Patrick Surtain II, son of former Dolphins star, heads to Broncos in first round of Draft
Get ready for another Patrick Surtain in the NFL
Patrick Surtain II, the son of two-time All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain, is headed to the Denver Broncos as the No. 9 pick in the first round of the NFL Draft. The cornerback, who starred at Plantation American Heritage before an All-American career with the Alabama Crimson Tide, is the first player from South Florida to be taken in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Surtain’s path to the first round of the Draft on Thursday is no surprise given his pedigree, the coaching he got and the hype he received throughout his high school career at American Heritage.
In 2014, Surtain II was a freshman for the Patriots as they won their second straight state title. Former NFL cornerback Mike Rumph, now an assistant recruiting director for the Miami Hurricanes, was the coach and Surtain Sr. was the defensive coordinator. In 2015, Surtain II was a first-team all-state pick and became one of the most coveted recruits in the Class of 2018. Surtain Sr. took over as American Heritage’s coach in 2016 after Rumph left for Miami, and he and his son won two more state titles before Surtain II headed to Alabama as the No. 1 cornerback in the nation, according to the 247Sports.com composite rankings.
He was groomed for it from the time he was young. Some of his earliest football memories, he said, are watching the loaded Dolphin defenses of the 2000s, when Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas, Sam Madison and, of course, Surtain Sr. were the main attractions in Miami Gardens.
After Surtain Sr. retired, he started working as a coach for his son, first in an unofficial capacity and eventually for Surtain II’s youth teams after he got tired of just yelling his input from the sideline.
It all coalesced to make Surtain II one of the top defensive back prospects in recent history, with a 6-foot-2 frame, a Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year award and a national championship ring.
Surtain II also kicks off what could be a historic draft for the Patriots. Surtain Sr. expects seven of his former players to get drafted this weekend, which would break a record for most Draft picks from a single high school in one year. Currently, Miami Northwestern, Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas and Bradenton IMG Academy share the record with four.
Another former American Heritage corner could come off the board later Thursday, too. Cornerback Tyson Campbell, who was the nation’s No. 2 corner in the 2018 class, projects as a potential first-round pick after a standout career with the Georgia Bulldogs.
This story was originally published April 29, 2021 at 9:27 PM.
