Former Rockets John Greco and Jalen Parmele were both selected in the NFL Draft in the second day of the draft on Sunday. Immediately at the conclusion of the draft, former Rocket punter Brett Kern was signed to as free agent contract with the Denver Broncos.

It is the first time that two Rockets were taken in the NFL Draft since Darren Anderson and Vince Marrow were picked in the fourth and 11th rounds, respectively, in the 1992 draft.

Greco, an offensive lineman was selected as the second pick of the third round by the St. Louis Rams. He was the 65th pick overall, the highest Rocket draft pick since Dan Williams was taken as the 11th overall pick of the 1993 Draft by the Denver Broncos. Parmele was taken by the Miami Dolphins as the 10th pick of the sixth round, the 176th overall selection.

Greco started 49 consecutive games in his career, which accounts for every UT game over past four seasons, including 36 straight at left tackle. As a sophomore, he took over the left tackle spot vacated by Nick Kaczur, now the starting right tackle for the New England Patriots..

Parmele, from Midland, MI, is the first UT running back taken in the draft since Chester Taylor was picked in the sixth round by Baltimore in 2002. He was  named first-team All-MAC in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, Parmele finished third in balloting for MAC Offensive Player of the Year. He was ninth in nation and second in MAC in rushing with 1,511 yards and added 14 rushing TDs. His 1,511 yards rushing in 2007 was the fourth-highest mark in UT history. He finished his career in fourth place on UT’s career rushing list with 3,119 yards. He caught the eye of many NFL scouts when he rushed for a game-high 46 yards in the Hula Bowl on Jan. 12.

Kern finished the season ranked second in the nation in punting average (46.1). His punting average in 2007 ranks as the best in UT history, shattering the previous record of 43.5 by Brandon Hannum in 2003. Kern was one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award, given annually to the nation's top punter. Kern was named third-team All-America by both the Associated Press and Rivals.com. He also was voted the MAC Special Teams Player of the Year and earned second-team All-MAC. honors. Kern impressed scouts with strong showings in the Hula Bowl on Jan. 12 and the East-West Shrine Game on Jan. 19.