecting the most receiving yards all-time (2,009) receptions (180) and touchdowns (18). His 180 receptions are third all-time in the program.
