The Big Day

With apologies to William and Kate, my focus today is on whether some NFL GM will say "I do" when asked if he wants to draft Edmond Gates or leave him at the altar for another day.

The 2011 NFL Draft began Thursday night with Carolina taking Auburn's Cam Newton. It's the 11th time in the last 14 years a quarterback has been the No. 1 overall pick. Like Gates' cousin, Bernard Scott, Newton's road to the NFL went through Brenham, Texas, and Blinn College. Both Scott (2006) and Newton (2009) led Blinn to NJCAA national championships before moving on to ACU and Auburn, respectively, where each won his NCAA division's national player of the year trophy.

The 2nd and 3rd rounds of the draft are scheduled for tonight, beginning at 6 p.m. EDT. Rounds 4-7 are tomorrow, beginning at noon EDT.

Three wide receivers were taken in the 1st round: Georgia's A.J. Green (Bengals at No. 4), Alabama's Julio Jones (Falcons at No. 6) and Pittsburgh's Jonathan Baldwin (Chiefs at No. 26).

Gates is rated by NFL.com as the 7th best receiver still available. Various draft specialists project him to go as high as late in the second round. Most believe his name will be called before night's end.

Meaning if you're tired from waking up at 4 a.m. this morning to watch the royal wedding, you can sleep in tomorrow.