SB Nation - Phil Trautwein

Alligator Army All-Decade Team: Offensive Tackles

mlmintampa — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:00:19 -0000

We kick off the Alligator Army All-Decade Team with the men assigned to protect Rex Grossman, Chris Leak and Tim Tebow. Today, you can vote for the best offensive tackles, guards and center of the last 10 years. We will also have the nominees for the offensive positions later this week. Starting Friday will be the defense, with the All-Decade Team presentation concluding next week. We are only taking into consideration performance at Florida and from 2000-2009. Now, the nominees for Alligator Army All-Decade Offensive Tackles (vote for two);

Kenyatta Walker (1998-2000): 2000 Second Team All-American, 2000 First Team AP and Coaches All-SEC, 2000 Jacobs Award for best blocker in the SEC.

Mike Pearson (1998-2001): 2000 First Team Coaches All-SEC, 2001 First Team All-American, 2001 First Team AP and Coaches All-SEC

Max Starks (2000-2003): 2003 First Team Coaches All-SEC. Had the misfortune of playing in two of the worst losses of the decade; 2001 against Tennessee (as right tackle for Grossman) and 2003 against FSU (as left tackle for Leak).

Phil Trautwein (2004-2008): 2008 First Team AP and Coaches All-SEC. Starting left tackle for the 2006 and 2008 National Championship Games.

Jason Watkins (2004-2008): Started at left tackle in 2007 following Trautwein's injury and moved to right tackle for the 2008 season. Started 27 consecutive games, 2007-08.

National News and Notes

Year2 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:00:59 -0000

More photos » by Mike Stone - AP

Rejoice! Finally, a sell out in Fort Worth.

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Because we're all playing for bowl positioning now, and that only goes so far.

Congrats to the Frogs.

You may recall a couple weeks ago that I pointed out that TCU, despite playing big time football, hasn't been drawing fans like a big time program. Well as a follow up to that, I'm pleased to report that the Horned Frogs have their first sell out in three years coming up in their showdown with Utah on Saturday. It still floors me that a program just outside the gigantic and football-crazy Dallas area can't find 44,000 people to show up to watch really good football, but I guess that's the nature of the beast in the mid-major ranks.

Mack Brown at least has a sense of humor.

Texas coach Mack Brown freely admits that he doesn't understand everything about how the BCS works, and he often has someone come in to explain things to him. When asked this week about if he was worried about falling to third in the BCS standings, he replied that someone told him that if the Longhorns keep winning they're in, and that's all he cared about. He also slipped in a little zinger too:

Brown was asked if the computer elements to the BCS standings don’t like his team as much as the human polls.

"I’ve called the computers. They haven’t called me back," Brown said. "I’ve invited them to our games. I don’t think any of them have shown up."

Nice. I wonder though if anyone has told him that it's the humans, not the algorithms, who have USC above Oregon.

The other choice is the Ghost of Christmas Past.

With Tommy West out at Memphis, speculation has arisen as to who will replace him there. If ESPN is to be believed, it could look a lot like Auburn's past in Graceland as Tommy Tuberville and Terry Bowden are the top two candidates. According to a website called FootballScoop.com (yeah, I haven't heard of it either), ~~former~~ current Auburn assistant Trooper Taylor is also on their list. Who knew Memphis scouted the Tigers of the Plains so closely? Also, it says look for Phil Fulmer's name to come up, but personally, I think Fulmer (and Tuberville for that matter) could get a much better job. (H/T CFT)

Apparently his copy of Phil Steele's season preview magazine just arrived.

Urban Meyer says he knows what is ailing the Florida offense. For one thing, it's a lack of big plays and defenses showing his team new looks. Beyond that though, he says it's a combination of transitioning to a new offensive coordinator, the losses of Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy at receiver, and the losses of last year's starting offensive tackles Phil Trautwein and Jason Watkins. Apparently, it only took him nine games to put that together.

It is telling though that Florida hasn't turned the ball over in the past two games and each one resulted in a 24 point margin of victory. I think a lot of people undervalued the role of turnovers in the Gators' struggles with teams earlier in the season.

Vultures.

Okay, so maybe not everyone is playing for bowl positioning. Tennessee is playing for recruiting positioning, of course. Did you know Charlie Weis is in trouble? And that Notre Dame has not just one, but two quarterback commits? Rocky Top Talk says watch for the UT coaches to swoop in on those guys should Weis be shown the door.

Rumblings Authors Mock, V2.0 - krytime's take

Brian Galliford — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:00:13 -0000

More photos » by Rogelio V. Solis - AP

Mississippi OT Michael Oher getting more and more love from Bills mock drafters. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

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Ed. Note, by Brian Galliford: Yes, this is another post in the Rumblings Authors Mock series. Raise your hand if you're tired of mock drafts and just want it to be the weekend already! Even so, 'krytime' has got some thoughts to share and a Buffalo Bills mock to present; he gets that opportunity now. Everything from this point forward is his. End Note

Here's my feeble attempt at predicting what will happen from now through the end of the upcoming weekend.

Before I go further, let me re-state a few of my beliefs when it comes to the draft. First, I like to draft big guys in the early rounds, and by that I mean addressing the following positions: DT, DE, T, C, and G, in no particular order. I'm also a proponent of 'best player available'. Most important to my strategy, though, is to stay out of the top half of the first round, and accumulate as many picks as you can in rounds two through four.

As such, I’m a huge fan of trading down. The Bills never seem to do that though, as pointed out over the last five years in Peter King’s MMQB. Not once did they move down to get an extra pick in the last five years. Ridiculous, I say! As far as trading up goes, I think it’s fair to say that two of the three times they did, it backfired. Ugh. I get puke in my mouth every time I think of this.

Thankfully, the Jason Peters ordeal is over, and it gave us two extra picks this year to add talent to the team. It also left us with a gaping hole on the OL, and that has to be addressed. I think Kirk Chambers should be given the first shot at LT, and then I’d like to keep an eye on Demetrius Bell and his development. It’s obviously just the homer in me, but I do tend to overrate both, especially Bell. Langston Walker, in my opinion, should be kept at RT, along with Brad Butler staying at RG.

Is there any chance they can improve the OL before the draft this week? FA is never done; it just slows down. Would an old guy like Mark Trauscher, Chris Naole, or Jon Runyan be decent depth options? Brian Waters from KC is the rumor many of us hope for in a trade, but I doubt it happens. I would just like to get another vet in to guard against the volatility of the draft forcing them to reach for a player for the desperate OL.

Parrish Trade Projection, other wild cards to consider
I will pencil in a trade that I do think and kind of hope happens. Roscoe Parrish may need a ride to the airport on his way out of Buffalo. I think he’ll go for a fourth, and I’d like for the Bills to do that. Many here have argued against this. But with only 53 roster spots and the OL surely to have some inexperience, they may have to shuffle the way they build a roster, and in my opinion, it won’t be one that carries six or seven receivers.

Now, as for my super-huge wish of trading out of eleven and down to the twenties, adding an extra second rounder - I don’t think it’ll happen. I just don’t see a player at that spot who teams would move up for. Like Peter King, I think USC QB Mark Sanchez has a lot to do with the way this draft plays out. If he were to last until eleven, then I think some teams would call the Bills. I could see Washington and Denver making a move, but that would barely net a fifth rounder, assuming it would be the first Denver pick. I want to say Minnesota would be a good fit, but I don’t know if they are content with Sage Rosenfels or not. The Jets? Doubt it. Seattle and/or Cleveland moving back up in the first for him? Doubt that too.

So for this mock draft, I have the Bills picking at the following spots: 11, 28, 42, 75, 110, 118 (I used this middle of the round spot as an average for a Parrish trade), 121, 147, 183 and 220.

Just for the heck of it, a few wild cards to throw out, as I‘ll never rule out anything:

Chris Kelsay trade - I really do think he’d get you more than a seventh. Nothing more than a fifth though. It’s something to consider.
Marshawn Lynch trade - Out of curiosity, what would he fetch?
John McCargo trade - Maybe a fifth?
Ashton Youboty trade - Maybe another fourth?

And for the record, I doubt any of these happen. On to the mock… which appears after the jump.

1-11: Michael Oher, OT, Mississippi. I know it’s been said the Bills prefer Andre Smith, but I don’t think he’ll be there. If he is, he’s my pick. If not, I’m taking the next best LT in this year’s draft. His alleged ability to play G makes him more attractive to me.

1-28: Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Oklahoma State. My prediction here is that the Bills trade up into the early twenties to get Pettigrew, using a third-rounder to do so. I hope they don’t. No knock on Pettigrew, but I’d rather take a chance on Michael Johnson. The kid is a freak, and reminds me of Calais Campbell. They say he has some issues with regard to work ethic. I don’t buy it. His dad is a military guy, and all he did last year was produce.

2-42: Max Unger, G/C, Oregon. I would love to see Max Unger fall, and I think he will. That’s who I’m picking here.

3-75: Tyrone McKenzie, LB, South Florida. Tyrone McKenzie is my pick for the third round. I think he has good size, and is a nice fit in a Cover 2. If the Bills were to use this pick in a Pettigrew trade, I’d use the multiple fourth rounders to get up enough to get this guy. It goes against my thinking of trading down, that’s for sure.

4-110: Sammie Lee Hill, DT, Stillman. Sammie Lee Hill gets picked here. It’s good to have an over-sized DT with some athletic ability on your roster. If Chris Baker is here, that’s my pick. He’ll be gone earlier in my opinion.

4-118: Derek Pegues, S, Mississippi State. If Chip Vaughn is here, he’s my pick. If not, maybe the smaller, jack of all trades Derek Pegues will do the trick.

4-121: Phillip Hunt, DE, Houston. I have to pick him here. After all, I interviewed Jim Jeffcoat about him.

5-147: Davon Drew, TE, East Carolina. He’s a blocker, and that’s what I think this team could use. I really like Fine a lot, so I’ve ignored this position throughout the draft, maybe even to a fault. Depending on how things go (for example, with Pettigrew), LB Zack Follett could be a choice here. From what I’ve seen, I like watching the guy play football.

6-183: Ryan Stancheck, OT, West Virginia. Ask me any question about him - I won’t know it.

7-220: Phil Trautwein, OT, Florida. Ask me any question about him - I won’t know it.

I obviously mailed in the last two picks. But they are what they are - flyers on big men who have played a lot of college football in big time conferences. Maybe one of them turns out to be practice squad fodder at best; maybe one turns into a player.

I’m sure I’ll get beat up a little for this mock, and most likely, deservedly so. Have at it...

Orange and Blue Game Review: Maintain Status Quo

mlmintampa — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 09:14:05 -0000

Nothing changes. But that's fine: There were no jobs won Saturday at the Orange and Blue Game and there were none lost. This is in part because of UF's nagging injury situation and the volume of players Florida has coming back. There will continue to be question marks about who will take the tackle spots vacated by Jason Watkins and Phil Trautwein. But, Meyer has a room in the stadium filled with O-linemen who are 6-4, 320. None of them are proven (I'm looking at you, Matt Patchan), yet we should have confidence that the situation will be solved. I thought John Brantley was pressured a lot, but that is the difference between the quality of the defense's 2nd and 3rd units and the offense's comparable units. To be fair, I think Patchan was fine, but I think he can get beat inside by a quality end. Nick Alajajian is the other lineman who stood out. He seemed to handle himself well, but the 6-4 freshman needs to get bigger (he's listed at 288lbs and played like it). He layed a nice block on a reverse, but then got thrown down later by Earl Okine. On the bright side, I saw a few good looking girls wearing "ALAJAJIAN 58" tshirts, and that's always nice to have in your corner.

Jarvis Moss, Carlos Dunlap, Earl Okine?: At 6-7, Okine looks like a jacked LeBron James and follows a line of tall dudes in the Meyer Administration. His 274 pound frame could use some more weight, but not enough to sacrifice his quickness. Of Florida's defenders, Okine stood out the most because he was all over the place. Not just hopping around at the line like he was Simeon Rice, but the way he pursued the ball and moved up field. His throw down of Alajajian was awesome and a sign of the general badassness an end needs. Perhaps his Orange and Blue showing will energize him like Dunlap's did in 2008. Duke Lemmens (who, with a big season, can earn "The" in front of his name like The Major Wright) also played well. Meyer raved about Jon Bostic after the game, saying the early enrollee will get a chance to play in 2009. Dorian Munroe had a pick, but is stuck playing in a defensive backfield that could top the Carlisle Indians.

The best players from Saturday may not see the field: Frankie Hammond can run like a gazelle and has good hands. Too bad that only makes him the 5th or 6th receiver. Carl Moore looked good and Deonte Thompson will finally get a chance to play ball. Include those two with David Nelson (on the sidelines), Riley Cooper (injured in baseball), and Andre Debose, and it is hard to find a spot for Hammond. Munroe is in a similar spot.

John Brantley throws a pretty ball: I felt like I was Johnny Miller during the US Open with the way I was trying to breakdown Tebow and Brantley's mechanics. Throwing a ball is an unnatural motion, but not on Brantley. It's smooth. Tebow's motion is based on sheer strength and will. Watching Tebow, I couldn't tell if the motion was quicker or not, but in warmups, you can tell when he is fighting the old motion. It might even be that I want it to be quicker and more smooth, so I am trying to convince myself that it is. As for Brantley, he was dropping passes into waiting arms all day. He could win a Heisman and National Championship too. He is that good.

Gator Boosters finally hit by Florida's Depression: The announced crowd was 65,000, but I thought it was about 50k, which is still good. (And better than the 36,000 announced for FSU at Ron Zook Field.) However, a lot of the club areas and luxury boxes were empty. Not surprising, considering that the most expensive seats and boxes all over the country are going unsold as people either drop their tickets or move to cheaper ones. Starting today, UF is also selling 250 season tickets, but you have to donate $2000 to be eligible. Considering there are 7 home games, the cheapest way to get tickets might be to get several families or a large group of friends to pool some cash, then draw straws to figure out who gets the seats each game. I would do this, but I'm waiting until I establish the Alligator Army Memorial Scholarship Fund and Drinking Club before I get season tickets.

Adventures in Gainesvegas: Football players are just like you and me in that they have no social skills. I met a girl who told me that Chris Rainey texts her occasionally. This isn't surprising, considering she's an attractive white girl and Rainey has let us all know of his preference for UF's melanin-challenged females. But here's the thing; he's never met her in person. They are just facebook friends. What? Does Rainey not have any game? Perhaps I should be easy on Rainey, considering I started dating a girl after saying I'd "facebook her" instead of getting her number. I also saw a girl I know Friday night wearing the most ridiclous pair of boots I have ever seen. Not only did they not match her dress (tan colored, looked like a flight attendant, with black boots), they were as wide as Michael Crabtree's walking boot and to her knees. Here's how that conversation went;

Me: "What's with the boots?"

Girl: "Tim Tebow likes them!"

Me: "Tebow said he liked them?"

Girl: "He said they were crazy! Isn't that awesome?"

I've never heard anyone use "crazy" as a compliment about any female, so I highly doubt Tebow likes girls wearing awful boots. Also, I was very upset to learn Gainesville bars are 21 and up now, which prompted me to yell out, "You suck Bernie!" when UF's anti-alcohol President Bernie Machen was introduced at the game. Apparently, we've traded four National Championships under Machen for drinking laws from 1920. Machen should stick to making sure UF isn't bankrupted by the Florida State Legislature.

Alligator Army Awards: The Albie for Best Senior

mlmintampa — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:50:11 -0000

After a bit of a delay, here are the nominees for Best Senior.

Louis Murphy, Wide Receiver: The 6-foot-3 man from St. Pete was the Gators leading receiver, with 36 catches for 611 yards. Outside of Tim Tebow, Murphy may have been the most excitable player on the Gators offense. In the SEC Championship Game, his 33 yard reception late in the fourth quarter broke the back of Alabama's defense.

Jonathan Phillips, Kicker: The Gators leading scorer, Phillips was 11-12 on field goals and 75-76 on extra points. He led all SEC kickers with 101 points.

Mary Ratliff, Outfield: The lone senior on the Gators 70-5 team, Ratliff was fifth in hitting (.296) and third in RBI (48) while starting 74 games for UF. Her game winning 2-RBI double in the College World Series gave the Gators their 68^th win, the first team to reach that milestone in NCAA history.

Phil Trautwein, Left Tackle/Jason Watkins, Right Tackle: Bookending one of the best offensive lines in America, Trautwein and Watkins provided protection for Tebow and the Gators assortment of backs. Trautwein came back strong this season after missing the last with a broken foot. He was named to the first team All-SEC by coaches and the Associated Press. Watkins protected the blindside for the lefty Tebow. In his career, Watkins has also played tight end (wearing a number in the 80s) for running situations.

Poll

Who wins The Albie for Best Senior of 2008?

Louis Murphy

16 votes

Mary Ratliff

5 votes

Jonathan Phillips

3 votes

Phil Trautwein

6 votes

Jason Watkins

0 votes

30 votes | Poll has closed

SEC Power Poll: All-SEC Offensive Line

cocknfire — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 19:06:50 -0000

Again, check other participating blogs to view the SEC Power Poll All-SEC Offense all day long.

If you're reading this site, you're probably already a pretty fervent college football fan. And so you don't need to be told yet again that everything the quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends do would all be in vain were it not for the largely nameless -- or large and nameless -- gentlemen who man the offensive line. Let us name just five of them: The All-SEC Offensive Line.

Position	Player	Team
C	Antoine Caldwell	Alabama
OL	Michael Oher	Mississippi
OL	Andre Smith	Alabama
OL	Herman Johnson	LSU
OL	Phil Trautwein	Florida

Perhaps it isn't surprising that Alabama was the only team to place two players on this squad. The Tide have the league's second-ranked rushing attack, with 196.5 ypg, and allowed just 17 sacks this year.

As for Caldwell -- the man has a way of seeing the future. Back when it was preposterous to think it, he said of his decision to return for his final season:

"I'm the type person, I don't want to regret anything I do in life. And I feel like, if I was in an NFL training camp or playing for a team and I look back and see, 'Alabama won the SEC champinship,' I might fall out."

They fell just short, but who thinks Caldwell regretted his decision? Caldwell, Smith and their teammates along the Alabama line are one of the main reasons the Tide surpassed the preseason expectations.

Michael Oher, you might have heard, had a book written about him. And for an offensive lineman, that's about as good as it gets. Ole Miss' rushing attacked ranks third in the SEC, at 183.4 ypg, and in Oher's primary area of responsibility -- protecting the QB -- the Rebels are tied for 23rd in the country, allowing just 16 sacks for a loss of 86 yards.

Herman Johnson's name is also on the AP All-American list, the first time that's happened for an LSU lineman in 11 years. Les Miles is typically effusive about the guy:

Herman is a tremendous football player who plays a huge role on this team, both on and off the field. If they gave an All-America award for a person’s character, values and integrity, Herman would be on that list as well.

And how could we have an All-SEC Offensive Line without someone from Florida? The Gators ranked first in rushing in the SEC with 229.8 ypg. While Florida's skill players have plenty of speed, they needed the blocks to get started, and Trautwein and Co. provided those blocks. Helped out by Tim Tebow's mobility, the Gators OL also kept the quarterback standing: 16 sacks allowed, fewer per game than any SEC team save Kentucky. It was hard enough to tackle a Florida runner if you could get to him. With a decent block, you had no chance.

Alligator Army All-SEC Team

mlmintampa — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 22:35:25 -0000

My 2008 All-SEC Team. Note: Players are listed in alphabetical order, left to right. Drop your sarcasm and critique in the comments.

Offense

WR: Percy Harvin, UF

OL: Michael Oher, UM

OL: Mike Pouncey, UF

C: Antoine Caldwell, UA

OL: Andre Smith, UA

OL: Phil Trautwein, UF

WR: Brandon LaFell, LSU

RB: Glen Coffee, UA

QB: Tim Tebow, UF

TE: Aaron Hernandez, UF

RB: Knowshon Moreno, UG

Defense

CB: Joe Haden, UF		DE: Robert Ayres, UT	DT: Terrence Cody, UA	DT: Sen'Derrick Marks, AU	DE: Jermaine Cunningham, UF		CB: D.J. Moore, VU
	LB: Rennie Curran, UG		LB: Dominic Douglas, MS			LB: Brandon Spikes, UF
		S: Eric Berry, UT*			S: Ahmad Black, UF

* Original post had Berry as a CB, because I wanted three safeties. After realizing that Berry would technically lose my vote (by being listed as a CB), I changed him to S and and entered Joe Haden at CB. However, Rashad Johnson gets dropped. Sorry, Rashad.

Special Teams

K: Josh Shene, UM

KR: Brandon James, UF

P: Jeremy Davis, AR

PR: Javier Arenas: UA

SEC Coach of The Year: Bobby Johnson, Vanderbilt; Anywhere else a .500 record would make the seat burn a little under Johnson's rear. But at Vandy, it's a miracle. Vandy started 5-0, was ranked and had Gameday come on campus. Sure, they finished 6-6, but at 4-4 in SEC play, Johnson took Vandy to a level not reached in his players' lifetimes.

SEC Player of The Year: Tim Tebow, Florida; "I'm sorry. Extremely sorry. You know, we were hoping for an undefeated season. That was my goal, something Florida's never done here. But I promise you one thing; a lot of good will come out of this. You will never see any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of the season. And you will never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of the season. You will never see a team play harder than we will the rest of the season. God Bless."

SEC Defensive Player of The Year: Terrence Cody, Alabama; The Crimson Tide was third nationally in total defense because Cody was the textbook example of a nose tackle in the 3-4 scheme. It is a bit of an art to do what Cody did. By taking on blockers and plugging gaps, Cody opened up spots for Bama's ends and linebackers to stop running backs at the line and pressure the quarterback. Cody is a big man, but he is quick enough on his feet to disrupt a play. That combination of speed and size cannot be taught.

SEC Freshman of The Year: Jeffery Demps, Florida; A.J. Green and Julio Jones are very good players and will be in the coming years. But neither has the world class speed of Demps. When Demps would touch the ball, his body would tense like he was coming out of the starting blocks. The explosion of speed that would follow was not seen anywhere else in college football. Demps ran a 10.01 in the 100-meters this summer in Olympic qualifying and it seemed with pads on and carrying a football, he barely lost a step. Plus, Demps blocked two kicks. You can have Green and Jones. I'll take the Olympic sprinter.

Who are the All-Decade offensive tackles? (select 2)
	Kenyatta Walker
	Mike Pearson
	Max Starks
	Phil Trautwein
	Jason Watkins

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