SOUTH BEND (AP) — Notre Dame fans eager to see which NFL teams their favorite former Irish players will play for next season likely will have to wait until Sunday to find out.

For the first time since 2000, when the only Fighting Irish player taken was quarterback Jarious Jackson in the seventh round by the Denver Broncos, no Notre Dame players are expected to be drafted during the first day of the draft on Saturday.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. predicts safety David Bruton will be the first Irish player taken, most likely in the fourth or fifth rounds. He describes Bruton as "a safety whose got very good physical capability."

Bruton led the Irish with four interceptions last season and was second on the team with 97 tackles. Bruton said he's seen projections of him being picked anywhere from the late second round to the fourth round. He doesn't plan to stress too much over when he's taken.

"It's just a blessing to have this opportunity, and I'll be happy wherever I go," he said.

Last year, former Notre Dame tight end John Carlson and defensive tackle Trevor Laws were taken in the second round. A year earlier, quarterback Brady Quinn was taken in the first round and defensive end Victor Abiamiri in the second.

The last time the Irish didn't have a player taken in the first two rounds was in 2005, when defensive end Justin Tuck was taken in the third round by the New York Giants. Back then, the first day of the draft went three rounds. Now it just goes two.

Kiper predicts better days ahead for Irish players, saying it will be interesting to see how quarterback Jimmy Clausen continues to progress and predicting that receiver Michael Floyd will be a star.

"They have other guys on both sides of the ball who are up-and-comers. So to me, it's getting better there. And that should be reflected in more winning," he said. "But when you're a mediocre football team, you're usually not going to be producing the draft choices you did when you were battling for the national championship."

Other former Irish players hoping to hear their names called this weekend include cornerback Terrail Lambert, offensive tackle Mike Turkovich, defensive end Justin Brown, linebacker Maurice Crum Jr., defensive tackle Pat Kuntz and fullback Asaph Schwapp.