And Then There Was One
Frank Vitovitch
April 17, 2000

New York, NY - With the 214th pick in the NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos selected Jarious Jackson.  Had Jackson not been selected, Notre Dame would have had no players drafted for the first time since the 1977 Draft.  It was however the first time since 1977 that the Irish failed to get a player pick in the first 4 rounds.

The Irish were shut out on the first day and nearly were shut out again Sunday.  With players from universities such as Buffalo, Northern Iowa, Hampton, Harvard, Hofstra, and a host of other small time schools getting as many more drafted players one has to wonder what is going on.

Notre Dame had about 17 draft eligible players this year and only came up with one drafted player.  There was however a group of players who were thought to have a decent chance of getting drafted which included Lamont Bryant, Deke Cooper, Bobby Brown, John Merandi, A'jani Sanders, Joey Goodspeed, Deveron Harper, and Raki Nelson. 

The main reason why players from Notre Dame weren't drafted?  Speed!  Bobby Brown, Deke Cooper, Lamont Bryant, and Deveron Harper were all considered slow for their positions by NFL standards.  Brown was listed at 4.7 in the 40, Harper was 4.6, Cooper 4.7, and Bryant 4.9.  All these times are considered slow by NFL standards.  With the Joey Galloway's of the NFL running 4.2 40's how attractive is a guy who runs 0.5 seconds slower?  Jevon Kearse is a beast defensive end who can run 4.4 and Courtney Brown can run a 4.5.  That being said how many teams want a 4.9 end?

The other main reason was size.  Deveron Harper was considered too slow for corner and too small for safety.  Sanders was also considered small for a safety.  Raki Nelson who is a great wide receiver lacks the blazing speed a receiver needs to get drafted if he is 5-11 like Nelson. 

Maybe Davie is right.  The reasons that teams passed up on Notre Dame prospects weren't for technique reasons (although there was questions on Merandi's technique) or things that are coached.  The reasons given were size and speed - something that is uncoachable. 

To Davie's credit, he has upgraded the speed on the team at almost all positions and brought in a group of towering wide receivers this year to increase height.  He hasn't done much to increase height at cornerback where talk players with speed are golden such as Bobby Taylor, but overall the raw physical tools have been increased.

Defensive backs like Jason Beckstrom, Albert Poree, and Clifford Jefferson all have better speed than a Deveron Harper who runs a 4.6, Jamaar Taylor, David Givens, and Javin Hunter have better speed than a Raki Nelson who runs a 4.7, Jason Sapp can run a 4.6 which is better than Lamont Bryant's 4.9.

Don't get me wrong though.  All the players that could have been drafted (Bryant, Nelson, Brown, etc) were good players for Notre Dame and represented the university extremely well.  My point is that the experts have said Notre Dame has a lack of talent while the fans have claimed its the coaches fault.   The Draft results support the experts in this case however.

The experts also point out that Notre Dame's younger players do have a lot more talent than the last few classes at Notre Dame.  Already looking ahead to next year, Notre Dame could have a decent showing at the Draft if some players have strong senior years.  It is not out of the question to say Mike Gandy, Tony Driver, Grant Irons, Anthony Denman, Jabari Holloway, and Kurt Vollers could get drafted.  Vollers hasn't shown too much since he has been injured but he has a lot of talent and could have a great senior year.

In conclusion, the Draft may have proved a lot of fans wrong.  The players at Notre Dame all have great character and heart, but the experts might be right in saying Notre Dame had a lack of talent.  I like to think that the four classes that will be at Notre Dame for 2000 will be loaded with talent however, and the main reason I feel that way is because the speed of the team should be much improved.  

Feel free to agree with me, disagree with, or say I don't know what I'm talking about on our Message Board.