The NFL thing

Yes, Iowa has had a few players declare early for the NFL draft. Dallas Clark, Fred Russell and Shonn Greene shook off what would've been fifth years of eligibility.

This year is the first year Kirk Ferentz will deal with multiple juniors considering the jump to the draft. Offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga, defensive end Adrian Clayborn and defensive back Amari Spievey are on the NFL's radar.

Ferentz knows it. He doesn't want the trio bogged down during bowl week with "will you stay or will you go" questions during bowl time, but he's also not shying away from their pro possibilities and his responsibility to give them fair and accurate counsel.

"To me, my job is to make sure we get the information, accurate information, in front of the players, and then it's up to them to figure out what it is they're looking for, their families are looking for," Ferentz said.

The NFL status report on all three is murky. Bulaga said his parents are handling the matter. Clayborn said he didn't want to talk about it. Spievey's mom said he'd either be the family's first college graduate or millionaire.

The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NFL draft is Jan. 15. Ferentz is determined to give the three an accurate read.

“(Bulaga) was inquiring about the paper work,” Ferentz said. “I'll encourage all of them to fill the paper work out. It's like anything. It's like before you get your driver's permit. You're curious about it and all of that stuff. I'm good on that.

 “I'll try to touch base with them here in the next week and a half, certainly, all three of the guys. And then it's going to be a process of getting them on the phone with people who really know what the board looks like.”

Ferentz spent six seasons coaching the offensive line for the Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens. Iowa's football complex is open to any and all NFL scouts during most any time of the year. He has well chronicled friendships with Kansas City Chiefs GM Scott Pioli and former Cleveland GM Phil Savage.

"There will be several (NFL personnel people Ferentz contacts on the subject),” the coach said. “I think it's going to be important that they hear it from several different people just so they don't think there's any collusion going on. I'll let them have a choice, too.

“There will be a couple of names I'll let them choose from. I think it's probably good to get a couple of opinions. I'll do some of that work here in the next couple of weeks, too.”

The "collusion" comment is important. He wants players to hear both sides of the "stay/go" argument. He's definitely an interested party and biased on the subject.

"I'd rather have everybody stay through their senior year," Ferentz said. "I personally think it's the best thing for any player. But it's kind of like we get occasional calls, staff members, guys call and say we'd like to talk to so and so on your staff about a position. I don't answer for our coaches, and I always tell people that. I respect the call, but I think it's up to our coaches to make the best decision, and for the players it's the same way.

"I know we have three guys right now that are worth talking about. We've already probably beaten that horse to death enough. But it's a very simple process. I think it comes down to getting the right information, where do they really fit, not based on somebody's dot com site but talking to NFL people that really know and watching all the tape, and they also know the draft board, so you try to get that information in front of a player."

Greene, Clark and Russell were around 23 when they left Iowa. All three were aged as fifth-year seniors. Greene left after setting the schools season rushing record (1,850). Clark left after winning the 2002 Mackey Award, which goes to the nation's top tight end. Russell left after seasons of 1,264 and 1,355 rushing yards.

This is the first time Ferentz has dealt with younger players -- Bulaga, 20, is a true junior; Clayborn, 21, and Spievey, 21, are redshirt juniors -- with NFL options.

 Bulaga was named the Big Ten's O-lineman of the year. Clayborn and Spievey were also first-team all-Big Ten selections this season.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper lists Bulaga as his No. 2 junior offensive tackle and Spievey as the No. 4 junior cornerback. The National Football Post's Wes Bunting rated Bulaga No. 13 on his "Super 30." CBS Sportsline ranks Clayborn as the No. 13th D-end and has him as a fourth or fifth rounder. Sportsline doesn't list Spievey.

Ferentz doesn't necessarily buy into the "dotcoms."

"I don't know what's on the dotcoms, so I couldn't tell you,” Ferentz said. “The only thing I've read is what I've seen in papers because I don't read those (Internet sites). Nobody is throwing any of that stuff on my desk.

“But I think they're a little bit off right now, yeah. The (NFL) scouts have pretty much just made their rounds. Very few of them will be out the next couple of weeks. They may stop at a bowl practice or something like that. But I think most of the evaluations now have been done until the end of the season.

"Typically, most of those teams are meeting right now to pull that stuff together. So until everybody gets together, it's really hard to say what that board looks like.”

Draft-eligible underclassmen, juniors and third-year sophomores, can file paperwork with the NFL in order to see where they may be selected if they enter the 2010 draft . This paperwork requests a draft projection from the NFL's underclassmen evaluation committee.

Any college football player who wants to leave school before his eligibility is up must notify the NFL office by Jan. 15. That's either two weeks or 10 days after the Hawkeyes finish their season in the Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl or Capital One Bowl.

Ferentz doesn't believe that's too early for underclassmen to get a read on where they might go in the draft.

"I think there are NFL people right now who can give you a fair idea of where on the board someone is going to go," Ferentz said. "There's nothing exact, and it's like anything else, if you let's say you declare on the 15th, if you do poorly afterwards, your stock can go down fast, and conversely there are a lot of workout warriors that elevate their stock. I was always leery of those guys when I was coaching in that arena.

"It all gets weighed in. But I think in general terms players kind of know where they're going to go."