ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Ohio State, USC, Miami and Tennessee are just a few of the schools to stake claim to being "Wide Receiver U."
And at the rate those schools churn out NFL-caliber wide outs, it would be hard to argue with that notion.
After this year's draft, though, Southern Methodist University's argument for that title will get a whole lot stronger.
Courtland Sutton, a potential first-round draft pick, will join Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders and Cowboys receiver Cole Beasley as the next Mustangs player in the league, and Sanders expects the 22-year-old prospect to succeed at the next level.
"He's a good kid," Sanders said last week. "[A] real good kid. He has it. He truly does have it. Just talking to him, he knows the direction he wants to go. He's not young-minded. He wants to be great."
It's hard to argue Sutton wasn't just that during his final three seasons at SMU. He racked up 3,193 yards and 31 touchdowns over that span, and he never averaged fewer than 16 yards per reception in each of the three years.
Sanders saw Sutton's ability firsthand earlier this offseason when the pair trained in Dallas for a day. They haven't communicated much otherwise, but Sanders said Sutton knows, "if he needs me, he can reach out to me."
While Sanders said it "would be awesome," if Sutton ended up in Denver playing alongside him and Demaryius Thomas, he knows that's an unlikely scenario.
"I don't see that happening," said Sanders when asked if he thought the Broncos could select Sutton in the second or third round. "You meet the kid, you know. You know. I saw [Cowboys head coach] Jason Garrett was at his pro day. If the Cowboys are smart, they'll take him [at No. 19]."
