It started earlier than that. The start of the descent was John Butler's last draft - 2000. You know, the one with Corey Moore, etc. You can't blow a draft like that and recover quickly, especially if you follow it up with a couple more mediocre drafts. A draft with ZERO starters isn't something you can recover from quickly.
1 Erik Flowers Arizona State
2 Travares Tillman Georgia Tech
3 Corey Moore Virginia Tech
4 Avion Black Tennessee State
5 Sammy Morris Texas Tech
6 Leif Larsen Texas-El Paso
7 Drew Haddad Buffalo
7 DaShon Polk Arizona