Gradually, Tony Hunt has been losing his "underrated" status in favor of "top-5 tailback" in the 2007 NFL Draft -- and Saturday certainly helped speed up matters.
Hunt was named the Senior Bowl MVP after rushing for 39 yards and a touchdown in a game that saw two offenses struggle in the North's 27-0 victory.
The stat-line may not read like an MVP's: eight carries, 39 yards; two catches, 13 yards. But Frank Coyle, a Senior Bowl consultant and the director of DraftInsiders.com, said Hunt had a tremendous week of practice and is now "fighting for the third, fourth or fifth-best running back spot" in April's NFL Draft.
"What Tony runs [in the 40-yard dash] will be very critical, if he wants to be that third overall back and move into the second round," Coyle said. "Whether he goes 42 or 82 [overall in the Draft], I can't tell right now. But he's projected in the second or third round."
Hunt's 52 total yards and a touchdown were good enough for MVP honors, in part, because no quarterback threw for more than 100 yards, and the leading wideout boasted only 30 yards.
Regardless, Hunt's performance was also good enough to impress Dan Shonka, a former NFL scout for 16 years and the director of Ourlads.com.
Shonka didn't seem quite as high on Hunt as Coyle -- projecting Hunt as a third- or fourth-round pick -- but also said a lot rested on what Hunt runs in the 40-yard dash. If Hunt runs the dash in about 4.5 seconds, he could very well go early in the Draft.
"He runs a 4.7, and he's a fifth-rounder," Shonka said, of the 239-pound back.
Shonka said Hunt reminds him a bit of Tampa Bay running back Mike Alstott and mentioned the Washington Redskins, New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles as teams that may especially pursue Hunt, even in the second round.
But Shonka said there's one team in particular that might have its eye on Hunt and would be willing to draft him early on the first day.
"The Eagles," he said. "They need a big back to control the ball. Tony Hunt might fit right in there because they run a West Coast scheme, and [with Hunt], they can control the ball late in the game.
"That might be a good fit for them -- and he wouldn't have to travel far."
Levi Brown
Brown started at tackle for the North and also boasted a strong week of practice.
Shonka said Brown is the No. 2-rated offensive tackle in the NFL Draft, behind Wisconsin's Joe Thomas, and "should be a first-round guy unless something comes up."
Coyle agreed.
"He didn't have the best senior year in the world, but he had a pretty good week, and he can handle the outside speed rushers," he said. "So, he probably solidified himself as a first-round pick."
Paul Posluszny
Posluszny may not have wowed scouts with a mind-blowing performance, but most experts agree he's still a first-day guy.
But where he goes on that first day is anybody's guess. According to Coyle, at least, Posluszny is projected to go in the first round.
"He seems like a Marine," Coyle said. "He's really coachable, really smart and really tough. In the right scheme, he'll start inside; but most schemes, he'll play on the outside."
Again, Shonka disagreed, saying that unless some team really falls in love with Posluszny or "some team panics or starts a run," he'll likely drop to the second round. He mentioned the Pittsburgh Steelers as a team that may draft Penn State's all-time leading tackler.
"If he wasn't injured, I could see him last year [as a junior] being in the middle of the first -- and some people liked him better than [A.J.] Hawk," Shonka said.
