National Football League

Arizona's Hill realistic of what NFL draft has in store

Published Apr. 30, 2015 12:02 a.m. ET

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TUCSON, Ariz. -- Former Arizona wide receiver Austin Hill will go into this week's NFL draft hoping for the best but is pragmatic about not being drafted in the early rounds.

Life -- as he knows it -- has its ups and downs.

"I'm definitely excited," he said in a phone interview Wednesday. "It's a mixture of excitement and being stressed out. I've been living my whole life (and playing) for this day and for it to finally come ... I'm just ready to live out my dream."

It may or may not happen with any former Arizona player in this year's draft. Steven Gurrola, Jared Tevis, Mickey Baucus and Jonathan McKnight will spend the next few days wondering if the NFL is in their immediate future.

In Hill's situation, draft prognosticators have him pegged for the middle to late rounds. And some have him not being drafted at all.

"I understand I won't be among the top picks," said Hill, a 6-foot-3, 212 pound receiver. "I have a lot of mid-round grades and later grades, too. I'm planning on getting drafted and going somewhere. If that doesn't happen, then sometimes the best route is to pick the team you want to go to. Either way, I'm going to take it as a first step and an important step."

The pluses are many: "Big and physical. Plays to his size," NFL.com states. "Runs with attitude after the catch and can take weaker cornerbacks for a ride. Puts defenders on his hip and uses his body to shield them. Good chance lateral quickness improves as he continues to trust his recovery from injury."

The negatives are there, too: "Suffered ACL injury that knocked him out for all of 2013," the website states. "Is noticeably slower since his injury. Still hasn't recovered to his pre-injury form. Personnel men question his vertical speed."

Through it all, he remains realistic and aware of his situation and career that just three years ago looked to be on the fast track of stardom. He was coming off a spectacular season, grabbing 81 passes for 1,364 yards. It included 11 touchdowns and a couple of national award recognitions. Then came his injury in the spring game a few months later, derailing what would have been his junior season. Instead, he sat out and started his rehabilitation. Then his numbers dropped. He had 49 catches for 635 yards and just four touchdowns. He says he thinks the injury has hurt him in "other people's eyes more than it hurt in mine."

"How I was used at Arizona I wasn't able to fulfill and go over 1,000 yards my senior year so I think it hurt me a little there," Hill said. "People speculated whether I was back, but I think I put that to rest in the Shrine Game and on my pro day."

He said he's worked as hard as he can to prove he's fully recovered. Again, he remains realistic about what people think.

"I didn't start (thinking pragmatically) until I tore my ACL and after that it opened my eyes," he said. "Not everything is going to go well. Things happen for a reason. I'm taking it step by step and in the process I'm doing whatever I can do to get back on the map."

He also knows he's done everything he "could possibly do" to show he's ready to the next level. He said he had a quality pro day where he showed his talents and then was pretty good in the East-West Shrine game where he caught four passes for 41 yards.

"I feel confident in my preparation for the draft," he said. "We will see what happens. Anything can happen on draft day."

Tevis, a 5-foot-10 safety, doesn't know what to expect either. But he said he's "trying to keep the nerves down and as of right now it doesn't look like I'll be drafted but I could go as a free agent. It's a good time to sit back with family and friends and see what happens."

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