2008 Woodie Awards
Lots of Talent Entering NFL Draft
Steve Conoscenti Staff Reporter
Issue date: 4/14/05 Section: Sports
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While college basketball has been ruling the sports headlines throughout the past month, it's time for college football to make another appearance on April 23 and 24 when the National Football League holds its 70th annual draft in Manhattan.
This year's draft is looking to be so promising that the league has created a new "Draft Fan Central" for fans who can't get tickets to the actual draft to the first day.
More than 2,000 fans will be able to attend "Draft Fan Central," which will be adjacent to the room where teams will select players at New York City's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
More than 1,200 fans will be able to watch the event from inside the draft room, including 825 fans that already have received tickets. These fans were rewarded for their attendance on both days of last year's draft.
Why is the NFL expecting such a big turnout for this year's draft? Just look at the talent pool.
Most current NFL players will never forget their pre-draft workouts. Even after a four-year college career, a prospect could see his status rise or fall in less than five seconds, depending on his 40-yard dash times.
One player who most analysts will agree has the highest stock right now is Alex Smith, a quarterback out of Utah.
"He established himself as the top overall pick of the draft by giving nearly flawless performances in on-campus workouts," said NFL.com national editor Vic Carucci.
One thing that most people took notice of during Smith's workouts was the he was calm, cool, and collected while under center. This is so important because Utah ran the shotgun more than any other type of offensive set.
Smith is also 6'4", which is always good for a quarterback since they need to be able to see over the linesmen to find the open receivers. Not to mention, Smith added 10 pounds on top of that frame and still hasn't lost any speed or athleticism.
The other quarterback that Alex Smith may have beaten out for the top spot in the draft is Aaron Rogers from California.
This year's draft is looking to be so promising that the league has created a new "Draft Fan Central" for fans who can't get tickets to the actual draft to the first day.
More than 2,000 fans will be able to attend "Draft Fan Central," which will be adjacent to the room where teams will select players at New York City's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
More than 1,200 fans will be able to watch the event from inside the draft room, including 825 fans that already have received tickets. These fans were rewarded for their attendance on both days of last year's draft.
Why is the NFL expecting such a big turnout for this year's draft? Just look at the talent pool.
Most current NFL players will never forget their pre-draft workouts. Even after a four-year college career, a prospect could see his status rise or fall in less than five seconds, depending on his 40-yard dash times.
One player who most analysts will agree has the highest stock right now is Alex Smith, a quarterback out of Utah.
"He established himself as the top overall pick of the draft by giving nearly flawless performances in on-campus workouts," said NFL.com national editor Vic Carucci.
One thing that most people took notice of during Smith's workouts was the he was calm, cool, and collected while under center. This is so important because Utah ran the shotgun more than any other type of offensive set.
Smith is also 6'4", which is always good for a quarterback since they need to be able to see over the linesmen to find the open receivers. Not to mention, Smith added 10 pounds on top of that frame and still hasn't lost any speed or athleticism.
The other quarterback that Alex Smith may have beaten out for the top spot in the draft is Aaron Rogers from California.