Earlier this week, Joe "shake n bake" Baker gave us an excellent article on BYU running back Harvey Unga. Unga is entering the NFL's 2010 Supplemental Draft, and he 245 pound back is generating a lot of buzz. For those of you scratching your heads as to what the supplemental draft is:
Since 1977, the NFL has also held a Supplemental Draft to accommodate players who did not enter the regular draft. Players generally enter the Supplementary Draft because they missed the filing deadline for the NFL Draft or because issues developed which affected their eligibility (such as athletic or disciplinary matters).
Noted players taken in previous supplemental drafts include Bernie Kosar, Cris Carter, Jamal Williams, and Jared Gaither. In the case of Unga, the reason he is was unable to enter the regular NFL Draft and is instead in the supplemental one is because... well, because he had sex with his girlfriend.
This wasn't a case of rape or anything truly ugly like that. Unga and his girlfriend, a college basketball player named Keilani Moeaki, had consensual sex while attending BYU. Such an act is a violation of the school's "honor code." Because of the violation, both Unga and Moeaki withdrew from BYU prior to the 2009 season. Out of respect for those of you who care about this stuff, I won't go into a rant about punishing promising student athletes for doing something that is 1) Legal and 2) Common for kids in college. What I will say is that the loss was BYU's. Unga did not play football his senior year, and despite not playing he is still the school's all-time leading rusher.
Now, Unga is one of the more highly touted players to come out of the supplemental draft in some time. Twenty-four NFL teams were on-hand to watch him work out prior to the supplemental draft, including reps from the Indianapolis Colts. Also in attendance was former-Colts linebacker Rob Morris. Morris attended BYU before getting drafted by Indy in 2000.
Notes from the workout, via Jay Drew at the Salt Lake Tribune:
Most importantly, Unga's 40 time was in the 4.64 range. I asked three scouts who timed Unga's second 40, and one had 4.64, one had 4.63 and the other had 4.65.
The first 40, ran in the opposite direction (toward the mountains) was a 4.72, according to the only scout I got a chance to ask.
His time in the first 10 yards was 1.65 seconds, and 2.75 seconds in the first 20 yards.
"For a guy that is 245 [pounds], I would say that's pretty good," he said.
Unga was a teammate of Colts second-year wideout Austin Collie at BYU.
It's worth noting that the Colts seemly drafted Brody Eldridge to fill the need of an in-line blocker and H-Back on the roster, a role Unga seems built for in the Colts offense. Eldridge, however, is a tight end, not a running back. If the Colts are seriously interested in the BYU prospect (and since Rob Morris and Colts scouts were indeed there, I'd say the interest is high) it means they are looking for an upgrade over short yardage back Mike Hart.
The 2010 NFL Supplemental Draft will take place on July 16th and 1pm Eastern.