NFL Draft: Laiatu Latu of Jesuit and UCLA could be Sacramento area’s 15th first-round pick

Laiatu Latu said sliding down a firehouse pole amid the sounds of sirens and the backdrop of organized chaos is on his bucket list.

That’s if the UCLA All-American defensive end doesn’t make a career of ringing bells and sounding alarms as a rush specialist in the NFL, which can be a bit more exhilarating than any firefighter dreams and a great deal more lucrative.

A Jesuit High School graduate, Latu is one of 13 prospects invited to Detroit for the NFL Draft, which kicks off with the first round on Thursday. Latu is projected to go in the first round due to his 6-foot-5, 265-pound frame, his burst off the snap of the ball and his ability to ransack a backfield.

Latu is UCLA’s first winner of the Lombardi Award, presented to college football’s most outstanding defensive lineman, and the Ted Hendricks Award, which goes to the top defensive end in the land. He was the Pac-12’s Defensive Player of the Year after recording 13 sacks in 2023 and leading the country with 1.8 tackles for loss per game.

Latu told media at the NFL Combine he can’t count on football to carry him for a lifetime, saying he dreams of other career pursuits.

“If football didn’t work out, especially after all of this, I’d love to get into firefighting and work my way up to chief,” Latu said.

Latu has visited Los Angeles-based fire stations and engaged in workouts in 50-pound vests that simulate hauling heavy gear into a burning structure.

He is used to burdening a big load and delivering, too. Latu was a Sacramento Bee All-Metro player at Jesuit as one of the most heavily recruited student-athletes in school history. He was an All-State performer who now hopes to become UCLA’s first first-round draft selection since 2018 when quarterback Josh Rosen and tackle Kolton Miller were picked in Round 1. Miller of Roseville High School landed with the Raiders, where he still starts in the trenches.

Latu would be the Sacramento area’s 15th first-round pick, dating back to the first one in 1978, when linebacker Dan Bunz of Oakmont High School roots went to the 49ers. The only two Sacramento-area products who played defensive line in college and were picked in the first round were Reggie Rogers of Norte Del Rio High in Del Paso Heights (since closed), who went to Detroit in 1987, and Arik Armstead of Pleasant Grove High in Elk Grove, who went to the 49ers in 2015.

Latu accepted a scholarship to Washington after his Jesuit time, but he never played in a game. He was urged by Washington team doctors before his sophomore season to medically retire after suffering a neck injury in practice. Latu sought out a second opinion. He had fusion surgery, left for UCLA and was cleared to return to action. He has had no neck issues since.

Latu said he leaned on family and faith to get him through his off period of football, and then he played freely in producing stellar seasons in 2022 and 2023. UCLA coach DeShaun Foster has called Latu “a complete football player.”

“I never let it get the best of me,” Latu said of his plight. “I continuously worked out. I continuously got stronger. I continuously worked on my pass-rush moves. Really just locked in and never gave up on my dreams. I had dreams of being in this moment, being in the NFL, since (I was) a kid. I never gave up on that. God was with me through it all and really blessed me to be here in this moment.”

FROM SACRAMENTO TO THE NFL

The Sacramento region has produced 14 first-round picks in the NFL draft. Here’s the list with their draft year, position, high school, NFL team and draft position:

2019: OL Jonah Williams, Folsom, Cincinnati Bengals, 11th

2018: OL Kolton Miller, Roseville, Oakland Raiders, 15th

2015: DL Arik Armstead, Pleasant Grove, San Francisco 49ers, 17th

2015: LB Shaq Thompson, Grant, Carolina Panthers, 25th

2002: WR Donte Stallworth, Grant, New Orleans Saints, 13th

1997: WR Rae Carruth, Valley, Carolina Panthers, 27th

1987: DL Reggie Rogers, Norte Del Rio, Detroit Lions, 7th

1985: OL Trevor Matich, Rio Americano, New England Patriots, 28th

1984: CB Don Rogers, Norte Del Rio, Cleveland Browns, 18th

1983: QB Tony Eason, Delta, New England Patriots, 15th

1983: QB Ken O’Brien, Jesuit, New York Jets, 24th

1982: RB Gerald Willhite, Cordova, Denver Broncos, 21st

1978: OL Gordon King, Bella Vista, New York Giants, 10th

1978: LB Dan Bunz, Oakmont, San Francisco 49ers, 24th

▪ Receiver Brandon Aiyuk of Sierra College in Rocklin was picked 25th overall by the 49ers in 2020, but he did not attend a local high school.