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SALT LAKE CITY — As Devin Lloyd picked off a pass from Oregon's Anthony Brown and returned it for a touchdown, it was all but certain that Utah was on its way to claiming its first-ever Pac-12 championship.
The game, played just off the Las Vegas Strip at Allegiant Stadium in December, was a testament to the hard work Lloyd and his teammates went through to overcome unspeakable tragedy and finish the season with a conference title and a Rose Bowl berth.
But on Thursday night, four months after Utah raised the Pac-12 trophy before a sea of red, Lloyd returned to the city that brought his team success and heard his name selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Lloyd, again, made history.
"With the 27th pick of the 2022 NFL draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars selects Utah linebacker Devin Lloyd," NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell said.
In that moment, Lloyd secured his professional future and became the highest-ever drafted linebacker in Utah history. It's a designation that Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said Lloyd would accomplish before the 2021 season kicked off; and on Thursday, Lloyd's dream became a reality.
Jacksonville had the No. 1 overall pick of the night and selected Georgia defensive end Travon Walker. The Jaguars saw an opportunity and traded back into the first round and got the No. 27 pick from Tampa Bay, who reportedly got the No. 33, 106 and 180 picks in the deal.
Devin Lloyd lifted the commissioner up with his hug. 😂@DevinLloyd_ | @Jaguars
— NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2022
📺: 2022 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC pic.twitter.com/nj25qg1tFy
Lloyd committed to Utah — his only Power Five offer — as a low three-star safety in the 247Sports Composite ratings and transformed into a generational talent that was destined for the league after he made the switch to linebacker. Lloyd was the second linebacker off the board in this year's draft.
Ahead of the draft, Lloyd was viewed as one of the best linebackers in the 2022 class and was one of 21 prospective players selected to be in attendance for the night. The only other linebacker invited to the draft was Georgia's Nakobe Dean, who had yet to hear his name called as of Lloyd's selection.
Lloyd was expected to declare for the NFL draft at the conclusion of a disappointing and pandemic-ridden 2020 season, in which Utah only played five games and went 3-2, but he decided to return for one more season to chase a championship ring and to honor the life of fallen teammate Ty Jordan.
"Ty had just passed away, and deep down in my heart I just felt like staying for another year and accomplishing everything that I wanted to accomplish," Lloyd told former Utes receiver Steve Smith as part of an NFL 360 video series ahead of the draft. "I wanted to come back and help them win that championship."
He didn't come back to improve his draft status, he came back to win a Pac-12 championship and to leave no doubt that he was one of the most impactful defensive players in the Pac-12. But his decision to return was forever linked to the No. 22.
When teammate Aaron Lowe was killed nine months after Jordan died, it was Lloyd that helped the team push through the impossible task of finishing the season. And though his teammates looked to him for guidance, he credited Lowe's mother coming to talk to the team a day after her son's death as the turning point in the season and his added drive.
"Having her have the strength to go up and say that after she had just lost her baby, that touched everybody," Lloyd told Smith. "It was the green light; we have to win this now; we have to give everything we have for Aaron and for Ty."
He had dedicated his last season at Utah to his fallen brothers. And as he lifted up the trophy at Allegiant Stadium following his goal of a Pac-12 title, Lloyd said: "This is for them. A-Lowe, Ty, man, this is for you. We love you all."
Even as he prepared for the draft, Lloyd was connected to Jordan and Lowe and made them a part of his journey. At the NFL Combine, Lloyd was randomly assigned the No. 22 — like it was meant to be all along.
"I saw 22 and I was like, 'Man, what do you know," Lloyd told Smith. "I felt like it was no coincidence."
Lloyd joined Utah as a relatively unheralded recruit and was looking for a spot on the field early in his collegiate career. But ahead of his sophomore season in 2019, Lloyd was thrust into the spotlight after veteran linebacker Manny Bowen, who transferred to Utah prior to the season, quit the team. It left Lloyd to fill the void as a starting linebacker for the team.
Though inexperienced, Lloyd quickly transformed the position group and became a stabilizing force to an always stout defensive front seven. The defense finished second in the country and Lloyd led the team with 91 tackles. He was second only to defensive end Bradlee Anae, who was drafted to the Dallas Cowboys in 2020, in tackles for loss and sacks.
And from there, a star was born.
"I see exactly what the NFL looks for in linebackers," Whittingham said of Lloyd last season. "He's got the size, the speed, the explosion, the athleticism, the intelligence. Everything that you see in those elite linebackers in the NFL, Devin possesses them."
Lloyd put in the work and became the leader of the defense. He was not one to brag about his own success, but was all about helping his team. He was a humble menacer who was dedicated to making everyone around him better — all while making himself a first-round draft pick in the NFL.
"He does stuff that probably most kids out there in this country don't do with his work ethic and his commitment to the game," Utah linebacker coach Colton Swan said. "It'd be hard pressed to find a guy that spends as much time watching film and perfecting his play that he does, and he is extremely bright and he's smart; he works hard at it. He wants to be good and that's why he's in the position that he's in."
And if Lloyd is anything like he was in college, the people around him will get better through his leadership. Though he'll be the rookie in the Jaguars's locker room this season, Lloyd won't waste time to make his presence known.
Lloyd is not the highest-ever pick to come from Utah — quarterback Alex Smith holds the honor of being selected No. 1 overall — but he is the highest-ever drafted linebacker in school history and the ninth overall player from Utah selected in the first round.
Ahead of Lloyd's selection, former Utes linebacker Koa Misi held the honor of being the highest-drafted linebacker from Utah; he was selected in the second round as the No. 40 overall pick in 2010. The last Utah player drafted in the first round was offensive tackle Garett Bolles in 2017.
