Mean Green

The Sun Belt Conference has had a pretty good year when it comes to football. Louisiana-Monroe toppled Alabama, Florida Atlantic beat Minnesota and then knocked off Memphis in the New Orleans Bowl. Troy won eight games.

The league will add another chapter to that solid run today in the NFL Draft. The Sun Belt produced a first-round pick a couple of years back in Troy's DeMarcus Ware and will have another today when Trojans cornerback/returnman Leodis McKelvin is expected to be taken in the top half of the first round.

Arkansas State safety Tyrell Johnson could also go on the first day. Even if he is around on Sunday, it looks like he will be gone by the end of the third round. Middle Tennessee offensive lineman Franklin Dunbar could be a late-round pick.

There doesn't seem to be much doubt that the talent level in the Sun Belt is on the rise.

Having a player picked in the first round again is going to give Troy a nice publicity boost, not that it needed one with Ware in the Pro Bowl with the Cowboys and Osi Umenyiora sporting a new Super Bowl ring, thanks to the Giants' win over New England.

UNT will likely go without having anyone selected in the draft, which I never would have guessed when Jamario Thomas was running over, around and through just about everyone the Mean Green faced nearly four years ago. Thomas' stock dropped along with his production late in his career due to injuries and other factors.

The question of the day seems to be, how long will UNT be left out when it comes to draft day? Linebacker Cody Spencer was selected in the sixth round in 2004, but the Mean Green has had few draft prospects since. Post your guess on the blog. Is there a player on UNT's roster who will be a draft prospect by the end of his career?

My random somewhat qualified guess – Sam Roberson. The 6-4 wide receiver has the physical tools and plays in an offense that will allow him to develop them.