Oct 26, 2013; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers defensive lineman Ra
A week after recovering a fumble against Michigan State, redshirt senior defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman is projected to be pick No. 32 by the Seattle Seahawks on FanSided’s Week 14 NFL Mock Draft.
While Hageman has been under the watchful eye of NFL scouts before this season, this was one of the few times that Hageman has been projected as a first round draft pick.
"The Seattle Seahawks are the cream of the crop in the NFL and they lack any big weaknesses on their roster. However, if there was one area the team could benefit from improving at it would be their interior defensive line.Seattle has been spending plenty of time over the past few offseasons stockpiling talent at defensive end, so imagine the damage the Seahawks defense could do if they are able to bolster defensive tackle.By adding Hageman with the final pick of Round 1, Seattle would have a star-studded defensive front to go around with their stellar secondary."
If Hageman were indeed to be drafted in the first round next year, he would be the first Gopher drafted in the opening round since Laurence Maroney was drafted 21st overall by the New England Patriots in 2006. Only four other Gophers have been drafted since Maroney, but none higher than the third round. The list includes Matt Spaeth (Round 3, 77th overall), Dominique Barber (Round 6, 173rd), Nate Triplett (Round 5, 167th) and Eric Decker (Round 3, 87th).
Hageman was also awarded the Bronko Nagurski Award, better known as the MVP award, in addition to the Carl Eller Award for outstanding defensive player at the annual team banquet this weekend.