Central Catholic graduate Bland selected in 2022 NFL Draft. Here’s where he’s going
Former Central Catholic star DaRon Bland is headed to Texas.
The standout cornerback was selected in the fifth round (167th overall) in the 2022 NFL Draft on Saturday afternoon by the Dallas Cowboys.
Central Catholic coach Roger Canepa says Bland is the first player from the school drafted into the NFL.
Bland was a three-sport athlete for the Raiders, playing football and basketball and running track. He helped the Raiders earn a Division VI state title his sophomore year and as a junior was a key member of the defense on the 2015 Open Small School State Championship team that went 16-0. He finished the season with 48 tackles (28 solo), team highs in interceptions (5), pick sixes (3) and interception yards (138) and had three passes defensed. He also finished that season with four receiving touchdowns and returned one kickoff for a touchdown.
As a senior, he was named second team all-state medium school by CalHi Sports, Valley Oak League Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-District by The Bee. He finished the season with 44 total tackles, two interceptions and returned one for a touchdown.
After graduating in 2017, he played his first three seasons at Sacramento State where he played in seven games as a true freshman and started all 23 games of his sophomore and junior seasons. As a junior he earned first team all-Big Sky honors as a defensive back and earned the team’s Outstanding Defensive Back award in 2019.
Bland used his extra year of eligibility to play at Fresno State where he started the final nine games of the season. He played in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.
In his college career, Bland totaled 137 tackles, five interceptions and 18 pass breakups.
At Fresno State’s pro day, he ran a 4.42 40-yard dash, the fastest at the event and would have been in the top 15 of all cornerbacks that ran at the NFL Combine, had he been invited.
This story was originally published May 1, 2022 at 8:41 AM.
