Two players who were bitter rivals in their collegiate careers headlined the 2011 Senior Bowl’s list of players who may have gotten a boost with a good game.
2011 Senior Bowl: NFL Draft Stock Up For Christian Ponder, Leonard Hankerson
Florida State’s Christian Ponder, named the Senior Bowl MVP, proved he can move an offense with a seven-for-13 performance through the air that included two touchdown passes.
His favorite target was Leonard Hankerson, a lanky receiver from FSU’s bitter rival, Miami. Hankerson collected five passes for 99 yards, including a touchdown from Ponder, and may have flashed enough talent to remind NFL scouts of past Miami studs at wideout, like Reggie Wayne and Andre Johnson.
Texas A&M’s Von Miller capped an excellent week in Mobile with another good game. He recovered from a lackluster start to his senior season in 2010 by showing why he was a favorite choice for preseason awards lists with speed and hustle towards the end of the year, and the Butkus Award winner harassed the North’s quarterbacks all day. Miller is likely to be a top-five or top-ten pick.
Perhaps the most talked-about name of the 2011 Senior Bowl, Jake Locker might have gotten the slightest bump in the game. The Washington product started slowly, completing only one pass in a poor first quarter, but played better in the game’s second half, leading the North’s only touchdown drive.
Sure, it was a drive aided by a pass interference penalty on a poorly thrown pass, and Locker did fumble on the drive, but being able to put a bad start behind him shows the sort of mental makeup that often translates to “confidence” for NFL scouts.
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