Believe it or not, as a kid, Ed Oliver had other dreams than playing football and someday being a top pick in the NFL Draft.

"I wanted to be everything," the University of Houston's two-time All-American defensive tackle said recently. "I wanted to be the president. Then I wanted to be a firefighter."

But Marcus Oliver played football. So, naturally, Ed wanted to be like his big brother.

"That's what I dreamed about," Oliver said. "I wanted to be what my brother wanted to be. That's how it happened."

On the front lawn of their Spring home, the Oliver boys played by simple rules: "You didn't tackle on the sidewalk that split the yard. That was two-hand and the other side was tackle."

"That's what football consisted of for me," he continued. "I didn't watch the NFL. I didn't really care for college football. I didn't know too much about football. All I knew was down, set, hut, run past the guy and catch the ball, or hand the ball off or rush the quarterback. That's all I knew."

Reminded how far he's come from those days, Oliver smiled: "I've come a hell of a long way."

So far that, a year from now, Oliver will be center stage at the 2019 NFL Draft, where he could be a top-5 pick in what is expected to be an exceptional class of defensive line prospects. Being the No. 1 overall selection is a possibility.

"From the moment he stepped onto the field, Oliver has been a different level than virtually any other defensive lineman in the entire country," said Rob Rang, a senior analyst for NFLDraftScout.com.

To nobody's surprise, Oliver took away all the suspense and guesswork when he announced early this spring that the upcoming college football season will be his last at Houston. Had he been eligible this year, the 6-3, 290-pound Oliver would have been a first-round selection.

Officially, Oliver and the 2019 draft class are on the clock after the final pick was made Saturday. For Oliver, though, it began years ago when he dominated high school football at Westfield and later as a five-star prospect who turned down offers from major college programs and chose to stay home and play with his brother at Houston.

He's been as good, or better, as advertised, becoming the first underclassmen to win the prestigious Outland Trophy. He enters this season as a fringe candidate for the Heisman Trophy. His 39½ tackles for loss are believed to be the most ever for a player in his first two years out of high school.

"It's not often that you are taking notice of a freshman," Rang said. "But with Oliver you certainly did take notice."

For his part, Oliver said announcing his intentions six months before the start of the season is no big deal. Most, he said, have speculated he would not stick around all four years.

And with the decision comes the petri dish treatment, as NFL front-office executives and scouts will put his every move under the microscope.

"He had a big target that's gotten bigger," Marcus Oliver said.

Rang, who has been offering NFL Draft analysis since 2001, said the biggest focus for Oliver is staying healthy and avoiding a drop-off in performance.

"Continue the trajectory is what you want to see," Rang said.

Defensive line is expected to headline the 2019 NFL Draft. Oliver could be joined by Ohio State's Nick Bosa, Michigan's Rashan Gary, Alabama's Raekwon Davis and Clemson's Dexter Lawrence, Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins and Austin Bryant at the top of the draft board.

In early 2019 mock drafts, Oliver is projected as the second overall pick behind either Bosa or Shea Patterson, the former Ole Miss quarterback who transferred to Michigan. That would make Oliver the highest drafted player in UH history; tight end Riley Odoms (1972) and defensive end Mack Mitchell (1975) went fifth overall.

Much like this year's run of quarterbacks - five were taken in the first round - Rang said selection order for next year's defensive line crop could be a matter of "pick their flavor" for NFL teams.

"If he's the player I think he is and the worker, the person, the man that his reputation says he is, I think Ed Oliver is going to have a very, very bright future," Rang said.

Oliver is No. 1 on ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr's board for 2019.

"Ed Oliver from Houston is a heck of a player," Kiper said. With five of his top 10 defensive line, Kiper added: "It's going to be a defensive line-dominated draft."

After recording 23 tackles for loss as a freshman, Oliver had 16.5 as a sophomore despite being limited four games by a knee injury. He also registered 73 total tackles and 5.5 sacks while playing the nose guard position in a 3-4 defense. After last season, NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter had Oliver ranked No. 2 on his "Top future NFL stars of the 2017 regular season," ahead of this year's first-round picks Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, Lamar Jackson, Saquon Barkley and Bradley Chubb.

"Until draft day it really doesn't matter," Oliver said. "You can go up or down. Some guys drop, some guys move up. It's all about going out and having another solid year and having fun in my last year in college."

Oliver got a glimpse of the future when he attended the NCAA Elite Student-Athlete Symposium in Indianapolis. That included a stop at the NFL combine, where Oliver will be one of the headliners next year.

"It was three days jam-packed with knowledge with guys coming to speak to us at the player panel to actually going to the combine and watching how people are locked in and how quiet it is in there and how focus those guys are," Oliver said. "I got a little insight on how they prepare themselves."