LOGAN, Utah – Former Utah State football player Jalen Royals was selected in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs with the 133rd overall pick.
 
Royals, a 6-foot, 205-pound wide receiver from Powder Springs, Georgia (Hillgrove HS/Georgia Military College) is the first Aggie selected in the NFL Draft since quarterback Jordan Love was the 26th overall pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2020.
 
Royals is the 11th Utah State receiver drafted into the NFL and the first since Kevin Robinson was selected in the sixth round by the Chiefs with the 182nd pick in 2008. The only Aggie receiver drafted higher than Royals is Kevin Curtis, who was a third-round pick (74th overall) by the St. Louis Rams in 2003.
 
All-time, Utah State has now had 124 players selected in the NFL Draft.
 
Royals is the fourth Aggie ever to be drafted by the Chiefs organization joining quarterback Bob
Gagliano (12/319) in 1981, running back Darwin Thompson (6/214) in 2019 and Robinson (6/182) in 2008.
 
Royals spent three seasons at Utah State (2022-24) and appeared in 32 games with 21 starts. He was named a College Football Network Third Team All-American and All-Mountain West First Team selection in 2023 and earned Second Team All-MW honors in 2024.
 
Royals started each of the first seven games this season before suffering a season-ending injury. During those seven games, Royals caught 55 passes for 834 yards with six touchdowns, which included four 100-yard receiving games. He also returned nine kickoffs for 184 yards.
 
For his career, Royals caught 126 passes for 1,914 yards and 21 touchdowns. He ranks tied for third all-time in school history in touchdown receptions, 12th all-time in receiving yards, 16th all-time in receptions, and tied for fifth all-time in 100-yard receiving games with eight. Royals had nine touchdown receptions of 50-plus yards in his career and had a touchdown catch in 13 of his last 16 games.
 
During the 2023 season, Royals started all 13 games and had 71 receptions for 1,080 yards and a school-record 15 touchdowns as he was just the 13th player in school history to record 1,000 receiving yards in a season. His 1,080 receiving yards are the 10th-most in a single season in school history, while his 71 receptions are tied for the 10th most and his 15 total touchdowns are tied for the eighth-most. He also led the nation with seven touchdown receptions of 50-plus yards.
 
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Utah State Wide Receivers Selected In The NFL Draft
Year    Round (Pick) Player                         Team
1969    5 (112)            Mike O'Shea               Minnesota Vikings
1971    12 (299)          Wes Garnett                San Diego Chargers
1972    8 (188)            Bob Wicks                  St. Louis Cardinals
1979    8 (193)            Ron Cassidy                Green Bay Packers
1981    10 (266)          James Murphy            Minnesota Vikings
1986    6 (157)            Solomon Miller          New York Giants
1988    7 (194)            Kendal Smith              Cincinnati Bengals
1990    10 (249)          Pat Newman               Minnesota Vikings
2003    3 (74)              Kevin Curtis               St. Louis Rams
2008    6 (182)            Kevin Robinson          Kansas City Chiefs
2025    4 (133)            Jalen Royals                Kansas City Chiefs