LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A year later than originally hoped, Mike Williams finally gets a shot at NFL stardom and the big bucks that go with it.
Williams was a two-time loser in 2004. First in his attempt to become eligible for the draft a year earlier than NFL rules allow, then in an effort to play his junior season at Southern California.
Despite having not played a game in over 15 1/2 months, his stock has risen to the point where he seems a lock to picked among the top 10 in Saturday's draft.
The Minnesota Vikings, choosing seventh, are a possible destination should Williams be available. After trading Randy Moss to Oakland, they have a serious need at wide receiver.
"I don't know where he's going to fit in the draft. There's a lot of people who need a guy who can score touchdowns like he can," USC coach Pete Carroll said of Williams, a 6-foot-4 1/2, 232-pounder with exceptional hands and route-running ability.
Carroll should know, having been an NFL head coach for four years before becoming the Trojans' coach in 2001.
Gil Brandt, the Dallas Cowboys' vice president of player personnel from 1960-89 and now the NFL's draft consultant, likens Williams to former Cowboys standout Michael Irvin.
The 21-year-old Williams played two years at USC, catching 81 passes for 1,265 yards and 14 touchdowns as a freshman in 2002, then making 95 receptions for 1,314 yards and a school-record 16 TDs the following year.
After a court ruled in February 2004 that Ohio State's Maurice Clarett was eligible to play in the NFL, Williams left USC, hired an agent and said he was turning pro. That made him ineligible for the Trojans.
Williams was projected as a first-round draft pick, but an appeals court overturned the earlier ruling and upheld the NFL's right to bar players who had been out of high school less than three years. That rule applied to both Williams and Clarett.
After the appeals court ruling, Williams severed ties with his agent and began the process of applying to the NCAA for reinstatement: returning to USC, taking summer classes and seeking to have his academic eligibility restored.
But the NCAA turned down his request last August, two days before the Trojans' first game of the season. Williams finished his USC career as the fourth-leading receiver in school history despite playing only two years.
"Mike is a very mature individual. He's handled the entire process very maturely," agent Tony Fleming said. "I don't think he has any regrets. I think he feels like the decisions he made, he made as an adult and he dealt with the consequences. He's taken everything in stride and kept going. I've never heard him say a bitter word."
Through his agent, Williams declined to be interviewed for this story.
Carroll said he doesn't believe the fact Williams sat out last season will affect his status.
"If Mike had broken an arm or something, it might have been construed differently," Carroll said. "I have the utmost confidence in Mike - he's going to make a tremendous draft pick."
That seems to be the prevailing sentiment. ESPN's Mel Kiper rates Williams No. 1 overall in the draft.
"I love him as a prospect," Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden said. "He's a huge target and he's got a flair about playmaking. The guy dominated the Pac-10 as a true freshman and sophomore. This guy's a freak, physically."
Williams doesn't have the blazing speed NFL scouts love, but Brandt doesn't believe that matters.
"I'm not sure how many big, long, game-breaking plays he'll make, but if you need a third-and-7, he's going to catch the pass," Brandt said. "He's got tremendous hands. He has good, not great speed.
"Whoever's lucky enough to get Mike is going to get a player who's the same kind of player Michael Irvin was. He's going to play a long time and play very well."
An ideal place for Williams might be Tennessee, where former USC offensive coordinator Norm Chow took a similar job with the Titans in February. But wide receiver isn't the main area of need with the Titans, who have the sixth overall selection Saturday.
"(Chow) thinks Mike can play in this league, and so do I," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "We all know he's not a 4.25 guy (in the 40-yard dash). He's a ballplayer. There are guys who run 4.5 and play 4.7, and there are guys who run 4.7 and play 4.5.
"Mike's a big man. He's got great body control. Mike plays faster than he times -- that's my opinion."
