S. Fla. products get chance to show off wares to Dolphins

[DolFan619]

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-flspdolphins11sbapr11,0,4507507,print.story

S. Fla. products get chance to show off wares to Dolphins

By Omar Kelly
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

12:40 AM EDT, April 11, 2008

Pierre Garcon will have an opportunity today to live out a dream.

The Mount Union receiver, who at the NFL Scouting Combine outperformed many of the top wideouts from the big-name schools, is hoping he gets some team-issued gear during his workout with the Dolphins so he can feel like he's already a team member.

"I've always been a huge fan, so to be able to play for the Dolphins would be big," said Garcon, a former John I. Leonard standout whose 4.48-second 40-time, 20 bench-press repetitions of 225 pounds, and 36.5-inch vertical leap at the combine were eye-opening, especially coming from a Division III player.

The 6-foot-1 Garcon's all-around performance at the combine, and the 67 receptions for 955 yards and 14 touchdowns he contributed as a senior, forced NFL teams to do more research on him. The Giants, Browns, Vikings, Steelers, Panthers, Packers, Bears, Colts, Falcons and Broncos already have brought him in to work him out and interview him.

But today's workout with the Dolphins could fulfill a childhood dream that Garcon shares with a few others. John Dunlap, a former Chaminade- Madonna standout who went on to play receiver at N.C. State, is in the same boat.

Garcon and Dunlap will be among the two dozen or so local draft prospects working out and interviewing with the Dolphins today.

"Hopefully I'll have a good experience and show people what I can do," said Dunlap, who caught a career-high 45 passes for 375 yards and three touchdowns as a senior.

According to NFL rules, teams can bring in up to 30 nonlocal players for interviews and medical tests, but not workouts. But players with local ties can be worked out in one camp setting.

Some of the more notable draft prospects participating in today's workout are UCF tailback Kevin Smith, whose 2,567 yards last season was 67 yards shy of breaking Barry Sanders' NCAA season record; UM safety Kenny Phillips, the draft's top-rated safety; and UM defensive end Calais Campbell, a potential first-rounder.

UM offensive linemen Andrew Bain, John Rochford and Derrick Morse, defensive tackle Teraz McCray, quarterback Kyle Wright, cornerback Glenn Sharpe, and receivers Darnell Jenkins and Lance Leggett are also scheduled to participate.

For many of these players, it will be their first workouts since the Pro Day showing they had on their campuses.

Last year the Dolphins had receivers Kerry Reed and Chandler Williams at this same local workout and both spent the majority, if not all of 2007, on the Dolphins practice squad. Reed actually had a six-week stint on the 53-man roster.

There is one local player, Hurricanes linebacker Tavares Gooden, who was expected to participate but has since backed out of the camp because of a scheduling conflict.

Since passing a medical re-check last weekend, Gooden's workout schedule has been jam-packed. The former St. Thomas Aquinas standout visited the Saints earlier this week and worked out for the Bears and Packers at UM on Thursday. Gooden, who was limited by a hip injury at the combine and UM's Pro Day, is also scheduled to workout for the Colts on Sunday and is committed to visiting the Titans, Giants and 49ers in the coming weeks.

"I'm getting some good looks because teams know I can play all three linebacker spots since I did it at Miami," said Gooden, who had a breakout senior season, contributing a team-high 100 tackles when he played middle linebacker.

Gooden's representatives are trying to arrange a private workout with the Dolphins.

[YoFuggedaboutit]

Pierre Garcon sounds like another Wes Welker.

Hey MUCPhin, what do you know about this guy?

[MUCPhin]

He's huge, he used to look like a linebacker playing receiver against DIII competition.  His speed is also legit, because he used to run through defense without kicking in to his extra gear, and his athleticism is absolutely phenomonal when he gets the ball in space.  The one quality that stuck out the most though is his physical play.  Playing against weaker competition really worked against him sometimes because he would repeatedly get flagged for blind-siding a linebacker safety in run support.  These were legal hits, but they were slobber-knockers that really got the refs attention.  And in all seriousness, I think his favorite play was the pursuit of interceptions.  I can see him being a crazy special teams player somewhere.