UCF junior quarterback Blake Bortles has moved up most draft boards this season, thanks in part to leading the Knights to the brink of the first BCS appearance in school history.
Of course, it helps if, like Bortles, you are 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, possess a strong arm and have excellent mobility.
The Orlando Sentinel reported Thursday that Bortles did not want to comment about any draft speculation. But the newspaper did say that "all indications" were that Bortles would submit paperwork to the NFL Draft Advisory Board, which will give him an idea of where he would be drafted.
Bortles and UCF play at SMU on Saturday. Scouts will be interested in that game, as it will be the first time Bortles and UCF play in poor weather. Temperatures are expected to hover around freezing, and there is a possibility of sleet and/or snow. Bortles, who grew up in an Orlando suburb less than 10 miles from UCF's campus, told the Sentinel he never has seen snow before.
Bortles has thrown for 3,038 yards, 22 TDs and seven interceptions, and rushed for three TDs this season (he had eight rushing TDs last season). He has completed 68.0 percent of his passes and led four fourth-quarter rallies this season.
If Louisville beats Cincinnati on Thursday night, UCF clinches the AAC's automatic BCS bid. If Cincinnati wins, UCF heads into Saturday's game knowing that if it wins, it gets the bid. If SMU were to win, UCF and Cincinnati finish in a tie for the league's title; whichever team finishes higher in the final BCS standings wins the tiebreaker and gets the BCS bid.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
