By Pete Borello

It’s been 17 years since a Mountain View High graduate has played in the NFL. That could change come fall.

Two members of the class of 2002, safeties Trevor Hooper and J.D. Nelson, signed with pro football teams Sunday after not being selected in last weekend’s NFL Draft. Hooper, a Stanford University graduate, signed with the Buffalo Bills; University of Oregon grad Nelson agreed with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Both players had hoped to get drafted - several experts pegged them as potential late-round selections - and their former coach at Mountain View was rooting for that as well.

“I watched the draft all day, and I was hoping,” said Dan Navarro, who also coached receiver Kendall Smith, a 1985 grad who spent two years with the Bengals after being drafted in the seventh round in 1989. “But I’m excited they’re both continuing on.”

Nelson, invited to the NFL Combine for top prospects in February, believes his medical history hurt his chances.

“I had a couple of injuries that were a concern to some teams,” he said. “But I played through them.”

Nelson played with a broken wrist in 2005, yet still made the All-Pac-10 Second Team.

Making the NFL as undrafted free agent won’t be easy, but good friends Hooper and Nelson welcome the challenge.

“This is something I’ve always wanted in my life,” said Hooper, who heads to Buffalo next month for his first minicamp. “I’m going to give it everything I have.”

Said Nelson: “All I can ask for is a shot, so I can show them what I can do.”

Hooper said several teams expressed interest, but none more so than the Bills.

“They were the first team to call my agent,” Hooper said. “It’s a really good setup for me and I jumped at it. I think I have a good chance to make the roster.”

Nelson, also contacted by multiple teams, said he chose the Bengals for similar reasons.

Nelson totaled 233 tackles and three interceptions at Oregon. The son of former NFL halfback Darrin Nelson, he registered 88 tackles and an interception as a senior to make the All-Pac-10 Second Team again.

Although Hooper’s Stanford teams didn’t have much success, he excelled from when he first took the field as a redshirt freshman in 2003. Hooper started all 1l games and made 60 tackles, earning Freshman All-Pac-10 and Third-Team Freshman All-America honors.

He finished his college career with 119 solo tackles and four interceptions.