Boise State football players eye road to the NFL

The Boise State football team?s record-setting 2011 senior class is at it again.

The winningest seniors in college football history (50-3) likely will break school records for most Senior Bowl invites, most NFL Scouting Combine invites and most NFL Draft picks.

At least four will play in the Senior Bowl (previous record: two, last year); at least six, with a seventh likely, will attend the combine (previous record: six, 2007); and as many as nine could be drafted (previous record: four, 2007).

In all, 14 of the 21 seniors are considered NFL prospects ? including nine defensive players and the team leaders in passing yards, rushing yards and receiving yards.

Quarterback Kellen Moore, as usual, will garner the most attention. At 6-foot, one of the best quarterbacks in college football history likely has as many skeptics as believers.

?Certainly Boise?s been tremendous and a very unique opportunity,? Moore said. ?This one will be just as exciting. It?s a new challenge. It?s the highest level and you?re looking forward to seeing if you can take advantage of it.?

We caught up with most of the Broncos? top prospects last week as they began their NFL preparations. Here?s a look at their plans:

Moore: He signed with Athletes First in Irvine, Calif., an agency with a vast collection of quarterbacks on its client list ? Jake Locker, Matt Cassel, Kerry Collins, Matt Hasselbeck, Carson Palmer, Kyle Orton, Mark Sanchez and Matt Schaub among them.

Moore has moved to Irvine through Boise State?s pro day, which is March 22 in Boise. He?ll train for the combine?s athletic testing (speed, strength, agility) but also spend time with former UC Davis and New York Jets quarterback Ken O?Brien to keep his quarterback skills sharp.

One area of emphasis for Moore is taking snaps under center. He estimated he was in the shotgun maybe two-thirds of the time this past season.

?For quarterbacks, all that on-field training is probably just as important if not more important than speed and the weight room,? he said.

Moore will get his best chance to impress NFL coaches, scouts and executives at the Senior Bowl. The practices are attended by hundreds of NFL personnel and they?ll want to see if he has the arm strength to make all the NFL throws against elite defensive backs and whether his height is a true liability.

?It?s going to be very important,? Moore said. ?Quarterback is probably different than most positions. Certainly the combine is still very important, but it?s not like I?m going to be overwhelmingly impressive there with a lot of things. There?s a lot of terminology, information to absorb (at the Senior Bowl). At the same time, hopefully I perform on the field and play well.?

George Iloka, safety: Iloka is working out at Athletes? Performance in Carson, Calif. He shares an agent (Ron Slavin) with former Boise State safety Jeron Johnson. Iloka is preparing specifically for the combine tests, like the 40-yard dash and vertical jump. He has tested at or above last year?s averages for safeties, he said, but wants to improve.

?You don?t want to do the averages,? he said. ?I?m not lacking anything, but I want to excel.?

Iloka ran a 4.49-second 40-yard dash last spring, which is fast for a safety. He also is 6-foot-3, which gives him terrific range, and an impressive open-field tackler.

If he navigates the next four months successfully, he could fare well on draft day.

?Everything you do from now to the draft is important,? he said. ?From the meetings with the coaches to the Senior Bowl to the combine to the pro day, it all matters. And even the game film from this last season matters.?

Shea McClellin, defensive end/outside linebacker: He signed with Rep1 Sports and is training in Irvine, Calif. ? at a different site than Moore.

He has been invited to the East-West Shrine Game but remains hopeful that he will get a spot in the more prestigious Senior Bowl.

His smarts, tenacity and athleticism make him an attractive prospect, but his position is a mystery. He could play end or, like he did about half the time at Boise State last season, line up at outside linebacker.

He?s preparing with both spots in mind.

?It?s not just the ability to do it, but to actually draw it up and learn every position in (pass) coverage,? he said.

Billy Winn, defensive tackle: Winn signed with Jeff Sperbeck, the same agent as former Boise State offensive lineman Daryn Colledge, but has taken a different approach to draft prep.

He?s staying in Boise to work with Broncos strength and conditioning coach Tim Socha rather than join one of the programs arranged by agents.

?In my mind, I?ve got one of the best strength coaches in the country,? Winn said. ?Tim Socha does a great job helping guys meet their goals. He?s going to push me and he?s going to make me work my hardest.?

Some players were able to successfully avoid agents during the season, but Winn said he was contacted eight to 10 times per week. He eliminated some of them because they kept calling when he asked them to stop.

?It got overwhelming,? he said.

His training goal is to decrease his body fat without losing weight. He begins training Monday, with an initial plan geared toward the Senior Bowl and a subsequent plan to target the combine.

?I?m really excited about the whole process,? he said. ?It?s a blessing to get invited to these things.?

Doug Martin, tailback: Martin might be the first Bronco drafted. He excelled in Boise State?s combine-like testing last spring and should wow scouts there.

Like Moore, Martin signed with Athletes First and is training in Irvine.

Tyler Shoemaker, wide receiver: Shoemaker (Mountain View High) will play in the East-West Shrine Game but hasn?t received an invite to the combine.

He begins his training this week in Indianapolis. His agent is Brett Tessler.

?My approach going into the whole thing is all I need is an opportunity,? Shoemaker said. ?If I run well and do all that, hopefully a team will take a chance on me.?

Shoemaker ran a 4.40 40-yard dash and recorded a 38-inch vertical jump in spring testing. He also has good strength, which shows in his blocking.

?Receivers have to be all-around explosive,? he said.

Nate Potter, offensive tackle: The biggest surprise of the pre-draft invitations is that Potter has been snubbed by the all-star games. The consensus All-American will be at the combine.

The Timberline High grad is working out in San Diego, where he lived until he was 13. His agent is Jack Bechta.

?It was weird at first,? he said of the new location, ?but I think it?s a good thing, getting out of the routine, going to a new place, meeting new people and trying new things.?

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