The 2002 NFL draft got a whole lot better Jan.11, the deadline for juniors to apply for eligibility. Of the 37 underclass players granted permission by the NFL to enter the draft, as many as 13 could go in the first round.

        The list of underclassmen includes such first-round automatics as Oklahoma safety Roy Williams, North Carolina defensive end Julius Peppers, Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth and Miami (Fla.) cornerback Phillip Buchanon.

        “The senior class would have stood on its own merits, but the juniors make it an outstanding draft,” said Jim Lippincott, the Bengals' player personnel director.

        Several mock drafts, including the Enquirer's, have Buchanon going to the Bengals with the 10th overall pick.

        Quarterback David Carr will be the No.1 overall pick to the expansion Houston Texans. Only one other quarterback, Oregon's Joey Harrington, is projected to go in the first round.

        Other forecasters say Harrington will slip to No.10, where the Bengals will make him their second first-round quarterback from Oregon since 1999. The other, of course, was Akili Smith, the third pick in 1999.

        The 2002 draft has the potential to be a good one for the Bengals, who hope this season to make the playoffs for the first time since 1990.

        “It is deep in a lot of places that could help us,” Lippincott said.

        Those positions are cornerback, safety and tight end.

        But, like mock drafts, predictions on college talent are difficult.

        “There are a lot of good players, but it's impossible to tell who will turn out to be an NFL star,” said Bengals president Mike Brown, who lists cornerback, safety, tight end and wide receiver as the draft's deepest positions.

        Last year, it was defensive linemen. Nine defensive ends and tackles were taken in the first 31 picks.

        This year, wide receivers could corner the market. Jerry Jones, the former Mariemont pharmacist and publisher of The Drugstore List draft guide, said he sees as many as six wideouts going in the first 32 selections.

        “This position is so well-stocked that many teams may delay selecting a wideout until the second or third round,” Jones said.

        Same at tight end. Colorado's Daniel Graham and Miami's Jeremy Shockey are the top picks, “but a team can probably get a quality tight end through the third and early fourth rounds,” Jones said.

        While wide receiver may be the deepest position, the national champion Miami Hurricanes seem to have produced the deepest pool of talent.

        As many as six Hurricanes — Buchanon, Shockey, offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, strong safety Ed Reed, cornerback Mike Rumph and running back Clinton Portis — could go in Round 1. Rumph and Portis are likely second-rounders.

        “I'm going to say (we can) get five,” McKinnie said at the NFL scouting combine last month in Indianapolis. “We're trying to break a record. They got four last year; we want to get five.”

        The first three rounds will be Saturday, beginning at noon and ending at about 10 p.m. In 2001, the first round took four hours, 18 minutes to complete; the second round lasted 2:57, and the third 1:28.

        The draft will continue at 11 a.m. Sunday and end around 5 p.m.

        The Bengals have seven picks, one in each round. They will have the ninth picks in the second and sixth rounds, the eighth picks in the third and seventh rounds, the 11th pick in the fourth round and the 10th pick in the fifth round.

        “It is strange. There are years when you look at the draft and it doesn't turn out where the good guys came in the first round,” Brown said. “I see it being that kind of year.”

Bengals take CB Buchanon in Enquirer's mock draft Bengals could fill several needs in draft Dilger's deal with Bucs doesn't affect draft Rackers trial set for June 10 Ex-Bengals bash Cincinnati

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