Excuse Jarrad Page if he isn’t getting lost in the media
spectacle that has become the NFL Draft. Page has already had his
draft experience.
He’s heard his name called, felt the butterflies in his
stomach after finding out which team had claimed him, and has even
faced the prospect of falling down the draft board after optimistic
projections.
The senior safety came to UCLA as a two-sport star and had
visions of jumping to professional baseball before even attending a
college class. Page had heard rumors that he would be a
second-round pick in the 2002 MLB Amateur Draft, but when judgement
day came he fell to the fifth round.
After dropping all the way down to the 37th round in his fourth
and final baseball draft, Page decided to focus solely on football
in his senior year.
So when the NFL Draft comes up this Saturday and Sunday, Page
will calmly sit by his television set, surrounded by family and
friends, without too much nervous energy. He knows that the draft
if thrilling, but it proves nothing.
“The draft is a culmination of all the work that you put
in college, so it is nice,” Page said. “But once it is
over on Sunday, the expectations are raised. It isn’t just
about being there anymore. It’s about performing.”
Although Page has sat through a number of baseball drafts
already, the process for the NFL Draft is far more advanced and
more demanding of the players.
At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Page admitted his workout
was not as impressive as he would have liked. He also weighed in at
239 pounds, which is unusually heavy for an NFL safety.
What may have boosted Page’s stock is his
“tweener” status as a player who projects at either
safety position or even outside linebacker at the next level.
Page is one of a handful of players who held private workouts
for scouts, in order to prove exactly how his game will translate
in the pros. At these private workouts, Page slimmed down to 225
and ran a faster 40-yard dash at 4.43 seconds.
He has been interviewed by eight different organizations and has
been flown out to Miami to meet face to face with the coaching
staff and front office. Page is expecting to be drafted as high as
the third round or as low as the sixth round.
“I’ve gotten some feedback from teams, letting me
know how they think,” Page said. “But you have no idea
what is going to happen come draft day.”
HAVNER READY TO GO: Senior linebacker Spencer Havner led UCLA in
tackling each of his last three seasons, but his name never spread
in circles outside of the Pac-10 ““ perhaps not until now.
Havner is expecting to be drafted somewhere between the second
and fourth rounds. His versatility is what attracts most
organizations.
He is athletic enough to play middle or outside linebacker, and
more importantly, he was a fixture on the UCLA special teams in his
junior and senior years.
Most rookies don’t start, but see significant playing time
on special teams as insurance policies for pricey NFL stars.
“I will be looking to make plays however I can,”
Havner said. “So if I can do it on special teams to earn a
starting role down the road, then I am happy to do it. I am excited
to get drafted, but I am more excited to actually get to
play.”