For cornerback Alan Zemaitis, the NFL is, unquestionably, a desired destination. But despite the rumblings that he might forego his final year of eligibility and enter the draft this coming spring, he maintains that he wants to return for his senior season.

"Those dollar signs don't say nothing to me," Zemaitis said. "I'm looking forward to coming back here and finishing it off right."

He will, however, take the necessary steps to determine where in the draft he would be taken, were he to go pro this spring.

If underclassmen fill out the required paperwork, they are permitted to assess their status without actually declaring for the draft, and it was his mention of his plans to utilize this service that sparked the NFL rumors.

"I just want to see where I lie within the league's eyes, and I'll make a decision," Zemaitis said. "There's gonna be a decision made, but I've always said, 'I'm in it for the long haul [at Penn State].' "

Zemaitis has two more semesters to complete before he can obtain his degree, which he said will factor into his decision. He also has talked the situation over with his family members, and they agree that they would like to see him finish out his collegiate eligibility.

"We're gonna file the paperwork -- it's something we're gonna do because it's his right to do it -- to see where he would go, but there's a 99 percent chance he'll be back," his father, Keith, said. "There's no doubt about it -- he wants to finish up his obligation, and we, as parents, want him to do the same."

Zemaitis did not mention how high the projections would need to be for him to make the decision to go pro, if he would at all, but, according to his father, a projected first-round selection would be motivation enough.

"We wouldn't want him to leave, unless it comes back and it was a first round pick or something like that," Keith said. "Obviously that's his dream. But the possibilities of that happening are slim."

After displaying his talents in a breakout sophomore season in 2003, opposite senior Rich Gardner, Zemaitis filled the role of shut-down corner this fall. He recorded 47 tackles and two interceptions on the season, despite the fact that opponents scarcely threw to his side.

For a guy who thrives on wreaking havoc on opponents' pass attacks, however, the lack of action on his side of the field, at least as compared to last season, has been a bit frustrating. But that's not enough to make him leave -- he has just found a way to deal with it.

"It's alright, 'cause when we're balling like that, like today, it makes it worthwhile," Zemaitis said Saturday. "I talked to Rich Gardner, I asked him about it, and that's what got him through it because it gets boring out there. He just said, 'Seeing you ball, AZ, last year, hell, you know, that got me amped.' So that's what I'm doing now."