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Jake Long could become the first offensive lineman to go No. 1 overall since 1997. There could be four blockers taken in the top 10, which hasn't happened since 2002. The board is deep at tackle but light at guard and center.

There wasn't much interest in Ryan Clady coming out of high school, but there is coming out of college.

Clady had three scholarship offers in 2004, from Boise State, San Diego State and UTEP.

"It felt like family at Boise," Clady said. "It was a great place to play college ball."

Clady redshirted in 2004, then became a starter in 2005. He started the next three seasons and was an All-WAC selection in each of the last two.

Clady became such a polished blocker that he decided to skip his senior season to turn pro. He is viewed as the best pass protector in this draft, a natural left tackle. He projects as a top-10 pick. Boise State has never had a first-round selection.

"That would be exciting," said Clady. "That's something that doesn't happen around here too often. I thank the Lord for the situation I'm in."

Hard work also played a hand. You don't go from a high school player none of the major colleges wanted to a player the entire NFL covets in a span of four years without breaking a sweat.

"I've always been kind of an underdog," Clady said. "I came to Boise State and worked my butt off."

The highest a Boise State player has ever been drafted was the 30th overall pick, where defensive end Markus Koch was taken by Washington in the 1986 draft.

Jake Long, T, Michigan: Jake Long and Joe Thomas of Wisconsin were the All-Big Ten tackles in 2006. Thomas became the third overall pick of the 2007 draft and went to the Pro Bowl as a rookie. Long may be an even higher pick in 2008. "Joe's a great player who represented his school and the Big Ten very well," Long said. "He had a great rookie season. I would hope to follow in his footsteps. He showed me and the other rookies that you can come in and have a huge impact, have a great season. That's encouraging to me."

Brandon Barnes, G, Grand Valley State (Mich.): Barnes won the Upshaw Award in 2007 as the top lineman in Division II. Don't discount the small school players. Jahri Evans won the Upshaw in 2005, became a fourth-round pick by the New Orleans Saints and has started all 32 games of his NFL career. Barnes was a four-year starter, a three-time All-Great Lakes Conference pick and a two-time All-America.

Oneil Cousins, G, UTEP: His best football is ahead of him. He spent 2005 as a backup DT and 2006 as a backup OT. Cousins started at left tackle in 2006 and at right tackle in 2007. But at 6-3 ½ , he'll probably move to guard in the NFL. Draft projection: 2-3 rounds.

2. Anthony Collins, OT, Kansas (and Beaumont): Draft projection: 2-3 rounds.

3. Tony Hills, OT, Texas: Draft projection: 4-5 rounds.

Clean play: Jake Long allowed one sack in 2007 and was not assessed a penalty. "I'll admit that I hold," Long said. "I'll get my hands inside and hide it so the refs can't see it. It's a skill. If you can get away with it and not get caught, it's absolutely a skill. I try to make sure I get my hands inside on every single play, so if I do hold, the refs won't be able to see it." So he's already mastered Survival 101 as an NFL blocker – the art of holding.

Not in the plans: Duane Brown developed into one of the top blockers in the 2008 draft. But this was not how his career was supposed to unfold. He went to Virginia Tech as a tight end, and his first college reception went for a 33-yard touchdown against Western Michigan. He moved to offensive tackle the following season. OT Breno Giacomini also began his college career at Louisville as a tight end and caught a TD pass versus Rutgers.

Hoop it up: Once upon a time, Anthony Collins could have envisioned himself as a contributor to the Jayhawks basketball team. Instead, he became an All-Big 12 blocker for the school's Orange Bowl-winning football team. "I thought I was a basketball player," said Collins, who played basketball in his first three years of high school before switching to football. "I thought I could make it in basketball. Turns out I couldn't jump for nothing. All my friends were playing football my senior year, and I didn't want to be the one left out, so I joined them."

A fallback plan: Southern Cal OT Sam Baker has options in his football career. He expects to be one of the top 60 selections in the 2008 draft, and he knows he can always play indoors if the NFL doesn't work out. His father, David Baker, is the commissioner of the Arena Football League. "I'm a big fan of the Arena league," Sam said. "It's done a lot for my family. Hopefully I won't have to make that call, although my pop said I can play quarterback if I play there."

Iron men: The NFL likes its offensive linemen durable and productive. The most durable blocker on this draft board is OT Gosder Cherilus, who started a school-record 51 consecutive games – every game of his career. Here's a list of the offensive linemen with the most career starts (* consecutive starts):

60-minute man: OT Tyler Polumbus played every offensive snap for Colorado each of the last two seasons. He was on the field for 715 plays in 2006 and 893 in 2007. "Everyone gets nicks and bruises," said Polumbus, a two-time academic All-Big 12 selection. "There's a difference between being hurt and being injured. You just do what you can to stay on the field."

Trouble-free: The NFL is cracking down on character in the draft. But it didn't take long for the league's security team to run a background check on San Diego State OT William Robinson. His father was in the Marines and is now a deputy sheriff in Los Angeles assigned to the SWAT team. His mother is a retired deputy sheriff. "They work hard and a lot of hours," Robinson said. "They did the best they could and did a pretty good job of keeping me out of trouble."

Downsizing: Oregon OT Geoff Schwartz enrolled in college in 2004 at 315 pounds but ballooned to 370 by his sophomore season. "I was eating nonstop," he said. He reversed the spiral as a junior and became an NFL draft prospect as a result, checking in at 332 pounds at the NFL scouting combine in February. "I just felt I needed to lose weight," he said. "It was unhealthy, and I wasn't moving well. Three-seventy was too big for me and too big for football. I had to change."

Winning ways: The NFL loves winners, so the NFL will love Southern Cal G Drew Radovich. The Trojans posted a 47-5 record and won a national championship in Radovich's career. He also won two state titles in high school at Mission Viejo (Calif.). "It was like a mini-SC," Radovich said. "We had a strict weight-lifting regimen, along with off-season field and film work. I've been so blessed in my football career not to lose too many games. We lost maybe 3-4 games in high school, and coming to college has been awesome. I expect to be successful."

Veteran traveler: Utah State guard Shawn Murphy interrupted his college football career by spending two years on a church mission in Brazil from 2003-04. "It was amazing," Murphy said. "I'm fluent in Portugese now. I stayed among the people and lived in some of the more poverty-ridden areas. It was dangerous at times. I got robbed a few times and got caught in the middle of some gunfights between police and drug dealers and things like that. It was an eye-opening experience. I was hiding behind couches. Even being 6-4, 260 at the time, it's still a violent place for anybody. They'll pull out their guns. It's a different world there."