Gil Dobie
April 22nd, 2005, 06:41 AM
By Jeff Kolpack, The Forum
Published Friday, April 22, 2005
·
It took several minutes to admit, but Rob Hunt was nervous, anxiety last felt the night before a big North Dakota State football game.
The NFL draft? What round? Which team? When is mini-camp?
Actually, draft questions weren't foremost on his mind. Hunt was more worried about Saturday's annual Bison Spring Game at the Fargodome.
Hunt has been helping coach the Bison on the field during spring practice and in the weight room. He has expertise in both.
The 6-foot-3, 308-pound center from Cavalier, N.D., won the Dave Rimington Award given to the top center in NCAA Division I-AA football.
He played well in the Hula Bowl in January. He made it on the NFL charts in February at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
"That's when we really started getting a lot of feedback and interest in Rob Hunt," said Kevin Omell, Hunt's agent. "Not only publicly, but privately in the NFL circles."
The interest will culminate this weekend.
Estimates put Hunt anywhere from the third round to signing as a free agent.
Omell, based in St. Louis with National Sports Agency, said indications are Hunt will be drafted on the second day, possibly in the fourth or fifth round. He said a run on guards and centers could push him to the third round. Consequently, a bear market could send Hunt to the sixth round or lower.
The USA Today rates Hunt as sixth-best among "small college gems." ESPN.com pro football analyst Len Pasquarelli lists Hunt as a "rising" prospect.
Hunt hasn't been paying attention to his stock. He isn't reading any mock drafts. He isn't logging on to NFL draft chat rooms.
"It's a big game of poker," he said. "It's completely out of my hands. I just want to get to a fall camp. The draft is an itty bitty flash of what happens."
Since the Bison season ended in November, Hunt took one week off and then went to work.
To prepare for the NFL Combine, he spent almost a month at Fischer Sports Physical Therapy and Conditioning Center in Phoenix. Brett Fischer trains the likes of Green Bay Packers receiver Javon Walker, Minnesota Vikings safety Darren Sharper, Baltimore Ravens linebacker Peter Boulware and New York Yankees pitcher Randy Johnson.
One morning, Fischer was working with Hunt and a few others when Johnson showed up hoping to get an early start to his workout. Fischer declined and went back to training Hunt. On that day, the Big Center trumped the Big Unit.
Hunt is no longer a player from a school that doesn't play on national television. Omell said that is why the combine makes for an ideal measuring stick.
Everybody starts over.
"It doesn't matter if you're from a huge football school like Michigan or if you're Rob Hunt who has never played on national TV," Omell said. "When all things are even and everybody is wearing a white T-shirt and number, you're like … cattle. Everybody starts at the same level."
Omell is impressed with Hunt's level-headedness, athleticism, work ethic and strength.
"On and off the field, the feeling I have and a lot of NFL people have is this is a young man that is going to play a long, long time," Omell said.
Hunt has seeked guidance the past few months. He talked with three ex-NDSU players with NFL experience: Phil Hansen, Chuck Klabo and Pete Campion. Their advice: sit back and enjoy it.
"I think it will come down to the right fit for him," Bison head coach Craig Bohl said. "NFL teams are guarded on what feedback they give you because they don't want to tip their hand. Some teams feel he's undersized at 308 pounds, but others are interested in his ability and movement."
Hunt will drive to Grand Forks after the Spring Game to be with family during the draft. By then, perhaps selection anxiety will set in.
"A lot of teams have seen the type of athlete he is, as well as his intelligence," Omell said. "They see the mold that can be made."
Published Friday, April 22, 2005
·
It took several minutes to admit, but Rob Hunt was nervous, anxiety last felt the night before a big North Dakota State football game.
The NFL draft? What round? Which team? When is mini-camp?
Actually, draft questions weren't foremost on his mind. Hunt was more worried about Saturday's annual Bison Spring Game at the Fargodome.
Hunt has been helping coach the Bison on the field during spring practice and in the weight room. He has expertise in both.
The 6-foot-3, 308-pound center from Cavalier, N.D., won the Dave Rimington Award given to the top center in NCAA Division I-AA football.
He played well in the Hula Bowl in January. He made it on the NFL charts in February at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
"That's when we really started getting a lot of feedback and interest in Rob Hunt," said Kevin Omell, Hunt's agent. "Not only publicly, but privately in the NFL circles."
The interest will culminate this weekend.
Estimates put Hunt anywhere from the third round to signing as a free agent.
Omell, based in St. Louis with National Sports Agency, said indications are Hunt will be drafted on the second day, possibly in the fourth or fifth round. He said a run on guards and centers could push him to the third round. Consequently, a bear market could send Hunt to the sixth round or lower.
The USA Today rates Hunt as sixth-best among "small college gems." ESPN.com pro football analyst Len Pasquarelli lists Hunt as a "rising" prospect.
Hunt hasn't been paying attention to his stock. He isn't reading any mock drafts. He isn't logging on to NFL draft chat rooms.
"It's a big game of poker," he said. "It's completely out of my hands. I just want to get to a fall camp. The draft is an itty bitty flash of what happens."
Since the Bison season ended in November, Hunt took one week off and then went to work.
To prepare for the NFL Combine, he spent almost a month at Fischer Sports Physical Therapy and Conditioning Center in Phoenix. Brett Fischer trains the likes of Green Bay Packers receiver Javon Walker, Minnesota Vikings safety Darren Sharper, Baltimore Ravens linebacker Peter Boulware and New York Yankees pitcher Randy Johnson.
One morning, Fischer was working with Hunt and a few others when Johnson showed up hoping to get an early start to his workout. Fischer declined and went back to training Hunt. On that day, the Big Center trumped the Big Unit.
Hunt is no longer a player from a school that doesn't play on national television. Omell said that is why the combine makes for an ideal measuring stick.
Everybody starts over.
"It doesn't matter if you're from a huge football school like Michigan or if you're Rob Hunt who has never played on national TV," Omell said. "When all things are even and everybody is wearing a white T-shirt and number, you're like … cattle. Everybody starts at the same level."
Omell is impressed with Hunt's level-headedness, athleticism, work ethic and strength.
"On and off the field, the feeling I have and a lot of NFL people have is this is a young man that is going to play a long, long time," Omell said.
Hunt has seeked guidance the past few months. He talked with three ex-NDSU players with NFL experience: Phil Hansen, Chuck Klabo and Pete Campion. Their advice: sit back and enjoy it.
"I think it will come down to the right fit for him," Bison head coach Craig Bohl said. "NFL teams are guarded on what feedback they give you because they don't want to tip their hand. Some teams feel he's undersized at 308 pounds, but others are interested in his ability and movement."
Hunt will drive to Grand Forks after the Spring Game to be with family during the draft. By then, perhaps selection anxiety will set in.
"A lot of teams have seen the type of athlete he is, as well as his intelligence," Omell said. "They see the mold that can be made."