March 2006 Cover Courtesy: St. Martin's Press Inside The Draft • Dick Friedman's review | Read an excerpt | Buy it Hot Off The Press Game of Shadows By Fainaru-Wade, Lance Williams ($26). The much talked about book reveals the extent of Bonds' steroid use. Home Plate Don't Move: Baseball's Best Quotes and Quips By Eric Zweig ($15.95). The most colorful quotes from some of baseball's best personalities. The Book on The Book: An Inquiry into Which Strategies in the Modern Game Actually Work By Bill Felber ($24.95). The author looks at the culture behind the Duke-UNC rivalry through interviews with players, coaches and residents of Tobacco Road. Eagle Blue: A Team, a Tribe, and a High School Basketball Team in Arctic Alaska By Michael D'Orso ($23.95). A look at the popularity and influence of basketball in the remote region of Arctic Alaska. Clearing the Bases: Juiced Players, Monster Salaries, Sham Records, and a Hall of Famer's Search for the Soul of Baseball By Mike Schmidt ($24.95). The 12-time All-Star emerges from his relatively private lifestyle to speak out about baseball's "Juiced" era, with its steroid-pumped players, callous owners, and dubious home run kings. Five Under $5 Think words are cheap? These books won't break your bank (prices from amazon.com): • Bloody Sundays : Inside the Rough-and-Tumble World of the NFL By Mike Freeman ($4.19). The author goes onto the sidelines and inside the locker rooms to give the reader a sense of what the NFL experience is really like. • Golf Etiquette By Barbara Puett, Jim Apfelbaum, Carrell Grigsby and Tom Kite ($4.99). The author's give a few tips about respect and etiquette on the golf course. • A Civil War: Army vs. Navy - A Year Inside College Football's Purest Rivalry By John Feinstein ($4.49). A look inside the storied rivalry, from the perspective of the defensive captains from each 1995 squad. • Sometimes You See It Coming: A Novel By Kevin Baker ($4.49). The story of a talented, but reclusive, baseball star and his relationship with his teammates. • The Making of the Masters: Clifford Roberts, Augusta National, and Golf's Most Prestigious Tournament By David Owen ($4.98). A critical and complex portrait of Augusta National Gold Club and its founder, Clifford Roberts.

PROLOGUE
THE 2005 NFL DRAFT
Saturday, April 23, 2005

The citizens of Waycross, Georgia turned out in force to watch the 2005 NFL Draft. More than three hundred gathered at the city's new community center to honor Fred Gibson, who had gone from Waycross to stardom at the University of Georgia and now was looking at a big payday in the NFL.

Banners were posted, along with blown-up images from Gibson's Bulldogs career. There were wide-screen televisions tuned to ESPN, a giant, bouncy house set up for the kids, and an impressive spread of ribs, barbecue, chicken, potato salad, baked beans, and cake. Gibson, a skinny six-four wide receiver, arrived at the community center an hour into the first round and couldn't believe the turnout. His immediate family was there, along with uncles, aunts, cousins, former coaches, and seemingly everyone he had known since early childhood.

NFL teams selected three wide receivers among the first picks -- Braylon Edwards of Michigan, South Carolina's Troy Williamson, and Mike Williams of Southern Cal-but Gibson was not concerned. He didn't expect to get picked that early.

His agents Doug Hendrickson and Demetro Stephens of Octagon were not on hand but offered encouragement over the phone. They believed Gibson could go as early as the end of the first round, certainly no later than the third.

It was a festive atmosphere at the Waycross community center. The guest of honor played the role of gracious host, all the while keeping an eye on ESPN. The draft proceeded slowly during the first round, with selections trickling out every fifteen minutes.

Gibson grew a little anxious at the end of the round when the Baltimore Ravens chose Oklahoma's Mark Clayton at number twenty-two and the hometown Atlanta Falcons opted for Roddy White of Alabama-Birmingham at number twenty-seven. Gibson had worked out alongside Clayton and White at the Senior Bowl, the late-January all-star game in Mobile, Alabama. He couldn't begrudge the teams for drafting such talented receivers.

The party grew silent early in the second round when the Philadelphia Eagles selected Reggie Brown, who also was a wide receiver out of the University of Georgia. The two Bulldogs were linked together, though for much of their careers Gibson was viewed as the better pro prospect.

Gibson pumped his fist and smiled. "Good for Reggie," he said.

The draft moved more quickly now, just five minutes per pick starting with the second round, and Gibson paid closer attention. "Just sit tight," Hendrickson told him over the phone.

More receivers came off the board. The Chicago Bears selected Oklahoma's Mark Bradley. Roscoe Parrish, a speedy five-ten receiver from Miami, went to the Buffalo Bills. The Green Bay Packers picked up Terrence Murphy from Texas A&M and the San Diego Chargers grabbed Northern Colorado's Vincent Jackson.

Gibson stood in disbelief as the second round ended. He checked his cell phone to make sure he hadn't missed anything. Friends did their best to distract him. Surely he would go soon.

The third round got underway shortly after 9:00 P.M. The Tennessee Titans, with the fourth pick in the round, chose Indiana's Courtney Roby. Teams were drafting quickly now, but it seemed nobody wanted a wide receiver. Fourteen selections passed. Much of the Waycross crowd dispersed, but Gibson remained. Surely the call would come soon.

The Cincinnati Bengals were on the clock now, having already selected two of Gibson's Georgia teammates: defensive end David Pollack in the first and linebacker Odell Thurman in the second. The Bengals chose a wide receiver in the third round, but it was Chris Henry of West Virginia.

Two picks later, the Seattle Seahawks selected Georgia quarterback David Greene. Gibson was happy for "Greeney." Like the rest of his Bulldogs teammates, Greene was picked at or before where most of the endless mock drafts projected him in the weeks leading up to the draft.