NFL Mock Draft: Two Nittany Lions in the Top 10?

Penn State hasn't had two top-10 picks in the same year since 2000. Could Micah Parsons and Jayson Oweh change that?

Penn State's Micah Parsons and Jayson Oweh got a post-Pro Day draft bump this week, as both landed in the top 10 of NFL Draft Bible's latest mock draft.

NFL Draft Bible has the Miami Dolphins selecting Parsons, the All-America linebacker, at No. 6 overall. Miami last week traded picks with the Philadelphia Eagles to move up in the draft. Oweh, a defensive end, is projected to go to Dallas at No. 10, helping the Cowboys solve a chronic pass-rush deficiency.

This is the first time both Parsons and Oweh have been listed in the top 10 of a mock draft. Penn State has not had two top-10 picks in the same year since Courtney Brown and LaVar Arrington went 1-2 overall in the 2000 draft.

"Two great players, two for-sure first-round values," former NFL head coach Jim Mora said in an interview regarding Parsons and Oweh. "Parsons for sure in the first round. I think they're both potential Pro Bowl players at the next level."

Parsons and Oweh dazzled at Penn State's Pro Day, which scouts and coaches from 31 NFL teams attended. The two are ranked atop their positions entering the draft. NFL Draft Bible called Parsons "the best defensive player in the draft."

Mora, now an NFL analyst, called Parsons "ready-made for the NFL." And though Oweh needs more reps, Mora sees the defensive end as adding multiple layers of value.

"I think he dominates tight ends at the line of scrimmage," Mora said of Oweh. "With Parsons, you just want to let him flow and run and let him attack downhill. With [Oweh], you have a guy who can hold the point and be a dominant run defender. That's not something you always get in a guy who is also a really good pass-rush guy. Both these guys are potential Pro Bowl players. That's heady stuff there. It's not easy to get to the Pro Bowl."

Watch Mora above as he breaks down Parsons' impressive skill set.

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is Editor and Publisher of AllPennState, the site for Penn State news on SI's FanNation Network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs and three Rose Bowls.