On Friday night, UCLA saw Greg Dulcich reach the big leagues.

The former Bruin tight end was picked by the Denver Broncos in the third round with the 80th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft (16th pick in the third). He’s the third UCLA tight end to be drafted into the NFL in the last four years. Dulcich’s selection also marks three straight years UCLA has had a player drafted in the first three rounds of the draft and 10 straight years with at least one draft pick overall.

Dulcich began his UCLA career as a walk-on, but worked his way up to being one of the team’s leading pass-catchers and a two-year starter at tight end. At 6-foot-4 with good hands and strong route-running ability, Dulcich has versatility to play a number of roles.

After just eight catches as a freshman in 2019, Dulcich led the Bruins in receiving during the 2020 season. He posted 26 catches for 517 yards and five touchdowns in seven games. As a junior, he hauled in 42 catches for 725 yards and five more scores.

The Broncos did not have a first-rounder as a result of the trade that brought Russell Wilson from Seattle to Denver, and they took Oklahoma edge rusher Nik Bonitto in the second round. With a need at tight end following the departure of Noah Fant (sent to Seattle in the Wilson trade), Dulcich has a chance to step right into snaps at tight end as a rookie.