Olathe North grad Isaiah Simmons picked 8th overall in NFL Draft by Arizona Cardinals
With the eighth pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Arizona Cardinals selected Isaiah Simmons, linebacker, Olathe North High School.
Simmons joins Darren Sproles — a fourth-round pick in 2005 by the Chargers out of Kansas State who went on to become one of the best multi-threat players (running back and kick returner) in football — and Arland Bruce, a receiver who played quarterback in high school and went undrafted in 2000, as Olathe North Eagles who made it to the NFL.
For his part, Simmons was a two-time national champion in college at Clemson.
At eighth overall, Simmons is the highest NFL Draft selection out of Kansas since Kansas State’s Terence Newman at No. 5 overall in 2003 and the seventh earliest in state history, tying J.C. Harmon’s Mark Haynes in 1980.
At Olathe North, Simmons earned all-state honors on both sides of the ball as a defensive back and receiver and had 17 total touchdowns as a senior. He was also a state champion in the long jump in 2014 and 2015 with a career-best leap of 23 feet, 8 inches.
He chose Clemson over the likes of Michigan, Nebraska and Missouri. He became the Clemson Tigers’ sixth unanimous All-America last season in leading the Clemson defense as the Tigers made it back to the national-title game.
Simmons arrived at Clemson as a lightly recruited safety. He leaves as the most versatile defender in college football and now a first-round pick.
He was a two-year starter for the Tigers, leading Clemson in tackles in 2018 and 2019. In addition to tackles, Simmons also led Clemson in tackles for loss and sacks this past season.
Simmons redshirted in 2016 as the Tigers won the national championship and was a key piece of Clemson’s 2018 defense as the Tigers won their second national title in three years. He was awarded the Butkus Award in 2019 as the top linebacker in the country.
Simmons almost never attended Clemson, as his dream school was Arkansas, but the Razorbacks declined to offer Simmons while he was on a visit there for a camp.
It appeared as though Simmons was headed to Nebraska or Michigan before Clemson got involved just a few weeks before Signing Day in 2016.
Clemson had three defensive backs leave early for the NFL Draft about three weeks before Signing Day, and Dabo Swinney and his staff were left scrambling to fill the spots.
Tigers defensive coordinator Brent Venables received a tip that Simmons might be a player worth looking at, and after watching Simmons’ film, Clemson made a strong push for Simmons. He committed to the Tigers the day before Signing Day in 2016 and the rest is history.
Matt Connolly of fellow McClatchy news site The State in Columbia, S.C., contributed to this report.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 8:16 PM with the headline "Olathe North grad Isaiah Simmons picked 8th overall in NFL Draft by Arizona Cardinals."