A display titled “WILDCATS IN THE PROS” hangs on a wall in the atrium of Northwestern’s Nicolet Football Center.
It bears photographs of some of the Northwestern players who have gone on play for pay. But the board also has 10 empty slots.
Which begs the question: Does anyone have a head shot of Darnell Autry.
“We’ve got to update that,” coach Gary Barnett says.
Staffers ought to be able to find a glossy of Autry, a theater major who left school early and should be the first Wildcat selected in Saturday’s NFL draft. But experts project that several other Wildcats also could hear their names called at draft headquarters in The Theater at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
Last spring, with Northwestern fresh off its Rose Bowl season, the NFL ignored the Wildcats in the draft. But interest among pro clubs has perked up as the nucleus of the Wildcats’ turnaround team has come of draft age.
“We talked about several of Northwestern’s players,” says Rod Graves, the Bears’ director of player personnel. “They’ve done an excellent job with the quality of players that are in this year’s draft, and I expect that they’ll probably have a few kids who will be drafted.”
When it comes to producing football talent, Northwestern still isn’t about to be confused with places such as Ohio State (with nine first-round picks since 1992 and the likely overall No. 1 this year in Orlando Pace) or Michigan (eight first-rounders since 1991).
Only six Northwestern players have been first-round draft picks.
But this year’s draft could provide more proof, as if more were needed, that Northwestern has arrived in the campus game.
“When you’re inside, I don’t think you’re aware of it,” Barnett says. “But you hope you’re recruiting guys who can play in the NFL because you’re playing teams that have guys who can play in the NFL. As tough as it is to lose two juniors to the NFL, it’s one more validation of the program.”
The juniors are Autry, projected as a second-to-fourth rounder, and cornerback Hudhaifa Ismaeli, who is seen as a late-round project.
Many years it would be astounding for Northwestern to have two draft prospects. But this year’s team could produce four or five picks, with other candidates including inside linebackers Pat Fitzgerald and Tim Scharf, defensive tackle Matt Rice, offensive linemen Brian Kardos and Justin Chabot and tight end Darren Drexler.
The interest results from several factors, beginning with Northwestern’s success the last two seasons. The talent pool has improved under Barnett’s recruiting. And the Wildcats are developing a reputation as a superbly conditioned team, thanks to the efforts of strength coach Larry Lilja. NFL teams like players who have shown commitment in the weight room.
All 30 NFL teams sent representatives to Evanston to time Northwestern’s players. “And that was without Darnell,” who worked out at home in Arizona, Barnett notes.
This represents a change from a year ago, when NFL scouts ignored Northwestern despite the lingering glow of its Rose Bowl season. No Wildcats were drafted in 1995.
“Last year, there were a lot of guys who were capable of playing at the next level, and they hardly got a look, and that wasn’t right,” Fitzgerald says. “We proved (in 1996) that we weren’t a fluke. Maybe more guys in the NFL are starting to take the program seriously.”
Count ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper among them. Kiper predicts Scharf will be the first Wildcat selected. He has Scharf, a senior from Rockford, going in the middle of the third round.
And Joel Buchsbaum of Pro Football Weekly has pegged Autry for the middle of the second round. He also predicts that someone will take a chance on Fitzgerald despite his physical attributes, which are unimpressive by NFL standards. “He’s not what you’re looking for in terms of size, speed or athletic ability, but he was a terrific college player and should have a future in the NFL because he is so football-smart,” Buchsbaum wrote in Pro Football Weekly’s draft preview.
NFL aspirations cost Northwestern its No. 1 all-time rusher, Autry, but there’s a recruiting upside to having players go pro. In the official media guide, whose primary purpose is as a recruiting tool, the section on former Cats in the pros will prominently feature this year’s draftees.
“We couldn’t put it in there before,” Barnett says. “You put it in there now and maybe it catches the eye of some kids.”
