Yesterday for day 70, I highlighted an offensive tackle from Alabama that was drafted in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Today for day 69, I’ll be covering a small school guy that was just taken in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Out of Farragut High School in Farragut, Tennessee, Cole Strange was a 2 star defensive end recruit. He committed to UT Chattanooga in the summer of 2015, but later decommitted in the spring of 2016. Just a day later, Strange committed to the Air Force Academy.
Strange briefly attended Air Force, but quickly transferred to UT Chattanooga in June of 2016 where he redshirted his freshman season. As a red shirt freshman, Strange started all 11 games and was named Second Team All SoCon. He bumped around the offensive line and the following season was named Second Team All SoCon.
In 2020, Strange earned his third Second Team All SoCon nod while also winning the SoCon Jacobs Blocking Award. As a redshirt senior, Strange was named First Team All SoCon and repeated as SoCon Jacobs Blocking Award winner. He would go onto dominate at the Senior Bowl and was drafted in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Patriots.