Senior Bowl players look to impress NFL coaches, scouts

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Alabama Tight End Michael Williams is one of the five Tide players on the Senior Bowl roster. He anticipates being a mid-rounder in this year’s NFL Draft, but is working hard to raise his draft stock.

Williams reeled in 24 balls and 4 touchdowns this season, including one score in the BCS National Championship game against Notre Dame.

He said it's an honor to be playing in the port city.

"To get to come down here and see what you have and get to play against some of the best in the country, it's a privilege to be here," Williams said.  "I wasn't ready to do the things they were asking me to do last year or the year before that, so I took it upon myself to do the extra jugs and do the extra lower body weights. So I can get out of my breaks. I can do a little bit more in the passing game and it all game together and I did that this year."

Throwing Williams' way will be Florida State quarterback EJ Manuel.  He could be the first quarterback drafted in April, but he has things he needs to work on, as well.

"I need to clean up my mechanics, that's the main thing, so I can be a lot more accurate and have a lot more power on the ball because the defensive backs and linebackers we're playing against are fast so you have to be on-time and your balls have to get there in a hurry," Manuel said.

The South roster is coached by Jim Schwartz and his staff from the Detroit Lions.

"There's a lot of different objectives," Schwartz said. "One is to get the players ready for the game on Saturday, number two is to highlight the players, give them a chance to show their athletic ability, give them a chance to make a play not just in the game on Saturday but in practice."

Oakland is handling the North team.  Head Coach Dennis Allen, a former Saints assistant, is using the opportunity to evaluate the players for his own team.

"We want to see what really makes them tick both as a football player and as an individual," Allen said.  "But I also feel like we've got an obligation to teach them what it takes to be a football player in the National Football League."