Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 25, 1990 TAG: 9004250014
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Bill Brill
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Jeff George had just finished dissecting the Virginia defense in a not-as-close-as-the-score 31-21 Illinois victory. And, even then, George was questioned about whether he would return for his senior season.
In late February, the decision had not been made. Illinois coach John Mackovic, at an NCAA football meeting in Kansas City, said he and his quarterback would talk, that the coach was getting information from the NFL that concerned George's marketability.
With George in the lineup, even Mackovic conceded he'd have a top five team, maybe even a No. 1. But there was not even a hint that George would be the top pick in the draft.
Somewhere along the way, sanity was abandoned. First, the historically-inept Falcons said they were making George No. 1. That seemed almost as dumb as Dallas selecting Steve Walsh in the supplemental pick last summer, thereby forfeiting what would have become their right to the first draft pick.
Then, the Falcons did an unusual thing. They made a good trade. That doesn't happen with Atlanta pro teams. What usually happens is that the Braves sign a Bruce Sutter, just before his arm goes dead. Or the Hawks give Jon Koncak $2 million, in time for him to average four points.
But the Falcons, who really didn't need a QB - Chris Miller is adequate, which is more than you can say about most Atlanta starters - traded George's rights to Indianapolis. In return, the Falcons got Pro Bowler Chris Hinton, who could anchor the offensive line next to Bill Fralic, and potential star Andre Rison, a wideout.
What's more, the Falcons also got the Colts' No. 1 choice in 1991, which, surprise, may be very, very high. Maybe even first, because unless Indianapolis gets solid quarterbacking, and unless Eric Dickerson quits pouting and elects to play, the Colts will be very bad.
Whether George becomes very good or not, he's not going to be great this year. He will, however, be higher paid than some QBs you may have heard of, including Joe Montana, Warren Moon, John Elway and Dan Marino.
With his bonus of more than $3 million, George begins his pro career as fourth on the money list, behind Jim Kelly, Randall Cunningham and Bernie Kosar. Which goes to show you that the Colts are either benevolent, trying to please the hometown fans because George is from Indianapolis, or just plain stupid. I lean toward the latter.
The football draft is interesting. While the basketball draft lasts only two rounds, and teams are scratching the bottom of the talent bucket early, nobody knows for sure how footballers will perform. Especially quarterbacks, I might add.
Furthermore, teams lie about what they are planning. To the media. To their fans. To each other. Otherwise, how do you figure players who were expected to be drafted high fall so drastically?
It is clear that being a college quarterback star does not mean seven-figure professional checks. West Virginia's Major Harris and Auburn's Reggie Slack were picked in the last round. Notre Dame's Tony Rice wasn't chosen at all. They were big winners.
Of course, you've heard of Craig Kupp. Of Pacific Lutheran. Whose skills were described in a video made by his father and sent to various NFL teams. Who was picked by the New York Giants in the fifth round, the eighth quarterback (of 20) drafted.
And you thought the NFL's talent hunt was so sophisticated.
The draft also demonstrated where the good football players are, and which teams were under-achievers in '89.
It's no shock that Southern Cal had the most players drafted (10), just one more than Miami and Notre Dame. Texas A&M headed for probation after losing eight draftees. Among the five schools that had seven players picked was LSU, with a losing record. The others were Florida State, Houston, West Virginia and Pitt.
Among the leagues, the Pac-10 led with 43 draftees. The SEC had 37, followed by Big Ten with 30 and the ACC with 17 in a down year. Bigger surprise, the Big Eight had merely 14. But the powers, as they have proved, were the independents. It was reflected in the 79 players picked.
As for the influx of underclassmen, it was a mixed bag. George led a group of eight juniors who went in the first round. But just 18 of 38 were chosen, only two after the third round. The pros seemingly wanted only the sure things from among those who forfeited eligibility. That may be a factor a year from now.
by CNB