In a draft that had plenty of questions, even more questions were created.
Who would the Texans draft first?
Who would be the first quarterback taken?
How far would LenDale White fall in the draft due to his hamstring injury?
All those were answered, but for Mississippi State fans, the burning question of the weekend was when running back Jerious Norwood, the school’s all-time leading rusher, would be taken.
Norwood, who many draft pundits had as an underrated sleeper pick, went slightly earlier than most experts predicted, getting selected in the third round by the Atlanta Falcons.
The Falcons now have three former Bulldogs on their roster.
They grabbed Justin Griffith in the fourth round of the 2003 draft and also have journeyman running back Fred McCrary who graduated from MSU in 1994.
Norwood rushed for 1,136 yards for the Bulldogs in 2005, averaging 5.9 yards per carry.
He started all 11 games, and scored six touchdowns, and is expected to compete immediately for playing time with the Falcons.
“The thing he brings to us is great speed and great vision on the field,” said Falcons running backs coach Ollie Wilson. “We really believe it’ll be a great combination with Warrick (Dunn) and T.J. (Duckett); a change of pace back with good hands out of the backfield.”
Norwood’s selection capped off a crazy day of drafting by league executives, who created even more questions in the wake of the draft than preceded it.
Why did the Saints draft Reggie Bush although they already have Deuce McAllister?
Why did the Broncos draft Jay Cutler and not a running back like usual?
Which of the big three-Vince Young, Matt Leinart or Bush-landed in the most ideal situation for a rookie?
The Texans passed on Reggie Bush to take Mario Williams first overall, tossing Bush into the open arms of the Saints.
Young went third to the Titans, and Leinart went 10th to the Cardinals.
Right now, Leinart is in the best situation a rookie quarterback has ever been in.
He has Edgerrin James in the backfield and Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin as wide-outs.
He also has a Super Bowl MVP in Kurt Warner to help him out.
Bush’s running mate, White, did a freefall deep into the second round, being scooped up by the Titans with the 45th pick.