KNOXVILLE – After two long nights of waiting, Luke Stocker didn’t have too much waiting to do Saturday afternoon.
Wide receiver Denarius Moore needed just a little more patience.
The two became the first University of Tennessee players selected in this year’s NFL draft. Both went in the first half of Saturday’s four rounds.
Stocker, a 6-foot-5, 258-pound tight end, was selected with the seventh pick of the fourth round (104th overall) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who swapped fourth-round picks with Philadelphia and gave the Eagles their fourth-round pick in next year’s draft.
“Luke is an in-line, all-around tight end who can really do everything well,” Vols coach Derek Dooley said Friday. “Add to that he’s got really good stature, size and speed, he’s got phenomenal competitive and off-the-field character, and so I think that I’m expecting him to get picked today. It would surprise me if he doesn’t.”