Illinois’ Jihad Ward drafted by Raiders

On the second day of the 2016 NFL Draft, the Oakland Raiders selected former Illinois defensive lineman Jihad Ward, picking him No. 44 overall. Ward’s selection breaks a three-year drought for the Fighting Illini, who have not seen one of their alumni drafted since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers took Akeem Spence in 2013.

Standing 6-foot-5 and weighing approximately 300 pounds, Ward enters professional football with an NFL-caliber body. A former wide receiver, he still possesses quality movement skills despite the increased mass. At the Combine, he clocked in at 5.11 seconds in the 40-yard dash and 7.38 seconds in the three-cone drill. Though not the same caliber of athlete as Sheldon Rankins and certain other interior defenders, Ward possesses the ability to play nearly every spot along the defensive line. However, his skillset probably best suits the strong-side defensive end in a 4-3 alignment or the five-tech in a 3-4. Either way, Ward comes in as a ready-made run defender with upside as a pass rusher.

Unlike many of the defensive linemen taken thus far in the draft, Ward took a longer, more convoluted path to the NFL. While players like Joey Bosa, A’Shawn Robinson and others took meetings with power schools, Ward spent his time lugging around football equipment during an arduous commute as a member of the Globe Institute of Technology Knights football team, a junior college program located in New York. Ward toiled in relative anonymity for two years before Bill Cubit, then a coach for the perennially disappointing Illini, saw some grainy tape of the prospect and invited him on board.

Ward did not take long to establish himself as one of Illinois’ top players. In his first year with the team, he finished third on the team in tackles for loss (8.5) and tied for second in sacks (three) despite shifting back and forth between defensive end and tackle. Ward played a significant role in helping the Illini reach a bowl game for the first time since Ron Zook’s firing. In a must-win matchup with Penn State, the defensive lineman recorded a season-high six tackles, including two for loss and sack, securing the 16-14 upset of Nittany Lions.

A foot injury threatened to derail his senior season in 2015, but Ward pushed through without missing a single game. Now the most experienced starter along the defensive line, Ward saw increased double teams throughout the season. Even with the injury and added attention from opposing offenses, Ward managed to finish second on the team in sacks (2.5) and led the squad in forced fumbles (two).

For his efforts, Ward received an invitation for the annual Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala. He stood out as one of the more active defensive linemen in practice, pushing his draft stock up into Day 2 consideration.

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