COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The San Francisco 49ers selected Utah junior quarterback Alex Smith with the first pick of the 2005 NFL Draft Saturday. Smith's selection as the overall number one pick is a first for both the University of Utah and the six-year old Mountain West Conference. Smith was the fifth straight quarterback to be taken first overall in the NFL draft. He follows Eli Manning, Carson Palmer, David Carr and Michael Vick as top selections since 2001.

His number one draft status tops what has been an incredible year for the San Diego product. Smith led Utah to a perfect 12-0 season in 2004, including a 35-7 victory over Pittsburgh in the Tostitos Fiesta and a final national ranking of No. 4. All of his success on the field led Smith to become Utah's first Heisman Trophy finalist in December, finishing fourth in the balloting. He was also Utah's first-ever national player of the year in football--winning that honor from Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News and ESPN.com. One of three Davey O'Brien finalists for the nation's top quarterback, he was also a first-team All-American and the Football Academic All-American of the Year (CoSIDA).

Smith is the fourth all-time first round draft pick in the six-year history of the Mountain West Conference. The MWC's previous high pick was offensive lineman Jordan Gross taken No. 8 by the Carolina Panthers in 2003. Other first round picks for the league include, linebacker Brian Urlacher of New Mexico chosen No. 8 by the Chicago Bears in 2000, and linebacker Rob Morris of BYU selected No. 28 by the Indianapolis Colts, also in the 2000 draft.

Smith was one of four Mountain West Conference players selected on the first day of the 2005 NFL Draft, tying the league record for most first day picks set in 2002. The 16 overall selections in 2005 are also the most MWC players selected in an NFL draft, surpassing the 15 taken in 2002. The highest pick that year was offensive lineman Chester Pitts of San Diego State, who was selected by the Houston Texans in the second round (50th overall pick of the draft).

Below is a list of MWC players selected in the 2005 NFL Draft.