Today, though it’s War Story Wednesday, let’s continue our conversation with Cara Luterek, whose extensive experience in the NFL’s personnel office includes plenty of time with the College Advisory Committee that reviews juniors and redshirt sophomores’ requests for a draft status review.

As always, my questions are followed by Cara’s answers. They indicate that the league takes this process seriously and doesn’t simply try to discourage players with negative grades.

How early can a request be submitted? How many players typically submit their names?

Any time following the completion of a player’s regular college football season. Approximately 185-200 the past few years.

I’ve always heard that there is a set number of rotating teams whose representatives evaluate the names submitted. Is this true? How many teams are part of this rotation? How long is a team on this rotation? Does a team typically use a director-level scout for this? A combine scout? Up to the team?

All 32 NFL teams are represented on the Committee, as well as National Football Scouting and BLESTO. Each team’s representative is a senior level personnel evaluator, whether it is the General Manager, Vice President of Player Personnel, or Director of College Scouting.  Each player request is assigned to a minimum of four NFL teams, as well as NFS and BLESTO, for a total of 6 grades. After grades are submitted to the NFL office through an internal website, the player personnel department looks for a consensus, not an average. Additional teams are asked to submit grades if there is not a clear consensus.

Have you ever had any coaches, or anyone affiliated with a school, intimate that ‘the kid isn’t ready’ or ‘he’s crazy to do this’ and maybe try to influence you to rate the kid poorly?

There have been instances where a college coach expresses concern that a player is not ready for the NFL or is making a poor decision, but never to influence the committee.

Has anyone ever ‘appealed’ their grade? Have you ever gotten pushback from a player or team based on the information you returned to them?

There were instances when players clearly thought they would be evaluated more highly than the grade the Committee returned or did not agree with a grade. However, the NFL office always asked for additional grades on any player that had a wide range or who was bordering on rounds. Despite the player’s shock, many times he ended up being drafted exactly where the Committee projected.

The NFL’s College Advisory Committee is the group that annually accepts applications from college juniors and redshirt sophomores seeking guidance on whether or not they should enter the draft early. Though they’re often criticized in football circles for not always being accurate about their predictions, the results tell a very different story.

As players this time of year are weighing their fortunes pretty heavily, we talked to Cara Luterek about the nuts and bolts of the process. Cara spent more than a decade working in the NFL’s personnel office, with a special focus on the committee. That means she knows what she’s doing when it comes to the process, so we asked her about it. Our questions and her answers follow.

What’s the process for submitting a request? Who does it go to? Is there one specific point of contact? Must it be submitted via a specific protocol (In writing? Fill out a certain form? Faxed to a certain number)?

Eligible underclassmen may request a CAC evaluation after the conclusion of their respective college football regular seasons. A player must submit an evaluation request through his head coach, pro liaison, or (director of football operations). The college official submits the request electronically through a league office website. Players must also sign a printed form and that page is uploaded to the website as well.

Who (specifically) can apply for a player’s draft advisory board review? Does it have to be a certain person (i.e., relative, coach, school administrator)? Can an agent do it on a player’s behalf (I get a lot of questions about this)?

All requests must be submitted by the player’s head coach or a representative on his behalf — typically the college’s pro liaison or (director of football operations). If a player contacts the NFL office directly, he will be instructed to go through his college. An agent should direct the player to speak with his head coach or liaison.

Does the number of requests typically increase as the deadline nears? Lots of procrastination?

The requests typically come in on a rolling basis. In past years, additional requests do come in toward the end. Sometimes media attention or teammates receiving evaluations back sparks additional requests.

How long does a grade typically take? Does it take longer the later the request is submitted?

Grades are returned by the committee on a rolling basis. It may take 10 days or longer. Requests that are submitted early are typically returned quickly. NFL personnel evaluators may have more flexibility in early December with the college season ending than they do in later December with bowl games.

More about the process tomorrow.