U.'s Smith impresses NFL scouts

Alex Smith has thrown thousands and thousands of passes on the University of Utah campus, but few had as much riding on them as the 75 he tossed Wednesday afternoon in front of NFL scouts at the Spence Eccles Fieldhouse.

"It's definitely a trip seeing head coaches walking around here examining everything you do," said Smith, who is expected to be a top five pick in next month's NFL draft. "It takes a big mental preparation to get out here and throw in front of 100 pro scouts, head coaches and GMs standing right behind you."

It may be a trip, but Smith admits it's something he's used to.

Since declaring for the NFL draft following the Utes' Fiesta Bowl triumph in January, Smith's life has revolved around impressing NFL scouts. Twelve-hour days have been the norm for Smith, with much of that preparation coming to a head at the NFL draft combine in Indianapolis two weeks ago.

During that three-day period, Smith talked with a representative from virtually every NFL team and had his fitness, speed and mobility evaluated, in addition to enduring a character and psychological evaluation. The one thing he didn't do was throw the football — an obvious oddity for a quarterback.

Instead, he opted to conduct a personal workout at a more familiar surrounding.

"At the combine you may throw 15 or 20 balls, but here I can throw 100-plus balls," said Smith. "You're going to get a better evaluation on yourself and show more what you're going to do, and you're going to get to throw to the receivers you've thrown to."

So with more than a dozen different teams on hand, Smith did just that Wednesday. Under the watchful eye of Larry Kennan, the quarterback coach he's worked with the past two months, Smith threw 75-80 passes to former Ute teammates Paris Warren, Steve Savoy and Marty Johnson.

Only three of those passes hit the ground, and only one was Smith's fault on an overthrow.

"Alex Smith didn't hurt himself at all today," said San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan.

The 49ers own the No. 1 pick in the draft, and it's no secret they need a quarterback. The two best quarterbacks in the draft, according to most experts, are Cal's Aaron Rogers and Smith, both underclassmen. The duo may end up going 1-2 in the draft to the 49ers and the Dolphins, or they may drop further down in the top 10.

Wednesday's workout included everything from short passes to deep balls, including a 62-yard pass directly to his waiting target. Obviously it was an important day for Smith, but Nolan doesn't think it will make or break his draft stock.