Two Players selected in the 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft by Lloyd Vance

Former BYU running back Harvey Unga (Chicago Bears, 7^th Rd) was one of two players selected in the 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft

The 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft is in the books and now two players have new homes.  Former BYU tough runner Harvey Unga (taken in the 7^th Rd by the Chicago Bears) and former Illinois DT Josh Price-Brent (also taken in the 7^th Rd by the Dallas Cowboys) will now go to training camp with their respective teams in hopes of beating the odds and making the 53-man regular season roster.

The Cowboys and Bears will now lose their 7^th Rd pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, which will take place next April.  The two other players eligible for Thursday’s dratt, Truman State H-Back Vanness Emokpae and Northwestern State RB Quentin Castille will now hope for a training camp invite as an undrafted free agent or they will have to go the Arena Football / CFL / UFL route into professional football.

Here is a profile of the two players selected:

Dallas Cowboys DT Josh Price-Brent – Another big body for Wade Phillips 3-4 scheme.  Price-Brent will have to learn quickly, but practicing with Pro Bowl NT Jay Ratliff should help.  The former Illini fire hydrant is a big (6’2, 321) tough two-gapper.  Price-Brent had some academic difficulty at Illinois, but he is a cat-quick defensive lineman that compiled stats of 71 tackles, 17½ tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries in 3 years for the Illini. 

Chicago Bears RB Harvey Unga – The Bears were smart to take a flier on this bullish runner from BYU.  Unga (6’1, 244) should help as a FB, HB, 3^rd down back and on special teams.  With Chester Taylor and Matthew Forte higher on Chicago’s depth chart, there is a good chance that we may see this former three-time 1,000-yard rusher – compiled stats: 3,446 yards on 692 carries with 35 touchdowns with an additional 102 catches for 1,085 yards and 9 TDs – on his team’s practice squad.

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and Sports Journey Network , who is also an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

2010 NFL Supplemental Draft by Lloyd Vance

The NFL will hold it’s 2010 Supplemental Draft on July 15th and one of the players to keep an eye on is former BYU running back Harvey Unga

An event that most NFL fans don’t know about takes center stage on July 15th at 1 p.m. EST.  With only two weeks before training camps, the “League that Never Sleeps” will hold their annual “Supplemental Draft”. This is the other draft for players leaving school for “special” reasons (Academics, Family Obligations, etc) – nothing like it’s megawatt cousin, the bigger NFL Draft that occurs every April.

The supplemental draft used to be conducted on a conference call but now it is performed via e-mail. All 32 teams will be involved in the three-step, weighted process. Teams with six wins or less in 2009 participate in the first lottery for the top six picks, followed by a second group of non-playoff teams and a third group of the 12 playoff teams from last season. If a team elects to use a supplemental draft pick on one of the eligible prospects, that team will give up its pick in the same round in next April’s draft (2011).

We will have to see if any of this year’s 4 players that have applied will garner a pick. But usually the players in this “special “draft” go unselected and an undrafted free agent or Arena Football/UFL/CFL career awaits them. Since the draft’s inception in 1977, thirty-eight players have been selected with nine never playing in a regular-season game — future Hall of Famer receiver Cris Carter is the high water mark selected by the Philadelphia Eagles (4^th RD pick in 1987) after Ohio State told him to take a walk for dealings with agents. 

Other notable former NFL Supplemental Draft selections from it’s heyday in the late-80s and early-90s were QB Bernie Kosar (1st Rd – Cleveland Browns), LB Brian Bosworth (1st Rd – Seattle Seahawks), QB Steve Walsh (1st Rd – Dallas Cowboys), QB Timm Rosenbach (1st Rd – Phoenix Cardinals), RB Bobby Humphrey (1st Rd – Denver Broncos), WR Rob Moore (1st Rd – New York Jets) and Dave Brown (1st Rd – New York Giants). Also current NFL players San Diego Chargers DT Jamal Williams (2nd Rd, 1998), Washington Redskins DT Jeremy Jarmon (3^rd round, 2009) and Baltimore Ravens OT Jared Gaither (5th Rd, 2007) were selected in the supplemental draft.

Last year, Jarmon was the only player selected and in 2008 due to a lack of interest the league didn’t even hold the event.  But the 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft does appear to have a few solid prospects that probably will get selected somewhere after the 3rd round of today’s process, if they are lucky.

The prospects eligible for the 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft include:

Illinois DT Josh Price-Brent – What every 3-4 team in the NFL is looking for a big (6’2, 321) tough two-gapper.  Price-Brent had some academic difficulty at Illinois, but he is a cat-quick defensive lineman that compiled stats of 71 tackles, 17½ tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries in 3 years for the Illini.  He is expected to go off the board before the other eligible players with some saying Price-Brent could be a third- or fourth-round pick.

BYU RB Harvey Unga – A “bull” of a runner that has garnered attention from at least 10 teams.  Reminds me of former Steelers Super Bowl hero Jerome Bettis as he is big (6’1, 244) and fast (4.6 in the forty).  He may have violated his tough university’s code, but his stats show he has great ability.  Unga in 3 years at BYU compiled 3,446 yards on 692 carries with 35 touchdowns. A three-time 1,000-yard rusher, he also had 102 catches for 1,085 yards and 9 TDs.  Could go around the 4^th or 5^th Rd and definitely watch the Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots.

Truman State (Mo.) H-Back Vanness Emokpae – Played FB, TE, WR and Wildcat QB at a small Division II school.  Emokpae (5’11, 240) comeback from a 2008 knee injury to lead his team in rushing (97 carries, 546 yards, and 5TDs) and receiving (26 catches, 365 yards, and 4TDs) in 2009.  At best a team could take a shot on him in the 7^th Rd, but looks like a free agent type.  Has an Alge Crumpler type build, but I am not sure he is pro tight end material.  Emokpae will need to impress on special teams and as a fullback if he wants to make an NFL team, that is if he even ends up in a training camp.

Northwestern (La.) State RB Quentin Castille – This former Nebraska Cornhusker was an underachiever in Lincoln and at Northwestern State.  Castille (6’, 245) only spent one year at the tiny Louisiana school where he produced minor stats 106 rushes for 337 yards and 1 TD.   Definitely will be a free agent type player that could possibly get a shot as a training camp “body”.
 

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and Sports Journey Network , who is also an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)