The National Football League is loaded with talented players from some of the top college conferences in the nation--The Pac-10, the SEC, the Big 12, the MIAA.

Okay, so maybe the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association doesn’t belong in the same sentence with some of the power conferences in Division I. But the MIAA apparently has maintained its position as one of the premier NCAA Division II leagues in the eyes of professional football scouts.

Central Missouri State head coach Willie Fritz said a scout told him as much on a recent visit to campus.
“I had one scout say the other day that guys from our league who are drafted or signed as free agents either stick or make really good showings in camp,” Fritz said. “That makes it where guys in the MIAA who are possibilities for professional teams become really good possibilities. A scout may hear about them and where he might dismiss it as a player from a small school, he now is going to think twice because he knows our players are competitive.”

Eight former MIAA standouts are currently on NFL rosters (incidentally, Central Missouri State heads the list with three, as tight end Delanie Walker and defensive end/linebacker Roderick Green are with the 49ers in San Francisco and Todd Devoe is in his second season at a wide receiver with the Denver Broncos).  The MIAA is well represented in the Arena Football League as well. In 2006 nine players from the conference were plying their trade in the top indoor league. Again, the Mules had three—Dennis Gile played with Arizona and Utah, Kevin Nickerson in Austin, and Colston Weatherington for the Dallas Desperados.

What’s more, we are not talking about players who make the roster, play a year or two, and then are released. Missouri Southern’s Rod Smith is the Denver Broncos' all-time leading receiver and could receive some Hall of Fame mention when his career is over. The Southern Lions also have a 10-year veteran in James Thrash (with Philadelphia and Washington). Kendall Gammon of Pittsburg State has been hiking the ball to punters and placekickers since the early-1990s in Pittsburgh, New Orleans, and Kansas City. The Gorillas’ Brian Moorman has punted his way to the Pro Bowl as a member of the Buffalo Bills (Smith and Gammon also have enjoyed the NFL all-star game in Hawaii).

The Mules, too, have received their share of attention in the professional ranks. Walker was one of the hot young prospects in the Bay-area media during training camp, and 49ers head coach Mike Nolan says Green could start the season opener against Arizona. “I’m considering him,” Nolan said in a release prepared by the San Francisco media relations staff. “He could play.” The 49ers managed just two sacks in four preseason games, and rushing the passer is Green’s specialty.

Nickerson and Weatherington have shown their worth in the indoor game as well. Nickerson has a pair of 1,000-yard receiving seasons to his credit and was named to the AFL All-Rookie team in 2005. Weatherington, meanwhile, capped his fourth season in Dallas by being named to the All-AFL squad.

One more thought: The MIAA has had a number of players in the Super Bowl. In fact, starting with CMSU’s Jeff Wright with the Buffalo Bills, an MIAA school had a representative in eight of nine Super Bowls from 1991-1999 (Wright in 1991, 1992, 1993, and 1994; Pitt State’s Troy Wilson in 1995 with San Francisco; Emporia State’s Leon Lett with Dallas and Gammon with Pittsburg in 1996; and Smith in 1998 and 1999 with Denver).

So come on out, football fans. The MIAA may not produce as many All-Pros as the Big Ten or even the ACC, but you still could catch a future NFL Superstar in the making!

Note: MIAA Director of Sports Information Matt Newbery contributed to this column.

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