Aaron Curry, linebacker

Curry, who played his college football for Wake Forest in North Carolina, was picked by the Seattle Seahawks with the fourth selection of the draft.

Curry was not always destined for a career in the NFL. He initially worried that he would not even make it to college to play given that he weighed less than 14 stone when looking for a team to take him.

So determined was Curry to be successful, on the morning he met the coach of the Wake Forest team, he did hundreds of push-ups and bicep curls, wore a basketball shirt with nothing underneath and large boots in order to make himself look bigger.

He now weights more than 18 stone and was rated the best linebacker of the Draft.

Curry, who was homeless at one point in his life, cried as the Seahawks selected and said: "I've been through a lot growing up.

"The first thing I thought was, Thank you Mom for putting up with me and supporting me all my life to be able to reach this point."