San Francisco 49ers free agent pickup Randee Drew isn’t hearing the doubters who say he’s too small for the NFL. P To him, he is confident he will make the roster and have a career in the NFL. Former NIU wide receiver P.J. Fleck is also working out with the 49ers. P Drew is currently in DeKalb working out with the NIU football team each morning and waiting for the 49ers’ training camp, which begins July 30.

“[Professional football] is everything I thought it would be,” Drew said. “I’m just happy to be fulfilling my childhood dream. I’m just happy to have an opportunity like this.”

Drew said the competition is tough, with many prominent rookies pushing for the same position.

“That’s just the nature of the game,” Drew said. “This is a job, and you could be here or going to another team tomorrow. The competition is good because I think it pushes me to do better.”

Drew said he and Fleck have met many new people and some friends, but that is of no importance to him on the field.

“It’s run like a business,” Drew said. “There are so many facets to pro football that you don’t think about.”

P.J. Fleck

Fleck is not only working on the practice field for the San Francisco 49ers, but is also writing a weekly column in the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye.

The former NIU wide receiver’s columns have included parts about his new friendships, experiences and life as a rookie at an NFL camp.

Fleck reports that he and his roommate at the camp, Kevin Zureki, a tight end from Eastern Michigan, get along just fine.

“We pretty much do everything together, every single day, and we seem to never get sick of each other,” Fleck said in the RedEye. “That’s no small task. Imagine living in a hotel for months at a time with some complete stranger who now shares his life with you.”

The two also have time for golf when they’re not playing football, and Fleck proudly states that the duo is undefeated.

Fleck wrote that he made a friend in Justin Smiley, a guard from Alabama. The Huskies upset the Crimson Tide last season in Tuscaloosa.

“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t get on his case about the Huskie dogs going down there and defeating them last season,” Fleck said. “He takes it pretty well, though. He always tells me: ‘Well, P. J., I didn’t play that game. I was hurt.’”

Todd Ghilani

Todd Ghilani isn’t putting all of his eggs in one basket.

The former NIU center worked out at a mini-camp with the Dallas Cowboys earlier this summer and is now waiting to see whether he’ll be wearing a Cowboys uniform this fall.

“They said it’s a management decision now,” Ghilani said. “Basically, they liked the way I practiced, and now I’m waiting for a phone call.”

Even if the NFL doesn’t work out for him, the former All-MAC center has other plans. He has signed up for classes in the fall and has only one semester before graduation.

“I wasn’t going to throw [my education from NIU] away,” he said. “This way, I get to cover my butt.”

Ghilani said he was impressed with the facilities in Dallas.

“You’re going to one of the best facilities in the league, and we were all treated the same, whether you were a draft pick or a free agent,” Ghilani said. “Everyone is given a fair shot.”

Ghilani also said his agent received calls from the New England Patriots, who were interested in him.

Nick Duffy

Nick Duffy received another frustrating blow on June 7 when he injured his leg for the second time in a year.

The former NIU linebacker pulled a hamstring when working out with the Buffalo Bills in early June. The latest injury comes only months after recovering from an injury to his right fibula in the sixth game of last season against Central Michigan.

“Especially after waiting so long to get back, it’s frustrating and upsetting to get injured again,” Duffy said. “Right now I’m in the process of rehabilitation. I’ve had to stay off [my leg] for three weeks. I just can’t do much in terms of running and jumping”

Duffy said he had been lifting with his upper body while keeping off his feet. He hopes to work out with Buffalo again after he recovers.

Others

Michael Turner, NIU’s only draft pick from this year, is still working out with the San Diego Chargers. He hopes to be running back LaDainian Tomlinson’s backup.

Ghilani was roommates with All-MAC kicker Steve Azar last year, and said Azar had a workout with the New York Giants and has spent his summer working football camps, including one at Purdue University.

Akil Grant expects to arrive in DeKalb today after working out with the Tennessee Titans during a two-week long mini camp in Nashville. Working as a safety and with the special teams, he will return to camp on July 25.

“I expected [mini camp] to be fast, but not that fast,” Grant said about mini camp