Why Titans first-round pick Keldric Faulk's mom was brought to tears at NFL draft

TL;DR

Keldric Faulk's mother, Lakendral Barnes, was overwhelmed with emotion when her son was drafted by the Tennessee Titans as the 31st overall pick. She expressed her joy and pride, recalling the moment she learned of his selection.

Key points

Keldric Faulk was drafted by the Tennessee Titans.
He was the 31st overall pick in the NFL draft.
His mother, Lakendral Barnes, was emotional during the event.
Barnes signed Keldric up for football in first grade.
She expressed joy and pride upon learning of his selection.

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Tennessee Titans

Keldric Faulk

Lakendral Barnes clenched her fingers tight around the powder blue Tennessee Titans jersey she was holding on April 24. It was the jersey with her oldest son's last name − Faulk, as in Keldric Faulk − across the top of the back, the one with the No. 1 underneath that name.

A Titans official had come to retrieve the garment for a photo opportunity after Faulk and fellow first-round NFL draft pick Carnell Tate met with the media in Nashville a day after they were selected in the NFL draft. Tate with the fourth overall pick and Faulk with the 31st.

Barnes, who signed up Keldric for football when he was in first grade, was slow to let go. She relented when she was reassured it would land back in her hands.

"I was ecstatic. I was filled with emotion," Barnes told The Tennessean of her reaction the night before, when Faulk's agent called to inform her he'd been drafted. "I cried. I cried. It was a joyous moment.

"I was like, 'Where's he going? Where's he going? Where's he going?' "

Then Keldric called.

"He just fell to his knees," Barnes continued.

Carnell Tate, left and Keldric Faulk enter the room as the Titans present their first two NFL Draft selections at their practice facility in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, April 24, 2026.