Updated: Fresno State’s Jake Haener drafted by NFL’s New Orleans Saints. ‘It’s so surreal’

Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener was selected by the New Orleans Saints in the fourth round of the NFL Draft on Saturday and will share a meeting room with Derek Carr, another Bulldogs great.

“It’s so surreal, I can’t even put it into words right now,” Haener said. “I just got off the phone with Derek and so excited to learn from him. I can’t even put it into words.

“How many times does an opportunity like this happen and learn from an all-time great at the same school you played at and playing in the same NFL team? I’m just really speechless.”

Haener said Carr had reached out through a text message and said he knew what the Saints were going to do. Then, Carr called him.

“I got off the phone with him and he said he was so excited to be able to teach me some of the things he learned over the years and be a mentor for me,” Haener said. ”I think that’s really cool.”

Along that line, Haener said that the Saints were his childhood team and that he wears No. 9 because of Drew Brees. And, the Saints traded up to draft Haener, sending a future fourth-round pick and the first of two seventh-round picks later Saturday to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“That’s a great feeling to know you’re going to a place that wants you and believes in you,” Haener said.

Haener was the 127th overall selection and the sixth quarterback taken in the draft, which wraps up with the fourth through seventh rounds. He is the sixth Fresno State player selected in the fourth round or higher since 2010, when running back Ryan Mathews was drafted by the San Diego Chargers with the 12th overall pick.

Wideout Devon Wylie went to Kansas City in the fourth round in 2012, safety Phillip Thomas went to Washington in the fourth round in 2013, quarterback Derek Carr went to the Raiders and wideout Davante Adams to Green Bay in the second round in 2014 and linebacker Mykal Walker went to Atlanta in the fourth round in the 2020 draft.

Haener in his senior season came back from what initially was thought to be a season-ending ankle injury to lead the Bulldogs to the final seven victories in a nine-game winning streak, as they became the first team in history to finish 10-4 after a 1-4 start.

The Bulldogs quarterback hit 72.2% of his passes in those games, averaging 291.7 yards, with 16 touchdown passes and went the final six games and 214 pass attempts without an interception.

His passing efficiency rating in that stretch was 162.14 and for the season it was 158.65, the highest for a starting quarterback at Fresno State since David Carr posted a 165.91 in 2001.

Haener in missing four full games did not play in the required 75% of the Bulldogs’ schedule to qualify among the national leaders, but his completion percentage of 72% would have ranked second in the nation and his passing efficiency rating 18th.