Hatch set to graduate to Sundays

Jeff Hatch graduated in December, and, like a lot of recent graduates, has spent the intervening months selling himself to potential employers.

Except these employers fly him to their respective cities, pick him up in limousines and then make him hit things.

Jeff Hatch, former Penn left tackle, is a bona fide NFL prospect. He's going to be chosen in the league's annual draft this weekend.

That's not really the story. Every few years, a Penn senior gets drafted. In 1999, running back Jim Finn -- currently the Indianapolis Colts' starting fullback -- was taken by the Chicago Bears with the last pick in the final round, earning him the less-than-coveted title of "Mr. Irrelevant," but also a nice trip to Disneyworld. And in fact, it's possible that, along with Hatch, quarterback Gavin Hoffman and running back Kris Ryan will also get drafted.

The story here is that Hatch could very well be drafted on Saturday, in the third round, pretty high for an Ivy League player.

"Right now, I'm hearing between the third and fifth [rounds]," Hatch said. "But if I'm hearing third round, I'm telling myself fifth round."

Hatch, at 6'7" 305 lbs., has good -- but not overwhelming -- size. He wasn't even invited to the NFL's combine for prospective draftees. But, since his appearance in a college all-star game and his grading out very highly in various workouts, he's seen his NFL stock skyrocket.

"It's totally snowballed," Hatch said. "Everyday I'm getting five or six calls from different teams confirming my draft day phone number. I'm getting kind of used to it."

That's a far cry from during the season, when Hatch got a call from a Washington Redskins coach.

"I immediately called my parents and was like, 'listen to this message,'" Hatch said.

Now, Hatch works out with an NFL offensive line coach or two every few days.

One of the first coaches to come see him was Irv Eatman, an assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs, and Hatch made an impression.

"[Eatman] was doing these pass-rushing drills," Hatch said. "And I knocked him down."

Eatman got up, laughing, and whenever a new line coach comes to see Hatch, that coach will invariably ask him about "knocking down Irv."

On Tuesday, Hatch worked out with a coach from the New York Giants. They went out to lunch afterward and the coach told Hatch, "on draft day, when the third round starts, I'm going to be screaming your name."

And if that's not enough to make a naturally large head even bigger, then how about a camera crew?

"CNNSI is doing a documentary-thing where they're following me to the NFL," Hatch said. "They sat down and talked to me, Gavin and Kris, and filmed me in New Jersey when I was training up there."

Last week, on his visits to different teams, Hatch hung out briefly with Donovan McNabb, and visited places like Green Bay, Chicago and Cincinnatti. The teams sent limos to get him at the airport and Hatch let other folks carry his bags.

Through it all, though, Hatch seems to have kept his wit about him.

"It was great getting the full treatment," Hatch said. "But every place I went, they gave me a physical. So, I figure that's the price for getting picked up in a limo, I get my balls felt."

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