Juco speedster excites Bucs coaching staff

By GREG AUMAN
Published April 25, 2005

	Brackins

TAMPA - It's a big leap, going from junior college football to the NFL, but the Bucs think receiver Larry Brackins is big enough to pull it off.

Brackins, a 6-foot-4 multi-sport star at Pearl River Community College in Mississippi who was drafted in the fifth round, is both the most unknown and most intriguing player in the team's 12-member draft class.

"It didn't matter to me what round I went in, as long as I went," said Brackins, who caught 101 passes for 1,886 yards and 20 touchdowns in two seasons at Pearl River. "I could have gone in the seventh round, and I still would be happy just to get a chance to play. I know it's hard for a juco player to jump right into the NFL like that."

One day after headlining its draft with running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams, the Bucs filled out their rookie class with a bunch of SUVs - big, strong players chosen for their size, whether it be three tall receivers, two hard-hitting safeties or a 337-pound defensive tackle.

Academics kept Brackins from playing major-college football, though the programs who recruited him last year included USC, Miami, Florida State and LSU. The Bucs were the only team to fly him in for a personal workout, but even to them, he remained something of a mystery: Coach Jon Gruden didn't even know where Pearl River was.

"He's a big guy who can run, has really good hang time and makes some splash plays in every game," Gruden said. "He's good after the catch, sometimes great. He's an intriguing guy we like and have been after for some time."

Only three players in the NFL last season were originally drafted out of junior college - Bucs defensive back Juran Bolden was one - and all three played in the Canadian Football League before getting to the NFL. Another was Joe Horn, who played for Bucs receivers coach Richard Mann and quarterbacks coach Paul Hackett in Kansas City. Hackett said Brackins has the talent to make a similar leap from obscurity to NFL stardom.

"He has a wonderful potential, just an exciting young guy," Hackett said. "That's the excitement running around this building. People like Brackins, they have a chance."

Brackins was the second-tallest receiver in this year's draft, a quarter of an inch shorter than Lions first-rounder Mike Williams of Tampa. He led Pearl River to a national championship in 2003, catching 11 passes for 167 yards and two scores in the title game.

The Bucs added two more receivers in the seventh round. Utah's Paris Warren, who caught 15 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns in the Utes' 35-7 Fiesta Bowl victory over Pittsburgh, went at No.225. With the third-to-last overall pick, they grabbed Louisville's J.R. Russell, a 6-3 Gaither graduate who had 148 catches and 15 touchdowns in the past two seasons.

The Bucs drafted eight players Sunday and traded a sixth-round pick for Browns quarterback Luke McCown, who started four games last season as a rookie. They used a fifth-rounder on Oklahoma safety Donte Nicholson, then took Alabama defensive tackle Anthony Bryant with their sixth-round selection.

In addition to Warren and Russell, the Bucs also selected Mississippi fullback Rick Razzano and Washington State safety Hamza Abdullah in the final round. The 12 picks mark the Bucs' largest class since the NFL went to a seven-round draft in 1994.

"We need these guys to make our team," Gruden said. "We need them to give us their play, and we need their contracts, honestly. It's a lot cheaper to sign some rookies than these unrestricted free agents, so it's obviously a goal of ours for these guys to make our football team."

[Last modified April 25, 2005, 01:05:08]