2011 NFL Draft: The Top 50 Senior Prospects

From now up until the January 15th deadline, most of the NFL draft buzz and discussion is going to surround all the underclassmen who made the decision to skip school early for the NFL.

We already have big names like Da’Quan Bowers, Ryan Mallett, Blaine Gabbert, Mark Ingram, and Marcell Dareus who have made their NFL plans known to the world. And we’re still waiting for and expecting declarations from a host of other underclassmen over the next week.

With all the talk about the talented younger players and their decisions to either stay in school or hit the road for the pros, it’s easy to forget about all the great senior prospects we have out there as well.

While the underclassmen are likely to dominate the first round numbers once again this year, that doesn’t mean this isn’t a deep group of seniors with a lot of potential.

Guys like Cameron Heyward, Von Miller, Derek Sherrod, Jake Locker, and a few others will likely hear their name called early on, but there are also the type of prospects like a Jabaal Sheard or a Tejay Johnson, who could make an impact even if they're drafted a little later on.

Here’s a look at some of the top seniors for the 2011 NFL Draft.

1. DE Cameron Heyward, Ohio State

2. OLB Von Miller, Texas A&M

3. OT Derek Sherrod, Mississippi State

4. CB Prince Amukamara, Nebraska

5. WR Jeremy Kerley, TCU

6. QB Jake Locker, Washington

7. RB Bilal Powell, Louisville

8. OT Nate Solder, Colorado

9. DE Cameron Jordan, Cal

10. CB Jimmy Smith, Colorado

11. RB Kendall Hunter, Oklahoma State

12. OLB Bruce Carter, North Carolina

13. DE Adrian Clayborn, Iowa

14. OT Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin

15. DT Drake Nevis, LSU

16. OG Rodney Hudson, Florida State

17. OT Marcus Cannon, TCU

18. RB Daniel Thomas, Kansas State

19. C Jake Kirkpatrick, TCU

20. DT Phil Taylor, Baylor

21. DE Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue

22. DT Stephen Paea, Oregon State

23. S Ahmad Black, Florida

24. WR Leonard Hankerson, Miami

25. DE Jeremy Beal, Oklahoma

26. S Quinton Carter, Oklahoma

27. DE Sam Acho, Texas

28. QB Andy Dalton, TCU

29. WR Chris Matthews, Kentucky

30. DE Allen Bailey, Miami

31. ILB Greg Jones, Michigan State

32. OLB Dontay Moch, Nevada

33. WR Titus Young, Boise State

34. DT Christian Ballard, Iowa

35. OG Keith Williams, Nebraska

36. S Deunta Williams, North Carolina

37.CB Brandyn Thompson, Boise State

38. DE Jabaal Sheard, Pitt

39. OG Ben Ijalana, Villanova

40. QB Tyrod Taylor, Virginia Tech

41. OT DeMarcus Love, Arkansas

42. OLB Jamari Latimore, Middle Tennessee State

43. OG Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State

44. DT Marvin Austin, North Carolina

45. S DeAndre McDaniel, Clemson

46. CB Curtis Brown, Texas

47. ILB Quan Sturdivant, North Carolina

48. DT Sione Fua, Stanford

49 .OT Anthony Castonzo, Boston College

50. S Tejay Johnson, TCU