April 21, 2002
SAN DIEGO - Three members of the 2001 San Diego State football team were selected during the seven rounds of the National Football League draft, which concluded Sunday.
The first Aztec taken was offensive lineman Chester Pitts, who went to the Houston Texans in the second round. He was the first player taken from a Mountain West Conference school. Pitts is a native of Los Angeles. He played tackle at State but is projected as a guard in Houston.
Larry Ned who ran for 1,549 yards as a senior while earning All-America honors, was taken in the sixth round by the Oakland Raiders. He becomes the first Aztec running back to be drafted since George Jones in 1997.
Another member of the Aztec offensive line was selected when Mission Bay High School's Mike Houghton was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round.
Houghton?s selection was especially significant as it continues a budding Aztec tradition. San Diego State has had two offensive linemen selected in the same draft three times in the past five years. That list includes Kyle Turley (Saints), Ephraim Salaam (Falcons), Andrew Kline (Rams), Mike Malano (Vikings), and 2002 picks Pitts and Houghton.
Twenty-four Aztecs have been drafted since 1990, including 13 since 1997.