Anthony Walker Jr., Godwin Igwebuike to request NFL Draft Advisory Board feedback

Northwestern middle linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. and safety Godwin Igwebuike will test NFL waters by requesting feedback from the NFL Advisory Board, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday.

Essentially, both juniors are weighing their chances of going to the next level after the season ends against Pittsburgh in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.

From the Tribune:

“The NFL Draft Advisory Board offers three pre-draft grades: first round, second round or neither. (Until 2014, the board offered five different grades.)

A source plugged into the process said he expects both Walker and Igwebuike to receive grades of “neither,” meaning the league recommends that both return to school – in this case, for their fifth seasons.”

Walker was an All-American last year but was limited by a knee injury early in the year. Still, the Miami native earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. Igwebuike, the team’s leading tackler, was also a second-team All-Big Ten performer.

Pat Fitzgerald has never had a player leave early under his head coaching tenure.

From the NFL’s official website, the Advisory Board serves to determine whether a player who has not exhausted his eligibility is ready for the pros. The Board is highly selective: After the 2014 season, 149 players requested an evaluation, and 20 were evaluated as first or second rounders. Of those 20, 18 were drafted in the first two rounds.