Some More of the Audio interviews we did over the two days of the 2008 NFL DRAFT are up at Blog.footballreportersonline.com

Photo: Hofstra's Kareem Huggins Hits the Endzone early during a 2007 Game.
(By A. Fumai )

Unless you really know your NY area local college football, these next two names mean nothing to you. But if you do, then you won't be surprised that Hofstra University's Kareem Huggins and Charles Sullivan are getting tryouts at the Jets Complex this weekend. Aside from the fact that the Jets have been Headquartered on a small plot of university grounds for 40 years, it's a safe bet that the Jets former GM and current director of scouting Terry Bradway was paying attention to Hofstra's two standout offensive players during the 2007 college football season. Huggins does it all, Play Runningback, return kickoffs and punts, and can catch the ball out of the backfield. Sullivan Led the team in Scoring, Touchdowns, receiving yards, and receptions. He also set records for most Receiving yardage in a game (157) and career receiving yardage, breaking records held prior by Wayne Morris, Marques Colston, and Wayne Cherbet.Don't be surprised if one or bothof these players end up on an NFL roster somewhere if not in New York.....

Bill

Did I Feel a Draft Pass By…
By Dr. Bill Chachkes

Talk about your fast first day! After last year’s Marathon six hours and eight minutes, we had a rapid fire three hours and thirty-three minutes for a first round. Some people are already claiming it was too short. I say that as much as I love the draft, leave it at a shortened first two rounds, maybe adjust the time back up to twelve minutes and the second round to 8 minutes. Lets roll it back to 2 Pm next year and it will still end around the same time. Some of the more memorable moments of the 2008 NFL Draft:

Jets fans can say all they want that Vernon Gholston is their man, but plenty of them were chanting for Darren McFadden at Friday’s Prospects Preview event at the Winter Garden atrium at the World Financial Center, as well as at the draft Saturday morning and afternoon. The two time Heisman Trophy runner up put all that disappointment behind him by becoming the 4th overall pick to Oakland. Our Partner Zennie Abraham had the best questions of the press conference for McFadden. He had the best attitude answering them as well.

Right now, Kansas City’s GM Carl Peterson looks like the genius of this draft. A Glenn (Dorsey of LSU) first, then two Brandon’s (Albert & Flowers) makes him look real smart. But will Herm Edwards be able to win the game(s) with these raw recruits? We shall see….

Everyone expected Chad Henne or Brian Brohm to be the next QB selected. No one thought Joe Flacco was Good enough to be a first round QB. Except maybe Ozzie Newsome, and our own Jon Wagner, and myself (read John’s piece that was posted before the draft elsewhere on the site!) While I myself thought that Flacco was as good as Henne or Brohm, I thought the natural course would be for the teams looking for QB’s to take the FBS (1-A) Players before the FCS(1-AA) Players, at least at QB, since so many of the better QB’s from 1-AA slid after All Star games, Combine’s and Pro Days.
Joe Flacco never slid in my mind.

On Sunday we got to speak to 4 People who are the very fabric of the game. First, I had 60 seconds with Commissioner Roger Goodell. By the 30th second he had confirmed what I knew all along before ever meeting him. While no one could ever be perfect, the game we love is safe in his hands. At least for now anyway. Then I spoke to a man who believes that every man deserves to be congratulated for what ever he does in this world. He also believes that the last pick in the draft is every bit as special as the first. I’m talking about Mr. Irrelevant's Paul Satala. We should have more grand men of the game like him.

Finally two men who have always kept it strait in their reporting spent a few minutes each with me. CBS Sports’ Clark Judge, and ESPN’s John Clayton. Both thought it was a wild first day. Clark had said to Zennie and I late Saturday that he thought a few teams had gone retro with their scouting this time out (I said “you mean like back in the 60’s with yellow legal pads in front of the TV watching college games Saturday afternoon?).
John Agreed with me that the Lions Pick up of Army’s Caleb Campbell was a quality selection for Round 7, but can he score touchdowns? Who Knows….


Photos: Howie Long Speaks to the Media(Left) before his Son Chris(Right) took the stage stage in the interview room at the 2008 NFL Draft