The ACC has it covered

The ACC will dominate the first day of the draft Saturday. That we have known for weeks now.

To prove the point, word came late Friday night that North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams will be No. 1 overall pick, beating out Reggie Bush.

And, of course, Virginia’s D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Maryland’s Vernon Davis should also go near the top of the draft.

But perhaps no place is the ACC as deep as at the cornerback position.

Rob Rang of NFLDraftScout.com joined ACC Nation recently and we asked him, of the ACC cornerbacks, who had the most upside – Virginia Tech’s Jimmy Williams, Clemson’s Tye Hill or Miami’s Kelly Jennings.

And here’s the thing, being the noted football expert that I am (yes, sarcasm is intended), I completely forgot to ask about Antonio Cromartie out of Florida State. Maybe that’s because the guy spent more time on the sideline injured than on the field playing.

Cromartie missed all of last season with a torn ACL, and could have been a top five pick if he had gone back to Florida State for his senior season in the fall. Still, many NFL guys are saying he is the best of the ACC guys and perhaps the best cornerback in this year’s draft.

Of the other three, Rang thinks the Hokie has the most potential of being a star in the league.

“Jimmy Williams is, in this entire draft, of all the defensive backs, he has the most natural-born ability,” Rang said. “His combination of size … he has the fluid hips in the turn and his speed is such a rare commodity that I think he has the potential to be the best of the bunch.”

But then Rang added the kicker.

“That said, I think he also has the potential to be the biggest bust of the bunch.”

What’s an NFL general manager to do? Williams could be great or he could be a bust. Cromartie could also be great, but those injuries have to be a little scary to NFL teams.

So, according to Rang, if the NFL guys want to play it safe, go with the guy out of Miami.

“The safest pick of the bunch has to be Kelly Jennings just because of his 40 career starts at Miami,” Rang said. “His ability to play man, to play soft in the zone – all those kinds of things translate, in my mind, to him being the safest pick.”

As for Hill, he gets Rang’s most-improved player award.

“He went from basically being a track star on the football field to being to being one of the top corners in the draft,” Rang said.

- Patrick Hite