Joe Hawley taken in fourth round of NFL Draft by Atlanta; Beuachamp, Wolfe, Anthony sign free agent deals

By Ryan Greene

Published Saturday, April 24, 2010 | 3:30 p.m.

Updated Saturday, April 24, 2010 | 9:15 p.m.

Joe Hawley had to wake up earlier than most would on a Saturday morning, getting in front of his couch for the 7 a.m. start of the NFL Draft's third and final day.

But it was more than worth the sacrifice of a few extra hours of sleep.

Not long after hopping out of bed, the former UNLV guard received what could be the opportunity of a lifetime.

With the 18th pick of the fourth round — the 117th overall — the Atlanta Falcons selected Hawley, who will embark on his NFL career as a center.

"They told me that I'm going to be able to come in and fight for a job, but they have a 12-year veteran at center," Hawley said of long-time starter Todd McClure, who the Falcons took out of LSU in the seventh round of the 1999 NFL Draft. "They're expecting me to learn from him and eventually take over for him, but told me to come out with the mindset that I'm going to start."

Currently, Atlanta's backup center is seven-year veteran Brett Romberg, who originally went undrafted out of Miami. On the Falcons' practice squad a year ago at center were undrafted rookie free agents Rob Bruggeman out of Iowa and Blake Schlueter from TCU.

Hawley said he'd closely watched each pick the Falcons made since Thursday's start to the three-day event, as they had shown heavy interest in him since February's scouting combine in Indianapolis.

Atlanta head coach Mike Smith and general Thomas Dimitroff came to Las Vegas in the past month to watch Hawley go through a private workout.

When they originally tried to call his cell phone Saturday morning, though, the call went unanswered.

"I felt a buzz and saw I had a missed call, looked at the TV and saw that Atlanta was on the clock," Hawley said. "We were all like 'Oh, crap!'"

The Falcons then called the Hawley family's home phone line, and the audio caller ID blurted out 'Atlanta Falcons,' setting off a celebration filled with hugs, laughs and tears before the phone was even lifted off the hook.

"There were so many emotions," he said. "I was relieved, excited ... it was crazy."

At 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, Hawley emerged gradually over the last two seasons as a full-time starter on the interior of UNLV's offensive line.

The buzz hit its biggest spike following UNLV's Pro Day in late March, as he improved on a couple of lagging marks left over from the combine.

At the combine, he was third among all offensive linemen in attendance with 35 reps at 225 pounds in the bench press and also ran in the low five-second range in the 40-yard dash.

At Pro Day, he brandished a 31.5-inch vertical leap and a broad jump of 8 feet, 11 inches.

On top of trying to make the opening day roster — a journey that begins at mini-camp in Atlanta on May 6 — Hawley will also have to adjust to life in what, for him, is an uncharted portion of the country.

"I've never been further east than Texas," the Yorba Linda, Calif., native said with a laugh.

He's the first UNLV offensive lineman taken since the Philadelphia Eagles took Dominic Furio in the seventh round of the 2004 draft. Hawley was also drafted higher than any o-lineman in Rebels history, as that honor previously belonged to Lonnie Palelei, who was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fifth round in 1994.

As for three of Hawley's fellow former UNLV teammates who hoped to have their names called Saturday, it didn't take long for receivers Ryan Wolfe and Rodelin Anthony and outside linebacker Jason Beauchamp to find new potential homes.

Wolfe, who is the program's all-time leader in receptions (283) and receiving yards (3,495), will join Hawley in Atlanta, as he signed with the Falcons shortly after the draft concluded.

A handful of teams contacted Wolfe and his agent, Steve Caric, after the seven rounds were in the books, and when it came down to it, Wolfe was left to choose between Atlanta, San Diego and Denver.

The Santa Clarita, Calif., product spurned his hometown Chargers for the organization which showed the most interest in him throughout the preparation process for the draft. Smith and Dimitroff also flew out to Vegas to sit and meet with Wolfe. He was originally going to hold a private workout for them, but was shut down for the most part after tweaking a hamstring at UNLV's Pro Day.

The hamstring injury may have been a blessing in disguise for both Wolfe and the Falcons, as a lack of a true 40-yard dash time is what more than likely largely contributed to Wolfe going undrafted.

"They were the first team to contact me and continued to show interest throughout the process," Wolfe said. "I think, in general, the Atlanta situation seems the easiest way for me to make a team."

Beauchamp, should he make it through training camp without a hitch, could potentially see Wolfe and Hawley twice next season in NFC South play, as he also quickly came to terms, signing with the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints.

After leading UNLV in tackles (95), tackles for loss (12) and sacks (6.5) while playing as both an outside linebacker and defensive end last season, he could benefit from a situation similar to Wolfe's in Atlanta.

He wound up choosing New Orleans over New England, Cleveland and Miami, and will also take off for mini-camp in two weeks.

"I feel real good about it," he said. "They called me throughout the whole draft and they told me I can pretty much play right away. The crazy thing is all of their starting linebackers are free agents. I've got an opportunity, and that's all I can ask for."

As for Anthony, the 6-foot-5 red zone threat signed a contract with the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday evening.

Anthony caught 16 passes for 240 yards and four touchdowns in a senior season that was limited to four games due to injury.

Valley High product Stevenson Sylvester taken by Pittsburgh

Stevenson Sylvester, who starred as an anchor on defense for Utah, was taken in the fifth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers used the 166th overall selection on Sylvester, who was one of six Utes taken over the course of the three-day draft.

Mountain West Conference draftees by school

Air Force: None

BYU: TE Dennis Pitta (4th round - 114th overall - Baltimore)

Colorado State: G Shelley Smith (6th round - 187th overall - Houston)

New Mexico: G Erik Cook (7th round - 229th overall - Washington)

San Diego State: None

TCU: OLB Jerry Hughes (1st round - 31st overall - Indianapolis); OLB Daryl Washington (2nd round - 47th overall - Arizona); G Marshall Newhouse (5th round - 169th overall - Green Bay)

UNLV: C Joe Hawley (4th round - 117th overall - Atlanta)

Utah: OLB Koa Misi (2nd round - 40th overall - Miami); G Zane Beadles (2nd round - 45th overall - Denver); WR David Reed (5th round - 156th overall - Baltimore); S Robert Johnson (5th round - 148th overall - Tennessee); OLB Stevenson Sylvester (5th round - 166th overall - Pittsburgh); CB R.J. Stanford (7th round - 223rd overall - Carolina)

Wyoming: None