SEC looks good in NFL draft
Some leftover NFL draft tidbits, as they pertain to the college game:
There were 255 players selected in the draft, and 69 percent of them (175) came from the six BCS conferences. The BCS-league breakdowns: 41 from the SEC, 31 from the ACC and Big Ten, 28 from the Big 12 and the Pac-10 and 16 from the Big East. Of note: 21 SEC players went in the top 100. Also of note: There were more players taken from the WAC (17) than from the Big East. Also of note: There were 54 other players selected from Division I-A leagues or from Notre Dame, meaning 90 percent of the players came from I-A schools.
The SEC led the way with 11 first-rounders. The ACC and Big Ten had six each, the Big 12 four, the Big East two and the Mid-American, Pacific-10 and Notre Dame one each.
There are 65 BCS-league schools. Of those 65, nine -- Duke, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Northwestern, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and West Virginia -- had nobody drafted. A&M, by the way, was without a draft pick for the first time since 1974.
There were 40 underclassmen available in the draft, and 11 went undrafted. The biggest names not to get called: Wake Forest LB Jon Abbate, Texas A&M DE Jason Jack, Ole Miss LB Rory Johnson and Notre Dame RB Darius Walker. Walker likely would've been the focal point of Notre Dame's offense this season, but instead of preparing for an increased role in South Bend, he is in Chicago this weekend, participating in a Bears minicamp for rookies and undrafted free agents.
LSU had four players go in the first round. That should ratchet up the heat a bit more on Tigers Coach Les Miles, who didn't even win his division last season, much less his league.
Florida had nine players picked, the most of any school. (Fittingly, the Gators' BCS title-game opponent, Ohio State, was second with eight.) UF's draftees included the school's first first-rounders since 2003. The nine total is the second-most in school history, behind the 10 taken in 1978.
Florida State had five draftees, including a first-rounder for the third year in a row. FSU had four players selected in the top 100, the most of any school in the state. The Seminoles have had seven first-rounders in the past three years -- and all have been defenders. The last FSU offensive player to go in the first round was WR Javon Walker in 2002.
Miami had a first-rounder for the 13th year in a row, which extended the school's record in that category. UM actually had three first-rounders this year, which gives the Hurricanes 15 first-rounders in the past five years and 25 this decade. In the past five years, 10 of those first-rounders have been defensive players.
Perhaps the most unlikely draftee was CB Rashad Barksdale, from Albany (N.Y.). Barksdale, selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round, played one season of college football; he was an outfielder on the baseball team who was coaxed into playing football last summer.
This is important?
U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) plans to convene a hearing on whether college athletes should be paid. Rush is chairman of a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee, and he told The Sun of Baltimore that he wants to know why college basketball and football players, in particular, aren't compensated for their "free labor."
The hearing has not been scheduled, but he told the Sun he wouldn't hesitate to use legislation to compel the NCAA to act if it comes to that.
"There is a problem," he told the newspaper. "And in my tenure as the chairman of the subcommittee, I intend to look at that problem."
Hey, who knew there was a problem of that magnitude? Anyway, if you'd like to make your feelings known, Rush can be reached through his Web site: www.house.gov/rush/index.shtml.
Grid Bits
UCF Coach George O'Leary will host his second annual Women's Clinic on June 9 at the Wayne Densch Sports Center. The clinic features seminars on rules, equipment, nutrition, training and strategy. It runs from 1-5 p.m., and the cost is $25 if you register before May 25 and $30 after. For information, call Marty O'Leary at 407-823-2623.
North Fort Myers RB Noel Devine, perhaps the most talented player in Florida last season, appears on track to be eligible to play this season at West Virginia. He received his ACT scores recently and scored high enough for freshman eligibility.
ABC's Saturday Night Football is back for another season. There will be 12 prime-time games, starting Sept. 1 with Tennessee at California. NASCAR coverage precludes telecasts on Sept. 8 and Oct. 13.
Former Alabama QB Andrew Zow is the new head coach at Union County High in Lake Butler, about 30 miles from Gainesville. Zow played in high school at Union County.
QB Jason Forcier, set to be Chad Henne's backup at Michigan this season, instead is transferring to Stanford and will sit out this season. That sets up a potential brother-vs.-brother matchup in 2008. Jason's brother, Chris, signed with UCLA in February and is expected to redshirt this season. Jason Forcier already redshirted once, so he'll have two years' eligibility left starting in '08. As for Michigan, highly touted true freshman Ryan Mallett -- who enrolled early and went through spring practice -- now may be the clear-cut No. 2 guy.
Texas State, known as Southwest Texas State until 2003, is discussing the feasibility of moving from Division I-AA to Division I-A. The school, based in San Marcos and with an enrollment of more than 27,000, had planned to make the move earlier this decade, but funding became a huge problem.
A Final Thought: Finally, the NCAA is doing something about its way-too-close 3-point line.
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