Porter, Hardy drafted in second round of NFL Draft

IU's James Hardy and Tracy Porter spent three seasons together on the field and on Saturday the talented tandem both entered the NFL a pick apart.\nThe New Orleans Saints made cornerback Porter its 40th overall pick Saturday, and before Hardy had a chance to congratulate his buddy, Hardy's name was called, too. He was taken 41st by the Buffalo Bills.\n"He's a great friend," Porter said. "When you have a top corner and a top receiver going at it in practice, it's designed to make each other better. So it was fitting that we went there together."\nIt was a surprise turnabout for the Hoosiers.\nAt IU, Hardy stole most of the headlines and in the workouts leading up to the draft, Hardy again appeared to be at the head of the Hoosiers' class. Some mock drafts projected the 6-foot-6 receiver, who left school a year early, to go late in the first round and most had Hardy graded slightly ahead of Porter.\nBut with no receivers picked in the first round and the Saints in dire need of coverage corners, it was a perfect match.\n"I've always been a Saints fan," said Porter, a Louisiana native. "I love that part of it. The fact that you come from the area, you know that's an advantage because you don't have to relearn everything. I'm here to help them turn the defense around."\nAs Porter celebrated with family and friends in his hometown, he was just as eager to see how his college friend back in Fort Wayne, Ind., would fare.\nIt didn't take long.\nWithin seven minutes of the Saints' call, the Bills picked Hardy.\nThe selections of Porter and Hardy marked the first time since 2002 that any Hoosiers player had been taken in the second round. The last IU player selected in the second round was receiver Antwaan Randle El.\nFor Hardy, it was the culmination of a circuitous journey.\nHe came to IU primarily to play basketball but gave that up after just one season to concentrate on football. Then he had to overcome off-the-field issues during his sophomore season with the Hoosiers, maturing into one of the team's most consistent leaders.\nNow he's starting over in Buffalo, where the Bills looking for a big, strong receiver to help open up the field for speedy Lee Evans.\n"I couldn't stop crying," Hardy told Buffalo reporters on a conference call. "I'm not a very emotional guy, but it's just something that's surreal. ... But at the same time, I'm ready to get to work tomorrow."\nThree other players from Indiana schools also were chosen Saturday.\nPurdue's Dustin Keller went to the New York Jets at No. 30, after Green Bay traded its pick. The Jets wasted no time in selecting the 6-2, 248-pound tight end who is often compared to Dallas Clark because of his speed. The one knock on Keller is that he doesn't block well, an image he hopes to change quickly.\n"There's some people I just have to prove wrong," Keller told Jets' reporters. "It's kind of a motivator more than anything else to me."\nTight end John Carlson was the first Notre Dame player selected, by the Seattle Seahawks with the seventh pick in the second round — No. 38 overall.\nThen the IU players started going quickly.\nPorter was taken by the Saints, Hardy by the Bills and Fighting Irish defensive tackle Trevor Laws went to the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 47.\n"You're always anxious because you don't know where you'll end up," Porter said. "But when it happens, it's really a relief"