Eric Crouch has a future in the NFL

But Heisman Trophy winner from Nebraska probably won't be playing quarterback

The National Football League's annual rite of spring -- the Draft -- takes place Saturday and Sunday in New York City.

The Draft starts at 11 a.m. Saturday with Rounds 1-3 and continues at 10 a.m. Sunday with Rounds 4-7.

Coverage will be on ESPN and ESPN2.

Will Nebraska quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Eric Crouch be drafted?

Will Crouch be drafted as a quarterback?

The answer to the first question is yes.

The answer to the second question is probably not.

The so-called experts like ESPN Draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. are projecting Crouch as a running back.

The Sporting News lists Crouch as a prospect at both positions.

Former NFL quarterback Joe Theismann said Crouch does not have a big enough arm to play quarterback in the NFL.

The Sporting News lists Crouch at quarterback and running back in its NFL Draft preview.

Crouch has the athletic ability to play several positions such as running back, wide receiver and safety.

Crouch rushed for 1,015 yards and 18 touchdowns, passed for 1,510 and seven TDs and caught a touchdown pass last season for the Cornhuskers.

Certainly, the Cornhuskers' back-to-back losses to Colorado and Miami (in the Rose Bowl) weren't Crouch's fault.

In the Rose Bowl, he rushed for 114 yards and passed for 62. He ran for 162 yards in NU's 62-36 loss to Colorado.

Crouch became just the 13th Division I quarterback to rush and pass for more than 1,000 yards in a season.

In his career, Crouch became just one of three quarterbacks to rush for 3,000 and pass for 4,000 yards. He rushed for 3,434 yards and passed for 4,481.

Maybe Crouch could follow in the footsteps of Scott Frost, another former Nebraska quarterback, who moved from quarterback to free safety.

Frost, who started his NFL career with the New York Jets, is currently on the Green Bay Packers' roster as a free safety. If teams are looking for the best available athlete, then Crouch definitely fits the bill.

Maybe Crouch could shine on special teams or in some sort of hybrid "slash" role comparable to Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback Kordell Stewart in his first few years in the league.

There are probably a lot of Crouch fans out there thinking he's going to play quarterback in the NFL. They are going to be disappointed.

The option does not work in the NFL and Crouch does not have a strong enough arm. Teams won't have enough patience to teach Crouch how to become a drop-back passer.

In fairness to Crouch, he's not going to become the next Donovan McNabb.

He has a lot of speed, but he's only about 6 feet, 200 pounds -- not the 6-3, 6-4 or 6-5, 210-240 pounds with a cannon (Fresno State's David Carr or Oregon's Joey Harrington) that scouts drool over.

Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks haven't amounted to too much in the NFL in the last dozen years.

Do the names Andre Ware, Danny Wuerffel and Gino Torretta mean anything? They are Hesiman Trophy winning QBs who turned into busts in the NFL.

Crouch isn't the only NFL prospect facing a possible position change.

Clemson's Woodie Dantzler and Indiana's Antwaan Randle-El won't play quarterback in the NFL either.

Dantzler will move to running back and Randle-El has enough speed to play wide receiver.

During his four years at Nebraska, the Cornhuskers posted a 42-9 record.

Carr will be the first pick in the NFL Draft by the expansion Houston Texans. Harrington is rated as the second-best quarterback in the draft. He could be picked anywhere from third to 10th, according to the so-called experts.

The Kansas City Chiefs have the eighth pick in the first round, and Harrington would be too good to pass up.

The Chiefs passed on Dan Marino 19 years ago for Todd Blackledge, who has become a fine college analyst for ABC.

The Chiefs have relied on aging free agent quarterbacks since passing over Marino -- Steve DeBerg, Ron Jaworski, David Krieg, Joe Montana, Warren Moon -- and prospects like Elvis Grbac and Trent Green.

Kansas City likely won't pick Crouch unless they are looking for the best available athlete in the later rounds.

Like the other 31 teams, the Chiefs would be foolish to take a pass on Crouch.

Crouch has one intangible the NFL teams should not overlook -- he is a winner.

John J. Mesh is the sports editor of the McCook (Neb.) Daily Gazette. He's still mad at the Chiefs for not picking Dan Marino. He can be reached through e-mail at sports@mccookgazette.com.