The Indiana football team went the second and third rounds without hearing a Hoosier named called. Will that change during the last four rounds of the draft?
Friday night the NFL held the second and third rounds of the draft and once again no Hoosiers were called. On Thursday Indiana extended its drought to 26 straight years without a player drafted in the first round. It wasn’t much of a surprise that no Hoosiers names were called on Friday night either.
Most projections have no Hoosiers being drafted at all, but that doesn’t mean that a few aren’t still hoping to hear their name called. While the predictions have them catching on as a free agent after the draft, all you have to do is have one team fall in love with you and you can hear your name called.
Offensive lineman Simon Stepaniak and wide receiver Nick Westbrook have the best chance to get drafted, but again both seemed headed for the free agency route. Stepaniak was a team captain for the Hoosiers this past year and was named third-team All-Big Ten after the season. Westbrook showed flashes on being a top-caliber receiver and was named to award watch lists. His signature play this past season was his diving catch at Maryland for a touchdown.
Hoosier linebacker Reakwon Jones is also a guy hoping to he gets lucky enough to hear his name called. Jones was a force for the Hoosiers in the middle of their defense and was Honorable Mention All-Big Ten after last year.
All three of these guys could be key role players for whatever team they hook up with. They just hope they get to hear their name called during the draft and not by phone after it.