St. Thomas Aquinas graduate Nick Bosa became Broward County’s second-highest drafted player in NFL history when he was picked by the San Francisco 49ers at No. 2 in the first round on Thursday night.
Only South Broward alum Tucker Frederickson, who was taken by the New York Giants with the first pick in 1965 as a running back out of Auburn, has been taken higher than Bosa.
Bosa, as Ohio State junior defensive end, bested older brother Joey Bosa by one pick in draft position. In 2016, the elder Bosa went No. 3 to the San Diego Chargers, who since have moved to Los Angeles. Father John Bosa was also a Miami Dolphins first-round pick (No. 16) in 1987, as was the uncle on their mother Cheryl’s side, Eric Kumerow, in 1988.
Nick Bosa, who many pegged as the draft’s top prospect until Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray measured in at 5-foot-10 and 1/8 at the NFL Combine, went behind Murray, who was selected by the Arizona Cardinals at No. 1. He will have a chance to battle him for years, competing in the NFC West.
“This is all the work I put in since I was 7 years old, and it’s finally here,” Bosa told ESPN’s Suzy Kolber on television shortly after being drafted. “I want to get with my team, and I want to kick some butt on the field. I’m so excited.”
Bosa had the star quality in him from early on in high school. While Joey Bosa was a senior and five-star recruit on his way to Ohio State, Nick was already starting on the same St. Thomas defensive line as a freshman in the fall of 2012.
“With us, that’s very hard to do in our program, especially on the offensive line and the defensive line,” said Aquinas athletic director and longtime football coach George Smith. “It was like, ‘Wow!’ Nick was one of those guys that worked and worked and worked, like Joey did.”
What always allowed Nick Bosa to stay ahead of those at his age was that he tried to stay on the same level of Joey – despite him being three years older and an elite prospect in both his recruiting class and draft class.
“What Joey did, it was kind of like, hey, Nick would do the same thing,” Smith said. “It was kind of like, ‘Look what Joey’s doing. I have to come with the same mindset’— that type of thing. That’s exactly what the whole plan between those guys was. Joey’s having success, and he’s doing this and I got to follow that lead a little bit.”
Following that lead, after both were prized prospects out of St. Thomas, led Nick to also trek to Ohio State, their mother’s alma mater.
“Nick is blessed with elite athletic lineage from both his mother and father’s family background,” said Aquinas coach Roger Harriott, a St. Thomas alum who coached Nick Bosa there his high school senior season and has known him since he was in sixth grade. “It’s obvious that Joey and Nick’s parents have done a great job with providing support and resources conducive to nurturing their potential in the right coaching environments.”
With the Buckeyes, Nick Bosa was an ESPN Freshman All-American in 2016 and Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year as a sophomore in 2017 before his junior season was cut short after three weeks due to a core muscle injury. It was then he announced he was done playing college football and would declare for the NFL draft. Bosa accumulated 17.5 sacks and 29 tackles for loss over 29 games in college.
Smith said the Bosa brothers are “absolutely” near carbon copies of each other. From their paths to the NFL, their size – Joey measured in at 6-foot-5 and 269 pounds at the 2016 NFL combine while Nick this year was 6-4 and 266 pounds – and skill set with the ability to explode off the line and use their hands to create separation.
“He possesses great ability to be a formidable defensive force off the edge against offensive tackles in the NFL,” Harriott said.
The similarities continue with their character traits and work ethic.
“They were very coachable as far as on the football field, but even more than what they did off the field as far as hard work, those type of things,” Smith said. “Both of them were great teammates. They were just players like everybody else. … They were great leaders too.”
With Joey Bosa being 2016 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, a Pro Bowl selection in 2017 and collecting 28.5 sacks in his first three NFL seasons, if Nick continues on his brother’s path, he too would have a bright pro career.