Draft destinations are a mystery.

Byline: Rob Moseley The Register-Guard

He's been poked and prodded, flown from city to city for day-long visits with NFL teams, and George Wrighster is ready for it to be over.

Of the group of players with local ties expected to be chosen in this weekend's NFL draft, Wrighster will be among the first, and the anticipation is almost more than he can bear.

"Saturday just won't get here fast enough," Wrighster said.

There are Ducks on offense and Beavers on defense, and even one Willamette Wolverine who is projected to help on special teams in this year's draft.

A handful of familiar names is expected to be called this weekend, led by former Douglas High School safety Troy Polamalu of USC. Polamalu is as close to a first-round lock as there is among players with ties to the state of Oregon, though there is disagreement over which local player will follow.

UO running back Onterrio Smith and tight end Wrighster hope to have their decisions to leave school a year early validated, while Oregon State cornerback Dennis Weathersby's recent gunshot wound probably dropped him out of the first round, and might lead to linebacker Nick Barnett being the first Beaver picked.

It's all speculation for now, which is frustrating even the players. It won't be a day from now.

The two-day, seven-round draft begins Saturday at 9 a.m. at Madison Square Garden in New York and on ESPN. Three rounds will be conducted the first day, with the final four slated for Sunday.

Smith had hoped to garner first-round consideration after his workout for pro scouts at the Moshofsky Center on April 1, when he showed off a new 220-pound physique and ran 40-yard dashes timed in the mid-4.4 to mid-4.5 range. Lately, though, mock drafts conducted by the likes of ESPN's Mel Kiper and Sports Illustrated put Smith late in the second round at best.

Much of the analysis is similar to that of ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli: "One of the most agile, quick runners in this draft and, next to Willis McGahee, might be the most elusive runner. ... Character issues may scare some teams."

It seems Smith's transgressions at Tennessee and with the Ducks are again haunting him. Almost every comment from a draft "expert" refers to the marijuana use that led to his departure from the Volunteers.

But there also seems to be no question about Smith's talent level, and his standing in the mock drafts led Sports Illustrated's Stewart Mandel to label Smith underrated.

"To me, he's the best running back in the draft, a bulldozer who ran for 1,058 yards as a backup in 2001 and followed it up with 1,141 last year despite missing three games with a knee injury," Mandel wrote. "Maybe it's the injury that's keeping him out of first-round contention, maybe it's height (5-foot-10), maybe it's character issues (he was dismissed from Tennessee for rules violations). All I know is he was Mr. Consistent for Oregon, including some absolutely huge games."

Kiper lists Smith as the third-best back in the draft and has him going to Tampa Bay with the last pick of the second round. Heisman finalist Larry Johnson of Penn State is the only back that has been consistently rated above Smith the past three months, but lately injured Miami tailback Willis McGahee has been creeping up on Johnson and Smith, and he may end up being the first running back picked Saturday.

Wrighster was ranked No. 3 among tight ends by Kiper, and No. 42 overall, 10 spots above Smith. He has been drawing raves for his pass-catching abilities during workouts this offseason but is nowhere to be found among the first two rounds in most mock drafts.

That contradicts what Wrighster said he's been told by NFL personnel.

"All the feelings I have come from teams, so I'm looking at late one, early two," said Wrighster, who visited Jacksonville, New Orleans and Dallas. "The worst-case scenario should be the second round."

That's where the first Beavers are expected to go, as well. Weathersby was a popular first-round projection a month ago, but since being the accidental victim in a shooting in southern California he seems more likely to fall to the second.

Kiper felt Weathersby was a late first-round choice before the shooting, while the mockup by Sports Illustrated released Thursday has Weathersby going at No. 62 to Philadelphia. That's well below their projection for Barnett, at No. 32 to Detroit.

Barnett's standing has steadily improved the past few weeks, and he is Pro Football Weekly's No. 2 prospect at outside linebacker. ESPN.com's Pasquarelli calls Barnett the No. 32 overall prospect in the draft, while Kiper has him No. 5 at outside linebacker and No. 61 overall.

The rest of the locals will likely wait until Sunday to hear their names called, led by OSU defensive tackles Eric Manning and James Lee. Portland State quarterback Juston Wood, UO receiver/punt returner Keenan Howry, OSU defensive back Terrell Roberts and UO linebacker Dave Moretti might also earn calls Sunday, along with Boise State safety and Willamette High School grad Quintin Mikell.

Mikell will return home to Eugene to watch the draft and said teams have told him he could go anywhere from the fourth to the seventh round, with Chicago and Miami having shown the most interest. The WAC defensive player of the year last fall, the 5-10, 206-pound Mikell had a poor workout in bad weather in Boise for scouts, then attended the April 1 pro timing day in Eugene and improved his marks.

Pasquarelli labeled Mikell "intriguing," writing: "Safety Quintin Mikell of Boise State is undersized but was the WAC's premier defensive player the last couple seasons, has recently had some productive workouts, and could make someone's roster as a special teams contributor and maybe a `dime' back."

Like the rest of the potential local draftees, Mikell said he's in the dark regarding his status for this week and can't wait for it to come.

"A lot of teams think they can get me in the fourth or fifth, but you don't really know how it's going to play out," Mikell said. "I'm pretty excited. I think I've done everything I needed to do to put myself in position to be drafted."

NFL DRAFT

Saturday, 9 a.m. at Madison Square Garden in New York, ESPN

NFL DRAFT

POTENTIAL LOCAL DRAFTEES

Troy Polamalu, S, USC, 5-10, 206. Projected round: 1

All signs point to Douglas HS grad going to Steelers at No. 27.

Dennis Weathersby, CB, OSU, 6-0, 204. Projection: 1-2

Already on first-round bubble, shooting incident may seal deal.

Onterrio Smith, RB, Oregon, 5-10, 220. Projection: 2

Injury risk, history of incidents off the field hurt his stock.

Nick Barnett, LB, OSU, 6-2, 236. Projection: 2

Pac-10's leading tackler in 2002 certain to be taken on first day.

George Wrighster, TE, Oregon, 6-2, 249. Projection: 2-3

Will be near phone as first round ends, but likely to wait longer.

Eric Manning, DT, OSU, 6-1, 303. Projection: 4-5

Height is a concern, and this is a deep draft on the line.

James Lee, DT, OSU, 6-4, 327. Projection: 6-7

OSU backup has good size but would need time to develop.

Juston Wood, QB, Portland St., 6-1, 207. Projection: 6-7

I-AA all-American made enough noise to earn Combine invite.

Keenan Howry, WR, Oregon, 5-10, 178. Projection: 7

Will fit somewhere as a slot receiver and/or punt returner.

Quintin Mikell, S, Boise St., 5-10, 206. Projection: 7

Willamette HS grad called "intriguing" by ESPN.com.

Dave Moretti, LB, Oregon, 6-1, 240. Projection: 7-FA

March workouts may have earned him draft consideration.

Terrell Roberts, CB, OSU, 5-9, 200. Projection: 7-FA

Could catch on as special teams player for somebody.