Brandon Pili and Tyree Wilson
Back in the day, Tiffany Weatherton of Anchorage was the greatest long jumper in Alaska. The former Dimond High track and field star won four state titles from 1991 to 1994 and went on to compete at the University of Oregon.
Today, her son Tyree Wilson is a projected first-round pick in the NFL Draft.
Anchorage’s Brandon Pili is another player with a Dimond Lynx link who hopes to hear his name called sometime during this week’s draft.
The 6-foot-3, 345-pound defensive lineman last year wrapped up his college career with USC, where he played 52 games – the most in the Pac-12 Conference by an Alaskan.
Pili is not projected to be picked among the 259 selections across seven rounds, but you never know. The three-day draft kicks off tomorrow.
NFL Draft
Round 1: Thursday, 4pm
Rounds 2-3: Friday, 3pm
Rounds 4-7: Saturday, 8am
Eleven Alaskans have gone in NFL Draft history, with the first coming in 1982 when Anchorage’s Rocky Klever was selected by the New York Jets in the ninth round. Klever was a tight end out of the University of Montana and West High who played in the NFL from 1982 to 1986.
Who was the highest drafted Alaskan?
That would be North Pole’s Daryn Colledge, an offensive lineman out of Boise State University who was selected 47th overall in 2006 by the Green Bay Packers in the second round. He went on to become a starting guard in Green Bay and helped the Packers win Super Bowl XLV with a 31-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2011.
Who was the most recent Alaskan drafted?
In 2011, Anchorage’s Daniel Hardy was picked in the seventh round by the Tampa Bay Bucs. The tight end out of the University of Idaho and West High never played in the league.
A likely top-10 pick, Wilson will be joined in Kansas City on draft night by his mom Tiffany, who is track and field royalty in Alaska.
Tyree Wilson and his mom Tiffany Weatherton of Anchorage head to the NFL Draft in Kansas City.
A six-time state champion, Weatherton was the first athlete to win four titles in the long jump. And she did it in style, twice winning on her final jump. Some of her records in the Cook Inlet Conference stood for nearly 25 years. Her 1993 record in the 300 hurdles was broken in 2016 and her 1994 record in the triple jump fell in 2015.
Weatherton gave birth to Wilson on May 20, 2000, at Providence Alaska Medical Center. He was the biggest baby that day at 9 pounds, 9 ounces.
He now stands 6-foot-6 and weighs 276 pounds, and last year with Texas Tech University was named an All-American First Team linebacker by five NCAA-recognized organizations.
Wilson had seven sacks, 14 tackles for loss and a forced fumble in 10 games for the Red Raiders and bypassed his final year of college eligibility to enter the NFL Draft. He’s considered among the best pass rushers in this year’s draft class and projects as a top-10 pick.
Great Alaska Flex Off: Pili and Wilson
Some people will debate whether Wilson is truly an Alaskan (he was raised in Texas), but there is no doubt about Pili.
He will forever be part of the Dimond Lynx legacy.
In 2015, he was named All-CIC in wrestling, track and field, and football. In 2016, he started his senior season at Dimond and scored on a 1-yard touchdown run to help the Lynx beat Chugiak 21-14 in the season opener.
Days later he transferred to Westview in Portland, Oregon, where two weeks later he debuted with a 13-tackle, 2-sack performance that also saw him make a goal-line stand on the final play of the second quarter in a 27-21 win over Sherwood.
Four days later, he received his first NCAA Division I offer from Oregon State University. The next month USC and UCLA came calling.
After the football season, Pili returned to Anchorage and graduated with his class at Dimond. When he played in the inaugural Polynesian Bowl in 2017, he wore Dimond-issued pads under his all-star jersey.
Dude is a Rage City rock star.
Pili (second from right) at Anchorage Football Stadium in 2011.
At USC, Pili was a steady player who saved his best for last and stood tall last year as a senior for a Trojans team that won 11 games and qualified for a bowl game for the first time since 2019.
USC featured Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams and was in the hunt for a College Football Playoff berth before losing to Utah in the Pac-12 championship game.
Pili ended the season with a career-best 25 tackles in 14 games and finished his career with 74 tackles, including 10 for loss. He added 3.5 sacks, four pass deflections and a blocked field goal. His 16 quarterback hurries were the most since he had 20 in 2019 and his three QB hits were a personal best.
What double team? Photo by Photo by John McGillen/USC Athletics