Brandon Cisse’s first NFL call already had the weight of a childhood dream coming true. The landing spot made it even more personal.
The Green Bay Packers selected the South Carolina cornerback with the No. 52 overall pick in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, using their first pick of the class on a defensive back they believe can help strengthen the cornerback room.
Cisse then shared a family detail that made the Green Bay fit feel almost scripted: his girlfriend’s family is from Wisconsin and full of Packers fans.
Cisse has not publicly identified his girlfriend in the available post-draft comments, but he did speak openly about her family’s Packers connection.
He described Green Bay’s football culture through the things every fan knows well, from Cheeseheads and “Go Pack Go” to the noise and history of Lambeau Field.
Girlfriend’s Wisconsin family made the Packers pick even more personal
The emotional part of the night was easy to understand. Cisse had waited for the call, saw the Green Bay area code, and knew his life was changing. He called it “a moment come true” and said making it to the NFL was something he had believed in since he was a child.
“It’s something I believed since I was a little kid, so it’s just exciting to see it come true,” Cisse said. “But it’s not where the job ends, and just know that I’ve got to take it to another level.”
Cisse is joining a franchise where the cornerback position was already a clear focus. Green Bay entered the draft without a first-round pick, then used its opening selection on Cisse at No. 52.
The pick marked the latest the Packers had ever made their first selection in a draft, which put even more attention on the player they chose when they finally came on the clock.
For his girlfriend’s Wisconsin family, the moment had a different kind of meaning. They were already Packers fans before Cisse became one.
Now they get to watch him play for the team they grew up supporting.
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Cisse gives the Packers a cornerback with speed, size, and recent SEC experience. He is listed at 5-foot-11 and 189 pounds, and Green Bay added him after a 2025 season at South Carolina where he started for the Gamecocks and produced 27 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, one interception, five pass breakups, and one forced fumble.
His athletic testing helped his stock as well. Cisse ran in the low 4.4 range at South Carolina’s pro day and showed the movement skills teams look for in an outside corner.
That athletic profile is one reason Green Bay saw him as a fit for a cornerback group that already includes Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine, and Benjamin St-Juste.
Cisse’s college path also gives the pick more depth. He began his career at NC State, played there in 2023 and 2024, then transferred home to South Carolina for the 2025 season.
He had 28 tackles and one interception in his final year at NC State before becoming a starter with the Gamecocks.
The South Carolina move put him closer to home after growing up in Sumter, where he attended Lakewood High School. In high school, he played cornerback and wide receiver, finishing his senior year with production on both sides of the ball.
That two-way background helped shape the ball skills and competitive style that now carry him into Green Bay.
The Packers did not draft Cisse only for the story around his girlfriend’s family, but that detail gives the pick a clean human angle.
A player from South Carolina gets drafted by Green Bay, then reveals that the team is already deeply familiar to the family closest to him. It is the kind of draft-night connection that makes the moment easier for fans to remember.
Cisse now has to turn that emotion into work. The Packers added him to compete in a young secondary, and his first comments showed he understands that getting drafted is only the beginning.
The childhood dream came true at No. 52, but the next step is proving he belongs in Green Bay’s defense.
For Cisse, the call brought tears, relief, and a new job. For his girlfriend’s family in Wisconsin, it brought a personal reason to cheer even louder for the Packers.
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