A Hail Larry?

Pittsburgh’s Larry Fitzgerald will be the only receiver attending today’s award ceremonies in New York for Heisman Trophy finalists, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s the best college player at that position.

Many pro scouts say they consider Texas senior Roy Williams a better prospect and the same also might be true of USC sophomore Mike Williams.

“Fitzgerald is great player who had a great season,” said a scout from an AFC West team who asked not to be identified. “But I’m not sure that I would take him over the Williamses, Mike and Roy. Those guys are game breakers. I’m not sure that I would say that about Fitzgerald.”

Even so, Fitzgerald could become the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy -- other finalists are quarterbacks Jason White of Oklahoma and Eli Manning of Mississippi, and running back Chris Perry of Michigan -- and it would be difficult to argue with the choice, considering the season he had.

Many NFL scouts contacted by The Times consider Fitzgerald a player in the mold of Indianapolis receiver Marvin Harrison. After leading the nation in yards receiving, 1,569; average yards receiving, 142.6, and touchdowns, 21, he won the Fred Biletnikoff Award on Thursday as the top receiver and the Walter Camp Award as the best player.

Until last weekend, though, when previously unbeaten Oklahoma was upset by Kansas State in the Big 12 championship game, 35-7, Sooner quarterback White was considered the favorite.

He’d thrown at least two touchdown passes in every game, then fizzled in the big one, completing 27 of 50 for 298 yards for no touchdowns. Worse, he threw two interceptions.

That, however, was only one game, some of the ballots already had been sent in and, off-game or not, White finished with impressive credentials. Returning from two knee injuries, he completed 64% of his passes for 3,744 yards and 40 touchdowns, with eight interceptions. He led the country in passing efficiency.

Manning, winner of the Johnny Unitas Trophy as the top senior quarterback, led Ole Miss to its first nine-victory regular season in 13 years. He passed for 3,341 yards and 27 touchdowns, with nine interceptions.

Perry finished only fifth among the nation’s running backs, averaging 132.4 yards a game and scoring 19 touchdowns, but he was outstanding against Michigan’s biggest opponent, running for 154 yards and two touchdowns against Ohio State in a 35-21 victory. He also caught 42 passes, a school record for running backs, in leading the Wolverines to their first outright Big Ten title in six years.

Although Fitzgerald is a sophomore, like USC’s Williams, NFL scouts have followed his progress in case suspended Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett wins a legal challenge to enter the draft early and Fitzgerald follows.

The NFL might be more flexible in Fitzgerald’s case than in Clarett’s. The league allows college players to declare for the draft once they’ve been out of high school for three years. Fitzgerald’s high school class graduated in 2001, but he spent a year at a prep school before enrolling at Pitt in 2002.

Scouts say that the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Fitzgerald has the skills to excel professionally. They call him a natural when it comes to releasing off the ball in tight coverage. He’s also smooth running out of breaks on patterns.

His best attribute, they said, are his hands, and he has a knack for running into the vision of his quarterbacks. He also comes back to the ball and makes acrobatic catches in traffic better than most NFL receivers.

Fitzgerald possesses quickness, but critics say he lacks speed. His inability to run away from clutching defenders made him look ordinary against Notre Dame and Miami.

But scouts had similar concerns with Harrison, who has caught more than 100 passes in three consecutive seasons.

In USC’s Williams, however, it’s difficult to find detractors because most scouts already consider him at the Randy Moss/Terrell Owens level of receivers.

“The other receivers are really good, but Williams can really dominate,” said a scout for an AFC North team. “He makes the type of plays that can change a game. His one-hand catch [against Oregon State] in the end zone gave proof of that.”

Williams, 6-5 and 230, has size and speed and knows how to put his skills to use.

His ability to run after a catch separates him from the pack. The NFL covets receivers who can catch the ball in traffic and possess the willingness to block -- as he proved emphatically against Oregon State with a crunching blow on a defender to spring running back Reggie Bush.

Like Moss and Owens, Williams has been known to drop the ball. As a freshman, he dropped a couple of passes in the Trojans’ loss to Kansas State and he has suffered from the same misfortune this season.

“There are some things that he may not do well but that’s no big deal,” the AFC West scout added. “He’s also shown the ability to play hurt and he seems like a very good kid.”

As for Texas’ Williams, scouts love everything about him. At 6-3, 215, he has plenty of size and speed to give defensive secondaries problems. He’s the best senior receiver and the experience shows.

“He has the athletic ability and body to dominate games,” the AFC North scout said. “He’s a real big guy who can run and he rarely drops a pass. He’s the type of guy who can turn a simple pass play into a touchdown because he’s so tough to tackle in the open field. A lot of teams are high on him.”

The one knock against the Longhorns’ Williams has been his tendency to become a finesse receiver. There have been times when he has shied from contact and has a reputation for being injury-prone. His blocking has improved as the Longhorns have relied more on the run with freshman quarterback Vincent Young.

It should be a bumper crop for receivers in the draft, scheduled for April 24-25 in New York. Washington’s Reggie Williams and Louisiana State’s Michael Clayton -- both juniors -- are expected to give up their final season of eligibility and declare themselves available for the draft. Scouts rate Williams and Clayton a notch below the top three.

Then there’s Oklahoma State’s Rashaun Woods, Oklahoma’s Mark Clayton, Ohio State’s Michael Jenkins and Wisconsin’s Lee Evans. USC senior Keary Colbert falls in the group of receivers below that, along with Virginia Tech’s Ernest Wilford, Georgia’s Fred Gibson, Michigan’s Braylon Edwards, Oregon State’s James Newson and Washington State’s Devard Darling.

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Stacking Them Up

How receivers Larry Fitzgerald of Pittsburgh, Mike Williams of USC and Roy Williams of Texas fared this season (ranking in Division I-A):

*--* Fitzgerald M. Williams R. Williams Receptions 87 (t-6) 87 (t-6) 61 (62) Yards 1,595 (1) 1,226 (7) 982 (33) TD 22 (1) 16 (2) 8 (t-10)

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