Despite Miami quarterback Cam Ward being taken No. 1 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans, the prevailing narrative on the opening night, which was televised on ESPN, focused on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders’ fall.

Ward’s former coach at Miami, Mario Cristobal, says he knows why.

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In a post on X by Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, Cristobal said he spoke to “a million people” about Ward during pre-draft meetings, but ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. was not one of them.

“Never heard from (Kiper),” Cristobal told McMurphy. “I don’t think I’ve ever talked to him.”

Kiper has been ESPN’s head draft analyst since 1984, leading the way during the event and analyzing picks as they happen. But on April 24, after Ward was taken No. 1 overall by the Titans, Kiper spent most of the night commenting on Sanders, as opposed to discussing Ward.

In a response to McMurphy’s tweet on X, Kiper confirmed he did not speak to Cristobal, but that he had Ward ranked higher than Sanders on his draft board.

Kiper also said he didn’t speak to Shedeur Sanders’ father and coach at Colorado, Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders.

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“Interesting isn’t it,” Kiper said in his post.

Ward, 22, become the third-ever No. 1 overall pick in Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers history, and the first since running back Earl Campbell in 1978. He threw for 4,314 yards and 39 touchdowns for the Hurricanes in 2024 and finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting.

Sanders, who had been projected to be picked in the first round, took a precipitous tumble in the draft. He was taken by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round, No. 144 overall.

WARD: Cam Ward isn’t here for the bull crap, and with Tennessee Titans, it’s refreshing | Estes

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Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. responds to Miami coach on Titans’ pick Cam Ward