The NFL Draft had barely crowned its "Mr. Irrelevant" when the signings of recently minted Marshall football alums started rolling in.
"Swede," lineman Sebastian Johansson, and receiver Deandre Reaves, off to the San Diego Chargers. Running back Devon Johnson to the Carolina Panthers. Cornerback Keith Baxter to the Minnesota Vikings, Davonte Allen to the Buffalo Bills and T.J. Letman to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Linebacker Evan McKelvey and cornerback Corey Tindal are getting tryouts this week with the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, respectively. Word had not come Sunday evening of an opportunity for linebacker-turning-safety D.J. Hunter.
(Blake Frohnapfel, the ex-Herd quarterback who starred at Massachusetts, is trying out with the Colts.)
That's a fair load of talent that entered the pro market, and I figure at least one or two will draw an NFL game check. But they all will begin their quest as undrafted free agents.
It's the first time the Herd has failed to have a player drafted since 2010. That year, Mario Harvey emerged to enjoy a four-year NFL career, which wasn't surprising. Otherwise, there wasn't much expectation.
This time around, getting blanked has to sting in the MU camp. Thundering Herd fans shouldn't treat it as an apocalypse, but they should be concerned. If a look around Conference USA isn't at least a little painful, you're an optimistic Herd fan.
C-USA touted 10 draftees, most of the "Group of 5" leagues. Louisiana Tech defensive tackle Vernon Butler went in the first round, No. 30 overall, to the Panthers. He was the first C-USA defensive lineman going in the first round since 2012.
Tech also had running back Kenneth Dixon (Ravens) taken in the fourth round. Middle Tennessee safety Kevin Byard (Titans) was picked in the third and Western Kentucky tight end Tyler Higbee (Rams) went in the fourth.
Six more were taken in later rounds: Texas-San Antonio tight end David Morgan II (Vikings), Southern Mississippi receiver Mike Thomas (Eagles), Tech quarterback Jeff Driskel (49ers) and the WKU duo of quarterback Brandon Doughty (Dolphins) and cornerback Prince Charles Iworah (49ers).
The Hilltoppers, C-USA's newest team, continue to punch the Herd in the snout.
The league's last draftee had to hurt the most: With the 253rd and final pick, the Titans made Southern Miss cornerback Kalen Reed "Mr. Irrelevant." And do you know which clips ESPN had ready to roll?
Of course it was his 2012 interception of Rakeem Cato, returned 19 yards for a touchdown. That was followed by his 2015 pick of Chase Litton.
There were forces working against the Herd group. McKelvey, Johnson, Allen and Baxter had injury problems, and McKelvey and Hunter are 26. Tindal, who probably received some bad advice, should have stayed at MU.
But this still makes you wonder: If the Herd can't recruit and develop some of the NFL's 250-some draft picks, will the rest of the retooled league catch up?
A check of the draft board - and the 2015 East Division standings - indicates it is happening.
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Marshall fans should keep a keen eye on the issue of satellite camps, as the hastily imposed ban was lifted last week by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.
Let's call the proposed ban what it is: An arrogant play by the Southeastern Conference to keep coaches from other major-college schools from interacting with players in its geographic footprint. The Atlantic Coast Conference went along with it.
(Rule of thumb: If the SEC supports a proposal, be suspicious.)
Earlier in April, the D-I Management Council prohibited coaches and schools from conducting or working at camps away from their home campuses. The issue became hot after Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh held camps in the South last summer.
Oh, James, you bad, bad boy.
But this issue goes way beyond Harbaugh. Marshall often joins forces with other schools and their camps in the South and elsewhere.
"I was really against the ban on satellite camps. We use them a lot," Holliday said Saturday. "For a school like Marshall, for example, we don't have a lot of players around here. This year's a little bit different because we have a lot of [prospects] in the state of West Virginia. But we're not like FAU, FIU, Rice and all those schools in Texas. They've got a bunch of players they can get on campus to camps.
"So we take coaches to other camps - Georgia, Virginia Tech, we've been to Florida, Florida State. We've been to Ohio State ... We did five camps in Florida last year."
Another angle, and probably the most important: It increases exposure for high school athletes and saves them from long, costly unofficial visits. I'm sure SEC schools don't give two hoots about that, so here's hoping sanity prevails from elsewhere.
As for MU coaches, canceled camp visits are being hurriedly rescheduled.
"We'll probably get back to Virginia Tech," Holliday said. "We did one in Georgia last year; we'll do another one in Georgia this year. And hopefully, we can get back to Florida and do three or four like we did a year ago."