2015 NFL Draft: Utah State LB Kyler Fackrell on Mel Kiper's big board

Utah State had two players drafted in the 2014 NFL Draft and had another seven players signed as undrafted free agents. The 2015 NFL Draft is still just under a year away and the early big boards and mock drafts are sprinkling their way into the world.

Utah State linebacker Kyler Fackrell is getting some notice from various outlets, and the latest comes from ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr., who presented his first big board for 2015. Kiper has Fackrell at No. 18, and has this to say:

Many people haven't seen him play, but Fackrell is a big-time athlete at 6-5 and about 250 pounds, and he's already started 27 games as he enters his junior season. He had 13.0 tackles for loss last season and could have had more on what was a very good Aggies defense.

Also, one note is that Fackrell is an underclassmen heading into the upcoming college football season and will be a junior. He possibly was the top defensive player on Utah State last year. In 2013, Fackrell had 82 tackles, an interception returned for a touchdown, 13 tackles for a loss and five sacks.

Those tackles were not as high as others on Utah State but the big plays such as tackles for loss and sacks were on par with the best in the conference and within a very good Utah State team.

The word is finally getting out after a few years of sending multiple players, including defenders, to the NFL, and teams and evaluators are taking a closer look at those in Logan, Utah.

This also enhances the Aggie program overall by seeing Fackrell on these early season draft watch lists which is full of elite players, and this does a similar boost as seeing Chuckie Keeton's name being mentioned as a possible Heisman trophy candidate.