USU's Royals, Utah's Lohner selected by NFL teams in later draft rounds

GREEN BAY, Wisconsin — Two days after Utahn Jaxson Dart made headlines for being picked by the New York Giants in the first round of the NFL Draft, a few more players from Utah schools are being given a chance to prove themselves on a pro roster.

Dart played in high school for Roy and Corner Canyon. He then played in college at USC and Ole Miss.

In the fourth round of the draft, the first player from a university in the Beehive State was selected: Utah State wide receiver Jalen Royals. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs as the 133rd overall pick.

"You know we love our Royals," the franchise posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Royals, who is from Georgia, played three seasons at USU. Through his college career, he caught 126 passes for 1,914 yards and 21 touchdowns in his career as an Aggie. His touchdown catches are tied for the third-most in school history.

Royals expressed excitement about his future playing alongside Patrick Mahomes, saying: "He's the best quarterback in the league, so catching passes from him will be amazing."

Then in the fifth round at pick #156, the Chiefs picked another player with Utah ties. Linebacker Jeffrey Bassa played for Oregon, but before that, he was a standout at Kearns High School.

And finally, in Round 7, a Utah Ute was selected — someone with one of the more unique paths to the NFL.

Caleb Lohner, a tight end, only played one season of college football. Although originally from Texas, he was a high school and college athlete in Utah. He played basketball at the Wasatch Academy before committing to play for BYU. After two years there, he transferred to Baylor. Then he transferred again — to BYU's archrival, but as a two-sport athlete. Lohner played football AND basketball at the U of U in his final year of college.

After such a rollercoaster of schools and sports, Lohner was picked by the Denver Broncos at #241 overall.

No players were drafted out of Weber State, BYU, Southern Utah or Utah Tech. However, players still have the chance to sign as free agents with NFL teams in the coming days.