Defensive lineman Vita Vea became the fifth Husky since 2015 to be selected in the first round of the NFL draft when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose him with the 12th overall pick Thursday night.
Vea, 6-feet-5 and 347 pounds, is the first defensive tackle selected in this draft. He was in attendance at the draft in Arlington, Texas, with his family and UW coach Chris Petersen.
As a junior last fall, Vea had 44 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, four pass breakups and one blocked kick and was named the Pac-12’s defensive player of the year.