By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Once and for all, the Bengals might draft a real cornerback in the first round.

They took Oklahoma's Rickey Dixon with the fifth overall pick in 1988, but he played safety in the NFL.

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• Enquirer Bengals writer Mark Curnutte posts the latest Bengals news leading up to the Bengals draft.

With the 24th overall pick in this weekend's draft, the Bengals are likely to have their choice of a couple of potential pro stars - Southern California's Will Poole or Ohio State's Chris Gamble.

But Gamble, the sentimental favorite among Bengals fans who also follow the Buckeyes, has risen so sharply on some draft boards that he might be gone, especially to New England at No. 21.

At 6-feet-1, 196 pounds, Gamble is the rare athlete who can play defense and wide receiver. He also is a solid special teams player.

There's no doubt the draft's top two cornerback prospects, Virginia Tech's DeAngelo Hall and South Carolina's Dunta Robinson, will be long gone by the time the Bengals are on the clock - barring a trade up.

Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has identified cornerback as a position of need. But just two weeks ago, cornerback seemed to have been solidified by the trade for Denver's Deltha O'Neal and the renewed confidence of second-year cornerback Dennis Weathersby.

But Weathersby, 23, faces an uncertain football future following an auto crash April 12 in which he suffered a head injury. He remained in serious condition Thursday at University Hospital.

The Bengals were counting on Weathersby, their first fourth-round pick in 2003, to challenge for a starting role, or at least the nickel back, after releasing former starting cornerbacks Artrell Hawkins and Jeff Burris.

The Bengals might wait until Round 2 for a chance to get Arkansas' Ahmad Carroll, Tusculum's Ricardo Colclough or Oklahoma's Derrick Strait, whose value has fallen as sharply as Robinson's has risen since the Senior Bowl.

Of course, recent Bengals draft history is littered with second-round reaches for cornerbacks that didn't realize second-round potential.

Hawkins (1998) played in 89 games in six seasons but consistently frustrated fans with his shortage of interceptions (nine).

Charles Fisher (1999) suffered a serious knee injury in his first game.

Mark Roman (2000) struggled at cornerback in the NFL before finding some success at safety.

Still, if he's there in the first round, Gamble is expected by many experts to be the Bengals' pick. Gamble followed a breakout sophomore season with a relatively sub-par showing as a junior.

He is considered a raw talent at cornerback who would be best off joining a team that didn't need him to start immediately. That makes the Bengals' acquisition of O'Neal that much more important.

"I even told them I need to work on technique," Gamble said of interviews with NFL coaches and scouts. "They felt I needed to work on it, too. That's one thing that has hurt me, technique-wise. I'm a quick learner. Once I get all that down pat, I'll be all right."

Scouts and draft analysts think Ohio State might have spread Gamble too thinly instead of letting him fully develop at cornerback. But his height and 40-inch vertical leap make him an intriguing prospect. Gamble has said his preference is to focus on cornerback.

Poole is another athletic talent, and he had a big 2003 season at USC. Yet he had to leave the Senior Bowl practices - the Bengals staff coaches him on the North team - because of an injury to a nerve in his heel.

Poole, a freshman starter at Boston College, was suspended because of an off-field incident, transferred and played a season of junior college football in California. He wanted to play in the PAC-10 because it is a pass-happy conference with outstanding quarterbacks and receivers who would challenge him as a cornerback.

"I never doubted my ability to play football," Poole said. "It was just, you know, my off-the-field attitude that had to get readjusted. If I wanted to be a professional, I had to start thinking like one.

"So I went home (after leaving Boston College), worked out, coached high school football and just worked out very hard. I got an opportunity to go back and I just wanted to seize the moment."

E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com

The list A look at the top five cornerbacks available in the NFL draft:

Player	Ht-Wt	College	2003 stats	Comment
1. DeAngelo Hall	5-10, 202	Virginia Tech	93 tackles, one Int., returned three kicks for TD	Compares to Michael Vick in pure athletic ability, speed
2. Dunta Robinson	5-11, 186	South Carolina	50 tackles, one Int., three games without allowing reception	Rising fast on boards,excellent against run
3. Chris Gamble	6-1, 196	Ohio State	41 tackles, three Int., 12 passes broken up	Can play offense and special teams but will benefit from specialization at corner
4. Will Poole	5-10, 194	USC	89 tackles, three sacks, seven Int.	Started as freshman at Boston College, character questions followed him West
5. Ahmad Carroll	5-10, 195	Arkansas	38 tackles, three Int.	Excelled on special teams, solid corner, member of track team who runs 100 (10.23)