UCF edge Malachi Lawrence brings twitchy traits to Cowboys in NFL draft

ORLANDO — Malachi Lawrence became the first UCF player selected in the NFL draft 's opening round since 2018. The Dallas Cowboys selected Lawrence, a 6-foot-4, 253-pound edge rusher, with the 23rd pick in the 2026 NFL draft, held Thursday, April 23, in Pittsburgh. He joins exclusive company as only the fifth Knight taken in Round 1, a group that includes Daunte Culpepper, Blake Bortles, Breshad Perriman and, most recently, Mike Hughes.

Following UCF's pro day on March 25, Lawrence said it was a "blessing" to be considered among the draft's best available edge defenders. His pitch to the 17 teams he met with in the pre-draft process was, "I'm a great pass-rusher. I have a great motor.

I'm a captain. " Those teams, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston, were the Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders, Las Vegas Raiders, Tennessee Titans and New York Jets. Lawrence played all five of his college seasons for the Knights , emerging as a starter ahead of his redshirt junior season.

The 6-foot-4, 253-pound Louisville native compiled 20 career sacks, good for 10th all-time in program history. He cracked the All-Big 12 first team in 2025, joining RJ Harvey, Javon Baker and Tre'Mon Morris-Brash as the only Knights to do so in their three seasons in the conference. Lawrence recorded a career-high 11 tackles for loss, seven sacks — including back-to-back, multi-sack performances against West Virginia and Baylor — and an 89.