A trio of UConn defensive stars were selected in the third round of the NFL Draft on Friday night.
The Jacksonville Jaguars selected cornerback Dwayne Gratz with the 64th overall selection, adding the 5-foot-11 defender to coach Gus Bradley's press-coverage scheme.
Gratz was a three-year starter at UConn. He started 39 games, finishing with 189 tackles, 30 pass breakups and eight interceptions.
He will compete for a starting job on a rebuilding team that parted ways with its top three cornerbacks from last season — Derek Cox, Aaron Ross and Rashean Mathis. The Jaguars wanted to revamp the position with aggressive, pressing cornerbacks who often get left in one-on-one coverage.
Jacksonville chose Gratz over former LSU star Tyrann Mathieu, saying they had "Honey Badger" slated for a later round.
Linebacker Sio Moore heard his name called by the Oakland Raiders just two picks after Gratz.
General manager Reggie McKenzie took Moore 66th overall in the draft on Friday.
Sports
Moore had 72 tackles and eight sacks last season at UConn. He has 16 sacks, four interceptions, four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries in 41 career college games.
Before the third round was half over, a third UConn player heard his name called when the Tennesse Titans selected cornerback Blidi Bertrard Wreh-Wilson with the 70th pick.
Wreh-Wilson, a former basketball and soccer player, didn't take up football until his senior year in high school. He went on to become a team captain and all-Big East performer at Connecticut.
The Titans hope he can help improve a defense that gave up 471 points last season, the most in franchise history. They already boosted their secondary this offseason by signing free-agent safeties Bernard Pollard and George Wilson.
Wreh-Wilson was the first pick the Titans used on defense.
