Next weekend will mark one of the most over-hyped events on the sports calendar. With non-stop coverage of the NFL Draft dominating “SportsCenter” for the past month, I will be ecstatic when it is all over.
Mel Kiper, whose predictions are about as accurate as the local weatherman’s, makes a living overrating players and confusing fans with his mock drafts. We will never understand how a mock draft can work when one selection could throw the whole thing off.
While fans all over the country will be cheering Kiper’s vanishing act, the biggest story of the draft may involve the Miami Hurricanes. For first time in 15 years the Miami Hurricanes will not have a player selected in the first round of the draft.
How do I know this? Mel Kiper’s mock draft board, of course.
Not since 1994, when Donnell Bennett was drafted in the second round by Kansas City, have the Canes been unrepresented in the first round. More shocking than that is the fact that most mock drafts don’t even have a Hurricane being drafted on the first day.
While this may not look good for our football program, I think it is the best news I’ve heard since Larry Coker was fired.
If you don’t believe me, think about it this way: the Hurricanes are a good football team. They definitely have first-round talent on the field. Since none of our players are projected to get drafted in the first round, some of that talent must be staying here for at least another year.
Call me selfish, but I’d rather see the talent stay here then go play for a team I don’t care about, or even worse, a team I root against.
The football program has nowhere to go but up. As Randy Shannon’s first crop of recruits continues to mature, it will be in the next two seasons that we can truly gauge his influence over the team.
So next weekend when the draft comes around, don’t be so dejected that the Canes aren’t lighting up the board in the first round. The players with that potential will be on the field preparing for their upcoming season, as a Hurricane.
If anything, next weekend should be a reason for celebration. Not only will Mel Kiper be off television for another year, but you can rest assure that the best talent Miami has to offer will remain here, ready to bring that swagger back and start another streak of first round draft picks.