Hello loyal P1’s and fans of Norm,
I am Jeff “Saturday” Bowers, Norm’s draft researcher, and this is the first installment of Draft Nuggets; a behind-the-scenes look at the massive amount of prep and information that goes into the construction of The Big Board. If you are a crazy Draftnik like me, then this is your favorite time of year. The evaluation, “speculation and procrastination” (Thanks Jerry!) involved in the building of a franchise holds as much nerdy sports drama for me as a last second touchdown drive in the Super Bowl. The opinions contained within are my own, synthesized from various sources. I am no expert (but is anyone in this process, really?) and look forward to any questions, comments or healthy respectful debate from the P1 masses. Reach me at thesportsnarrative@gmail.com
This year’s draft is especially important for the Cowboys, as the core of talent brought here in the Parcell’s era begins to age, and epic failures in subsequent draft classes have left the talent cupboard quite bare. Glaring holes on the offensive line and in the secondary led to the ultimate demise of this team’s playoff hopes. Luckily, the 2012 NFL draft is very deep at both OL and CB, but proper evaluation is still crucial to selecting that diamond amongst the “cow poo poo.” Future posts will hopefully help to identify both the Cowboys intentions and the future stars of the NFL. As described by Norm himself, the Draft process is a living, breathing thing that moves and shapes into new forms moment to moment. We are at the beginning of that process; a meticulous 3 month process that will decide the futures of hundreds of young men, coaches and teams and that will culminate on April 26th-28th at Radio City Music Hall in midtown Manhattan, brought to you by 1310AM The Ticket and voiced as always by Norm Hitzges.
And now on to the info:
A record 56 undersclassmen declared themselves eligible of the 2012 NFL draft by the January 15th deadline (previous high was 54). Below is an alphabetical list of those players and a projection of where they may be drafted. Also, highlighted players are ones that could/should be on the Cowboys radar.
| Player | Position | College | Class | Projection |
| | | | | |
| RB | | JR | Undrafted | |
| TE | Clemson | JR | 1st-2nd | |
| RB | | JR | 6th-7th | |
| RB | | JR | Undrafted | |
| WR | | JR | Top 5 pick | |
| DT | L.S.U. | SO | 1st-2nd | |
| ILB | | JR | Top 25pick | |
| TE | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| CB | L.S.U. | JR | Top 5 pick | |
| DT | | JR | 2nd Round | |
| OG | Stanford | JR | Top 20 Pick | |
| DT | | JR | 3rd Round | |
| CB | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| WR | | JR | 3rd Round | |
| QB | Baylor | JR | Top 5 Pick | |
| RB | | JR | Undrafted | |
| CB | | JR | 4th-5th | |
| ILB | | JR | 1st Round | |
| WR | Georgia Tech | JR | 3rd Round | |
| RB | | SO | 4th-6th | |
| DE | | JR | Undrafted | |
| CB | Virginia Tech | JR | 2nd Round | |
| RB | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| WR | | JR | Top 25 Pick | |
| DE | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| OT | USC | JR | Top 5 Pick | |
| CB | | JR | Top 10 Pick | |
| C | | JR | 1st Round | |
| ILB | | JR | Top 15 pick | |
| DE | | JR | 2nd Round | |
| QB | Stanford | JR | #1 Pick | |
| OLB | | JR | 3rd-4th | |
| OT | Stanford | JR | Top 15 Pick | |
| DE | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| OT | Ole Miss | JR | 3rd-4th | |
| DE | | JR | 1st Round | |
| RB | | SO | 1st- 2nd | |
| QB | | JR | 3rd-4th | |
| DE | | JR | 6th-7th | |
| WR | | JR | 4th-5th | |
| DE | USC | JR | 1st Round | |
| RB | | JR | 3rd-4th | |
| DT | | JR | 1st-2nd | |
| RB | | JR | 2nd Round | |
| WR | L.S.U. | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| OT | | JR | Top 10 Pick | |
| RB | | JR | Top 15 Pick | |
| CB | | JR | 3rd-4th | |
| WR | | JR | 1st-2nd | |
| RB | | JR | 7th-FA | |
| WR | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| QB | | JR | 7th-FA | |
| RB | | JR | 4th-5th | |
| DE | | JR | 5th-6th | |
| OG | | JR | 2nd-3rd | |
| RB | Virginia Tech | JR | 2nd Round | |
| DT | | JR | 2nd-3rd |
