Tackling the NFL draft

Boise State left tackle Ryan Clady has done his best to keep up with Eisenhower High School, his alma mater. Throughout his successful three-year career with the Broncos, where his name dotted every All-American list possible, the 6-foot-6, 316-pound offensive lineman always kept one eye on Ike.

"It's been a little tough for us lately, but we'll be back," Clady said. "It's tough with Rialto and Carter around, but from what I hear, they are improving and on their way back."

Everything is going extremely well for Clady, a 2004 graduate of Ike.

He is set up to be the school's first NFL first-round draft pick since 1981, when the San Francisco 49ers selected future Hall of Famer Ron Lott from USC.

Lott was drafted eighth in 1981, a position that Clady could match or better today.

According to his agent, Pat Dye Jr., Clady could be drafted as high as No. 5 by the Kansas City Chiefs or No. 8 by the Baltimore Ravens. Denver (No. 12), Carolina (No. 13) and Chicago (No. 14), were also being floated out there - barring trades - with the Bears being a worst-case scenario.

Not a bad situation for a guy who was a lightly recruited defensive tackle out of Ike four years ago.

"I feel confident that Ryan is going to go very high," Dye said. "He's probably the most athletic offensive tackle out there, even compared to (No. 1 pick) Jake Long. Some guys are speed guys with good feet and other guys are power guys. Ryan can do both and I think he's one of the best athletes in this draft."

Clady, along with USC defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis - a Chino graduate - look to be the first players from the Inland Empire to be drafted in the first round since Miller graduate Nick Barnett, an Oregon State linebacker who the Green Bay Packers chose with the No. 29 pick in 2003. Clady is also set to become the first first-round draft pick in Boise State history.

Being mentioned in the rarified air with those names is something that Clady is slowly getting used to.

"It's definitely an honor," Clady said. "There have been some great players that have come through the area and to be mentioned with them is something that I'm proud of. I'm a little nervous because I have no idea what city I'm going to live in, but I'm excited."

One thing that wasn't exciting at first for Clady was the interviewing process. While he was generally regarded as a courteous and good-mannered player at Boise State, he wasn't a guy that easily opened up to new people.

That characteristic was something that Dye noticed right after signing Clady as a client. With player interviews being a key part of every NFL team's evaluation process during the three months prior to the draft, Dye knew that he had to refine his client's public-speaking technique.

"He's not rude at all," Dye said. "He's open and engaging with people he knows and can be pretty funny. But it takes him a while to open up to people and he's pretty quiet when he first meets you. I told him that when you meet with teams, you get 15 minutes to sell yourself. To do that, you have to open up a bit."

That might have been the hardest part of the process for Clady. Doing 40-yard dashes, bench-pressing 225 pounds countless times and working out with former Los Angeles Rams Hall of Fame offensive tackle Jackie Slater was easy compared to breaking the ice with NFL player personnel directors.

Add in the travel to various NFL cities akin to a barnstorming tour - with Clady meeting up with five different teams in different cities during a six-day period at one point - and Clady knew that he had to hone his interview technique.

"I just worked on trying to speak clearly, make eye contact and give in-depth answers," Clady said. "It was weird at first, because they'll have 10 different guys in the room with you and they'll intentionally try to make you uncomfortable to see how you'll react under pressure.

"I used my first couple of interviews as a warmup to get comfortable. It wasn`t that bad because I wasn`t the one who had to spark the conversation. All I had to do was answer questions."

The interviewing seminars that Dye held also helped Clady deal with a potentially-tough issue - his Wonderlic score. Clady took the 50-question multiple-choice test at February's NFL Combine immediately after injuring his pectoral muscle during the 225-pound bench-pressing session and did poorly on it, only getting 13 of the questions correct.

It was one of the worst scores at the combine and could have been a rare negative on Clady's glowing resume. But Clady was able to use his newly-found interviewing prowess to skillfully explain the circumstances.

"I was pissed off from getting hurt in that situation and I let it carry over to the test," Clady said. "It was a mistake but I don't think it's the end of the world. After talking to a few teams, I don't think it was an issue at all."

Added Dye: "The combine is a stressful experience and Ryan was especially stressed about getting injured. I don't think anyone dropped him because of that test score. Ryan explained the circumstances and there hasn't been any other corroboration with that test score. Ryan interviewed well and showed great scheme recognition in talking to coaches in his visits. That lessened any concerns."

The injury is fine now and Clady, along with several friends and family members, will be watching today's draft at the LAX Hilton.

While he could go anywhere from No.5 to the middle of the first round, Clady will just be happy to have the process over and his professional life under way.

"I'm just ready for the whole thing to be over," Clady said. "It's been a pretty crazy last few months but I'm excited about being in the NFL."