It was 17 years ago that Az-Zahir Hakim was hoping from a call from an NFL team so he could live his dream of playing professional football.

Unlike players like Randy Moss and Kevin Dyson, who were locks to get drafted, Hakim had to sit, wait and hope that he heard his name called on draft day after playing at San Diego State.

Hakim not only got his opportunity but he won a Super Bowl playing with the St. Louis Rams and had more receiving yards than all the players selected in the '98 draft than Moss and Hines Ward so he has a pretty good idea of what players like former UConn star Geremy Davis is going through.

As the receivers coach for the National Team in today's NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, Hakim has gotten to see Davis up close and personal and liked what he saw.

"He had a good week on camp," Hakim said in a phone interview on Saturday afternoon. "He catches the ball well, he isn't afraid to go over the middle."

Hakim, who caught 316 passes for 4,191 yards in nine NFL seasons, has been working with Davis and the other receivers on getting lower in the stance and being more explosive coming off the line of scrimmage.

"I really liked working with him," Hakim said. "He's a good kid, a hard worker, a good teammate."

What Hakim doesn't know if how the 6-foot-3, 216-pound Davis will transition from being one of the most productive receivers in UConn football history to becoming a pro prospect.

"I don't really know what they are looking for," Hakim said. "It's not really my department. I have just tried to work with these players, help them. He's a good player, a good receiver. When he and the other receivers got here and worked with me and Andre Reed, they were bright eyed and bushy tailed. They want to learn and we wanted to teach them as much as we could."

EASLEY HONORED BY BILLS
One former UConn receiver who has made it into the NFL is Stratford's Marcus Easley.

Easley has become one of the best special teams players in the NFL. People are noticing as Easley was named as the Buffalo Bills' winner of the Ed Block Courage Award after rebounding from a pair of knee injuries and being involved in plenty of charitable endeavors away from the field.