 The Irish lost a number of players to graduation and the NFL.Former consensus All-American, and two-year starting wide receiver, Jeff Samardzija, was signed by Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs as a pitcher, while twelve others were signed onto NFL teams.Former offensive starters Brady Quinn, Ryan Harris, and Dan Santucci and defensive starters Victor Abiamiri, Derek Landri, Mike Richardson, and Chinedum Ndukwe were taken in the 2007 NFL Draft, while five others, Marcus Freeman, Chris Frome, Travis Leitko, Rhema McKnight, and Darius Walker, signed contracts with NFL teams.