More Maurice Clarett - Scouts say likely a 3rd round pick in draft

[inmate running the asylum]

Scouts believe Clarett unlikely to be high pick

Staff and News Services

Saturday, February 7, 2004

Amid the muddy swirl of reaction to the court ruling that cleared Maurice Clarett's path to go pro, the NFL came forward Friday with something clear: its new policy on players who want to go pro early.

The NFL sent a memo to its teams that players who want to leave college early, or skip it altogether, and enter the draft in April must turn in a "Special Eligibility" form by March 1. If a player submits the form by Feb. 15, he'll be considered for an invitation to the scouting combine in Indianapolis that begins Feb. 18.

So that's that ... unless the NFL succeeds in persuading a court to stay Thursday's decision, which struck down the NFL rule that prohibits players from entering the draft until three years after their class graduated from high school.

Even if the ruling stands, Clarett's future is not certain. He has not said whether he would enter the draft because even a declaration to join the league would rule out any chance he could return to college football. And not everyone's sure he'd be among the first few dozen players to be drafted.

"My guess is that I don't think he'll be picked in the first two rounds," NFL draft consultant and former Cowboys executive Gil Brandt said Friday. "People will look at the tapes of his freshman year and they'll see the great plays he made ... but they'll also see some plays that were not that exceptional. ... Now if he comes in and blows people away (with his skills) that might be a different story."

Clarett's skills have been laying low while his off-field issues have risen to the headlines. He hasn't played competitive football for 13 months.

In her ruling at the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Judge Shira Scheindlin said the NFL eligibility policy violated antitrust laws.

Spencer Haywood, the former basketball star who, like baseball's Curt Flood, was a pioneer in using antitrust law to open up player movement in pro sports, was one of the many observers who wouldn't advise young football players to follow his lead and go pro early.

"They'll be putting their lives on the line because I think some of the older players will be tearing their heads off," said Haywood, whose case went all the way to the Supreme Court in 1971. "Basketball is more of a finesse game. Even in hockey, you've got fighters out there who can protect the younger players. Who's going to protect a young guy in football?"

Former 49ers guard Ray Brown, now with the Lions, sees a few sides to the story.

"I'm not sure if (Clarett is) mentally ready, but ... I don't think anyone should be denied a chance to make a living," Brown said. "But once he makes that decision, he has to realize that he can't go back. That's my primary concern. These are grown men trying to take care of their families. The league spits guys out every year."

For college football, the ruling raises the specter of the college game being hurt just as college basketball has, with the best players often staying in school for only one or two seasons.

The effect on the field will not be as devastating as it is in basketball, because, with the exception of the quarterback, a single player does not have as much influence as he does in basketball.

Nonetheless, it will have an effect.

"It's kind of scary," said Dave Tipton, a Stanford assistant coach and longtime recruiting coordinator.

Some players may feel they already are working like professionals for the NCAA. With the increased emphasis on year-round weight-training in recent years, college football players no longer have a real offseason.

"It's a lot more demanding now, and some guys may figure they may as well get paid for it," Tipton said.

Former Cal and NFL running back Russell White reacted with worries about the effect on players' educations. White, a Prop. 48 player who was required to sit out his freshman year, stayed at Cal four years and earned a degree.

"I wasn't worried about the money," he said. "My main purpose in going to college was to get a degree."

Before the ruling takes full effect, it must withstand an NFL appeal, which will be based on its belief that a collective bargaining agreement overrides antitrust law. And as firm as Scheindlin was in her ruling, at least one expert was equally firm in deriding it.

"Crazy," said Gary Roberts of Tulane's sports law program, in describing the decision. "The labor exemption is just about as clear as can be on this point. I will be shocked if the Second Circuit does not reverse it."

There are other possible barriers, or at least hindrances, to any new flow of underclassmen into the NFL.

A proposed NCAA rule -- which would block schools from replacing early NFL entrants by simply handing out new scholarships -- would be one.

"If one of your scholarship players leaves early, you wouldn't be able to fill that scholarship position until after that student athlete would have normally graduated," Michigan athletic director Bill Martin said.

In the end, the NFL may just ask Congress to help. Martin hopes NFL officials will go to Capitol Hill for an antitrust exemption.

Staff writers Bruce Adams, Jake Curtis and Kevin Lynch contributed to this report.

[Hitman56]

I'd take him in the 3rd. Players like him are always stars. Look at Moss and Sapp.

[NavyDave]

3rd round is better than no round