A Southwest Louisiana Resident Was Drafted in the NFL First Round

There was a big party in SWLA and, more specifically, Jennings last week when Travis Etienne was selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Travis, 22, was born on January 26, 1999 in Jennings. He starred at Jennings High School and then accepted a scholarship to play football at Clemson University. Coming out of high school, he was rated as a four-star recruit and the 15th best running back in the country by 247 Sports. At Clemson Etienne, he hit the ground running, literally, and led the team in rushing as a freshman and never looked back.

He's set many records at Clemson and received tons of awards:

• CFP national champion (2018)
• 2018 ACC Championship Game MVP
• 2 × ACC Player of the Year (2018, 2019)
• 2 × ACC Offensive Player of the Year (2018, 2019)
• 2 × Consensus All-American (2018, 2020)
• 3 × First team All-ACC (2018, 2019, 2020)
• Third-team All-ACC (2017)

Etienne will join his college teammate, Trevor Lawrence, the number one overall pick in the draft, and will play in Jacksonville with the Jaguars. CBS draft analyst, Pete Prisco, calls Travis the perfect NFL back and compares him to Alvin Kamara.

Here are Travis Etienne's measurables from his Pro Day:

• Height: 5’10 1/8”
• Weight: 215 lbs.
• Hand size: 9 3/8 in.
• 40-yard dash: 4.40
• Vertical jump: 33 1/2”
• Broad jump: 10’8”

Travis is expected to be a game one starter for the Jaguars. He has the size and hands to be a three down back. I'm excited to see what he and Lawrence can do in the NFL together.