Turning in the best season of his collegiate career helped Cornell Powell's stock immensely in recent months. The payoff came Saturday, as the former Clemson wide receiver was taken by the Kansas City Chiefs in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. The Chiefs took Powell 37th in the round, making him the 181st pick overall in the draft.
Join Tigerillustrated.com subscribers on The West Zone message board!
Powell became the fifth Tiger to come off the board in the draft this weekend, joining former quarterback Trevor Lawrence, running back Travis Etienne, offensive lineman Jackson Carman and wide receiver Amari Rodgers.
Feature: THE NFL DRAFT's NO. 1 PICK | Thursday night conversation with Trevor Lawrence
Lawrence and Etienne were both taken by the Jacksonville Jaguars in round one with Lawrence becoming the first-ever former Clemson player to be selected as the No. 1 pick overall. Etienne went to the Jags as the 25th pick overall. Carman went early in round two, coming off the board at No. 14 in the round, 46th overall in the draft courtesy of the Cincinnati Bengals. Rodgers was taken by Green Bay with the 22nd pick of the third round (85th overall).
Become a subscriber at Tigerillustrated.com!
Powell had been a reserve for much of his Clemson career, but flourished in 2020 when presented with an opportunity for substantial playing time. The Greenville (N.C.) native finished his final season in a Clemson uniform with 53 catches for 882 yards and seven touchdowns. Powell had accumulated 40 receptions combined over the previous four seasons.
ALSO SEE: The Dabo Shadow | Danny's Days | Danny's Days II | Danny's Days III | Danny's Days IV | Danny's Days V | Danny's Days VI | Danny's Days VII | Danny's Days VIII | Danny's Days IX | Danny's Days X | Danny's Days XI | Danny's Days XII | Danny's Days XIII | Danny's Days XIV | Danny's Days XV | Danny's Days XVI | Danny's Days: THE END | THE STORY OF UIAGALELEI | THE STORY OF UIAGALELEI - Part 2 | THE STORY OF UIAGALELEI - Part 3 | Clemson's commitments
For his contributions last fall, the veteran wideout earned third-team All-ACC honors.
Powell played in 54 games in his Clemson career, starting 12 games.
A member of Clemson's 2016 recruiting class, Powell was issued a four-star billing from Rivals.com. The network rated the Shrine Bowl participant fourth nationally among receiver prospects, third overall regardless of position in the state of North Carolina. Powell also was a Rivals100 member, rated 36th nationally overall regardless of position, later selecting Clemson over many major offers, notably Alabama, Florida State, Ohio State, North Carolina and Oklahoma.
Tigerillustrated.com will have more on Clemson's draft picks later this weekend.
FROM THE TIGER FAN SHOP: Click HERE for more DEALS on officially-licensed CLEMSON apparel and gear!
