New York Jets Pick Foley Fatukasi in the 6th Round of the 2018 NFL Draft

The New York Jets made UConn defensive tackle Folorunso “Foley” Fatukasi the 180th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the sixth pick in the sixth round. He becomes the 27th Husky football player drafted since 2005 and the first UConn Husky picked this year.

The Far Rockaway, NY native was the first person from Beach Channel High School to go directly to an FBS school and now its first ever NFL Draft pick. He played in all 12 games for the Huskies as a redshirt freshman and became a consistent threat from the trenches, amassing 14 sacks and 16 TFL over his final three years and reaching career highs in both as a senior.

Fatukasi was a beast for UConn and also benefitted himself by demonstrating some scheme versatility in moving from Bob Diaco’s 3-4 to Billy Crocker’s 3-3-5. In addition to being a disruptive defender on the field, Fatukasi was a respected teammate and community leader off of it.

Jets head coach Todd Bowles is getting an athletic interior defender for his 3-4 defense, and someone who the New York Jets SB Nation site pegged as a potential sleeper heading into the draft. Like many UConn defenders before him, Fatukasi has as good a chance as any of catching on in the league given his experience, toughness, and ability to make plays. He’ll have an adjustment period but can definitely become a steady contributor at the next level.

Congratulations and best of luck to Fatukasi, his family, and the people in his life who helped him get there. On Sundays, he’ll be playing his home games a little over an hour away from his hometown and there are also plenty of UConn fans who also root for the Jets, so he’ll have a solid built-in fanbase on his new team.