Wake-Up Call: More to draft success than marquee picks

The Wake-Up Call greets you each weekday with news, views and a few Tampa Bay area sports offerings to anticipate for the day and night. We encourage suggestions and contributions.

Good morning!

Who's No. 1? It's the question for every NFL team as the draft approaches Saturday afternoon. Even ESPN's coverage reflects that concept. First-round picks receive large attention.

After that, draft intensity sometimes wanes.

But the draft is about more than first-rounders. Homegrown Bucs have been selected to the Pro Bowl 55 times. The first-rounders were picked 31 times. Players from other rounds were selected 24 times.

Regardless of who goes No. 19 overall to the Bucs, the draft's complete story can't be examined until all the picks are made.

You can find a starter - maybe even an eventual superstar - in every round. Here are our choices for the Bucs' all-time best picks in each round:

First round

Best pick: LB Derrick Brooks, Florida State (1995). Brooks lasted until the 28th overall pick, mostly because some teams didn't feel he was big enough. Brooks was selected to 11 Pro Bowls, earned 2002 NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors and shared the 2000 NFL Man of the Year award. Big enough for you?

Honorable mention: DE Lee Roy Selmon, Oklahoma (1976); DT Warren Sapp, Miami (1995); QB Doug Williams, Grambling (1978); OT Paul Gruber, Wisconsin (1988); RB Warrick Dunn, Florida State (1997).

Second round

Best pick: RB James Wilder, Missouri (1981). Five of the franchise's nine 1,000-yard rushing seasons were compiled by second-round picks. But the choice has to be Wilder, who rushed for more yards (5,957) and caught more passes (430) than any other player in Bucs history.

Honorable mention: RB Mike Alstott, Purdue (1996); WR Kevin House, Southern Illinois (1980); RB Errict Rhett, Florida (1994); LB David Lewis, USC (1977); CB Brian Kelly, USC (1998).

Third round

Best pick: SS John Lynch, Stanford (1993). Tough call here. But we're going with Lynch because of the front-side risk (he was a converted quarterback and baseball player) and back-side production (perennial Pro Bowler who became one of the faces of the franchise with Hall of Fame potential).

Honorable mention: CB Ronde Barber, Virginia (1997); WR Mark Carrier, Nicholls State (1987); CB Donnie Abraham, East Tennessee State (1996); WR Lawrence Dawsey, Florida State (1991); LB Scot Brantley, Florida (1980).

Fourth round

Best pick: C Tony Mayberry, Wake Forest (1990). Mayberry became a three-time Pro Bowler and an offensive line fixture for nearly a decade.

Honorable mention: FS Dexter Jackson, Florida State (1999); OT Ron Heller, Penn State (1984); QB Craig Erickson, Miami (1992); LB Alshermond Singleton, Temple (1997); WR Bruce Hill, Arizona State (1987).

Fifth round

Best pick: C Steve Wilson, Georgia (1976). Wilson was actually drafted as an offensive tackle, but shifted to center, where he was a starter on three playoff teams.

Honorable mention: G Ian Beckles, Indiana (1990); LB Jeff Davis, Clemson (1982); DT Santana Dotson, Baylor (1992); DB Jermaine Phillips, Georgia (2002); RB William Howard, Tennessee (1988).

Sixth round

Best pick: DE Chidi Ahanotu, California (1993). Ahanotu started 109 games for the Bucs and was part of a defensive line that registered at least one sack in 70 consecutive games.

Honorable mention: DB Curtis Jordan, Texas Tech (1976); RB Jameel Cook, Illinois (2001); LB Chris Washington, Iowa State (1984); DT Shawn Lee, North Alabama (1988); DE Ellis Wyms, Mississippi State (2001).

Seventh round

Best pick: NT Curt Jarvis, Alabama (1987). The pickings were slim. Two seventh-round players - SS Mike Prior and OL Harry Swayne - developed into good players with other franchises. But there is Jarvis, an overachiever who made the most of his skills.

Eighth round

Best pick: SS Marty Carter, Middle Tennessee State (1991). We know, we know. This round no longer exists in the draft, which was condensed after 1992, but we'll keep going. Carter was a four-year starter on some under-the-radar Bucs teams.

Ninth round

Best pick: WR Gerald Carter, Texas A&M (1980). Ultra-dependable target who had 239 career receptions for the Bucs.

Honorable mention: DT Reuben Davis, North Carolina (1988); WR Larry Mucker, Arizona State (1977); P Tommy Barnhardt, North Carolina (1986); G Rick Mallory, Washington (1984).

10th round

Best pick: PK Donald Igwebuike, Clemson (1985). Due to his tricky last name, some Bucs coaches referred to him as "Donald Kicker.'' He had nine field goals of 50 or more yards in his five Tampa Bay seasons.

Honorable mention: LB Aaron Brown, Ohio State (1978).

11th round

Best pick: WR Frank Pillow, Tennessee State (1988). Sleeper pick. OK, that line has been used before (a few times). Pillow not only made the team, he played in 34 regular-season games.

12th round

Best pick: DT David Logan, Pittsburgh (1979). Logan was a perfect fit for the 3-4 defense. He started 103 games and became a Pro Bowl alternate.

So there you have it - Tampa Bay's all-time dream draft. If half of this weekend's players selected by the Bucs become contributors, it will be time well spent.

Local players to watch

Here are three Tampa Bay area prospects to watch in this weekend's NFL draft:

Florida WR Louis Murphy (Lakewood): Deep threat who runs a 4.39 in the 40-yard dash. Came on strong in his senior season and led the Gators with 655 receiving yards (on 38 catches). Could go as early as the second round, but might last until Sunday's middle rounds.

South Florida LB Tyrone McKenzie (Riverview): Extremely productive player for the Bulls who had 237 tackles the last two seasons (including a school-record 121 as a junior). McKenzie has been projected as a third-rounder in some mock drafts.

Notre Dame LB Maurice Crum Jr. (Tampa Bay Tech): A four-year starter and two-time team captain for the Irish who has a football pedigree (his father was a first-team All-America linebacker for the University of Miami). Crum doesn't have the size (6-feet, 235 pounds) or speed numbers (4.85 in the 40-yard dash) worthy of a premium pick, but he's a solid leader with good intangibles. Crum looks like a late-round pick or an undrafted free agent.

ESPN tracking Mitchell's Schuster

Mitchell High School LHP Patrick Schuster goes for his fifth consecutive no-hitter - one off the national record - in Tuesday's Class 6A-District 7 tournament semifinals at Countryside High School. At 4 p.m., Mitchell will face the winner of Monday's game between Gaither and St. Petersburg High.

Schuster's no-hit exploits have become a national story, so ESPN will be omnipresent.

Associate producer Tom Engle will oversee the coverage for ESPN, "SportsCenter" and ESPNews. Ironically, Engle is one of two pitchers to hold the national record with six consecutive no-hitters (1989 in Lancaster, Ohio).

ESPN will have pregame and postgame interviews, along with live look-ins during ESPNews, plus coverage during "SportsCenter" at 6 p.m. ESPN will use the feed from Bright House Sports Network, which is carrying the game live.

Burgess heats up

OF Michael Burgess, first-round pick of the Washington Nationals in 2007, has three home runs and nine RBIs in his last five games with Class A Potomac. Burgess was 2-for-3 with a home and five RBIs on Thursday night in a 14-8 victory against Frederick.

Harvey shines for UCF

RB Brynn Harvey (Largo) rushed for a game-high 47 yards and scored two touchdowns in Central Florida's spring football game last Saturday. Meanwhile, Knights coach George O'Leary named Rob Calabrese as the team's starting quarterback. Joe Weatherford (Land O' Lakes) is the backup.

Torchy Clark dies at 80

Eugene "Torchy" Clark, who began the UCF men's basketball program in 1969 and led the Knights to the NCAA Division II Final Four in 1978, died Wednesday in Orlando. He was 80. Clark coached at UCF through 1983, registering a 274-89 record. He was named Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year four times. A viewing for Clark is from 6 to 8 p.m. today at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, 4001 Edgewater Drive, Orlando. The funeral is at 9 a.m. Saturday at the church.

Birthday wishes

Happy birthday to former Middleton High School and Florida A&M DL Carleton Oats, who was the first player from Tampa to appear in a Super Bowl (Oakland Raiders, Super Bowl II, against Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers). Today, Oats turns 67.

The Answer Man

Here's the answer to Thursday's trivia question:

Former Jefferson High School baseball player Fred McGriff had 10 postseason home runs in the major leagues, leading the contingent of former Dragons, including Tino Martinez (nine) and Luis Gonzalez (four).