text: WAIT FINALLY ENDS FOR GABRIEL - Orlando Sentinel
  Doug Gabriel doesn't know "what it was or where it came from."
  Something caused his stock to slip for the NFL draft, a condition that ended early Sunday afternoon when the Oakland Raiders made the Orlando receiver the 32nd pick of the fifth round, 167th overall.
  It was a slow, disappointing tumble for a man who believed he should have been one of the top receivers on the board.
  Regardless of details, Gabriel, a long-striding big-play man from Dr. Phillips High School, Northwest Mississippi Community College and UCF, plans on blocking out the immediate past and embracing the role of pupil to Raiders teachers Jerry Rice and Tim Brown.
  "That's two Hall of Fame receivers right there, so all I have to do is pay attention to what they tell me," Gabriel said. "It's exciting because I know I can go out there without a lot of pressure and familiarize myself with the system."
  Gabriel, the 19th receiver selected, nonetheless headed the best draft class UCF has produced. Four Golden Knights were picked Sunday among the 19 Florida athletes selected.
  Florida free safety Todd Johnson marked the resumption of Chicago's assault on University of Florida talent, going in the fourth round and 100th overall to the Bears. Chicago also picked former Gators defensive tackles Ian Scott (fourth round) and Tron LaFavor (fifth).
  Then came 16 others, including Florida State offensive tackle Brett Williams of Kissimmee, a fourth-round pick by Kansas City, Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey, a seventh-round pick by San Francisco, and UCF's trio of Asante Samuel, Mike Mabry and Elton Patterson. Samuel, a cornerback, was a fourth-round pick by New England. Mabry, a center, and Patterson, a defensive end, were compensatory picks in the seventh round -- Mabry to the Ravens, Patterson to the Bengals.
  UCF's previous single-season record for draft picks was two (in 1986, 1987 and 1998).
  "New England was a team I worked out for. It's a blessing," said Samuel, the second Golden Knights cornerback drafted in as many years, following Travis Fisher, a second-round pick by the Rams last year. Samuel, who returned punts at UCF, said he first will be plugged in as a fifth defensive back.
  A report in The Sporting News, which uses former NFL personnel experts to evaluate prospects, said Gabriel was carrying some extra "baggage." The report was non-specific.
  "I'll find out what the leak was and who it was," Gabriel said. "Right now it really doesn't matter because I am where I am, and I'll make the best of it. That's all it boils down to anyway."
  Gabriel will be joined in Oakland by Wildwood's Shurron Pierson, a defensive end who left the University of South Florida with a year remaining of his college eligibility. Pierson was a fourth-round pick, later than he projected.
  "I'm happy with my decision," said Pierson, a pass-rush specialist who spent draft weekend at home in Wildwood. "It was my goal all along to go to college and get out as soon as I could to make some money. Now it's going to happen."
  Williams was one of two FSU offensive linemen drafted, joining guard Montrae Holland. Like Gabriel, he was surprised his name lasted so long on the draft board. Unlike Gabriel, he's pretty sure why.
  "I think teams were a little uncertain about my injuries and all that," said Williams, who had ankle, knee and shoulder injuries at FSU. "For me, it's just normal wear-and-tear starting [40 games in] four years."
  The Chiefs see Williams, 6 feet 5, 321 pounds, as a left tackle but don't believe he'll step in and unseat Willie Roaf, an All-Pro blocker.
  "I saw Montrae get picked [102nd overall to the Saints], and everybody had us going pretty close to each other," Williams said. "A few more guys went, and I started getting worried that I wasn't going to go at all. But as soon as I thought that, the phone rang."