Isaiah Land has been drafted by the Pittsburgh Maulers with the 33rd pick in the 2023 USFL College Draft.
Isaiah Land finished his college career at Florida A&M University with 89 tackles, seven pass deflections, and four forced fumbles. In 2021, Land led the FCS in sacks with 19.5 and was named Buck Buchanan Award winner. His outstanding earned him an invite to the 2023 Reese’s Senior Bowl after announcing his declaration to the NFL Draft.
Land was a linebacker in college and told HBCU Gameday that he was focused on showing his ability to come off the edge during the Senior Bowl earlier this month.
“I was getting impatient because we weren’t getting to third down where I might get a chance to go outside and play D-line. We never got those third-and-long situations where I could move from inside linebacker,” Land said. “I knew that whenever I got my chance on that edge I had to go get one. I got literally one rep, one pass rush off the edge and I went and made the best of it and got me a sack. That kinda made my day, made my whole week,” Land said.
Isaiah Land at the Reese’s Senior Bowl. Photos Juan Moore
The USFL currently has Isaiah Land listed at a defensive end and that could be due to what he was able to show off during the Senior Bowl.
Land has already earned an invitation to the 2023 NFL Combine ahead of the NFL Draft in April. It will be interested to see how the next few months play out for Land as the NFL Draft overlaps with the USFL season.