SB Nation - Chris Wells

Six freshmen on the Navy game two-deep is a good thing, and I'm gonna tell you why

Sam @ WWAHT — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:00:20 -0000

by Terry Gilliam - AP

3 months ago: In this photo taken on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, Ohio State running back Jaamal Berry (4) runs in a drill during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

View full size photo »

One of the bigger surprises on the recently released depth chart is the presence of true freshmen at multiple positions on the two-deep. To be honest, I didn't even really begin to dissect why that is the way it is until I saw this post over on MGoBlog's MGoBoard:

"Three true freshmen cracked the OL two-deep: Corey Linsley at left guard, Jack Mewhort at center and Marcus Hall at right tackle. One thing to remember, when Adams returns from suspension, he could go back to second-team left tackle, which could bump Shugarts over to right tackle and Hall loses his spot in the two-deep."

Adams is recently suspended redshirt freshman Mike Adams, a highly regarded recruit who was a member of the heralded "Brew Crew." Shugarts is redshirt freshman (ed. note: actually a soph) another member of said crew.

This whole paragraph intrigues me because it shows how young Ohio State is at offensive line, similar to Michigan on defense. The 2-deep includes Adams/Hall, Shugarts, true sophomore center Mike Brewster (a starter who had a good season last year), Mewhort, and Linsley. That means that HALF (!) of Ohio State's 2-deep on the line are the same age as Patrick Omameh and Ricky Barnum (or younger).

To which I responded:

[...]vThose true freshmen did not necessarily get there due to lack of warm bodies; Linsley beat out Connor Smith (a former five-star bust), Mewhort forced Andrew Moses to switch positions, and Hall beat out junior Josh Kerr.

It'll be a raw unit, undoubtedly, but I think it will eventually jell into a solid Big Ten line. Probably not soon enough for USC, but by the time The Game rolls around, it should be up to snuff. This line is actually far deeper, talent-wise, than any line Jim Tressel has had since 2003.

But, nevertheless, I was taken back just a bit by how young this team is overall. It's not like that fact hasn't dawned on me yet, but the depth chart really hit home: Five freshmen on the offensive side of the ball have realistic shots at solid playing time: Duron Carter, Corey Linsley, Jack Mewhort, Adam Homan, and Marcus Hall. I don't recall this being the case - at least, not to this disagree - in quite some time in Columbus, and it could mean two very good things:

The freshmen are actually living up to the hype

It's no secret that few freshman have made much of an impact under Jim Tressel. There are three obvious exceptions - Maurice Clarrett, Chris Wells, and Terrelle Pryor - but each of those guys came to the team with otherwordly amounts of hype and two of them were thrust into the situation with no better alternative. Outside of those three, freshmen have largely been non-entities, and especially sp on the offense line. Nick Mangold got solid playing time this year, but the general motif of the Tressel era is that freshmen are to be seen on media day and not heard of afterward. This is, more often than not, a solid strategy. But with the uptick in recruiting the past couple years has come a bit of a talent glut, and it's particularly exciting to see it happening in spots it usually doesn't: on both lines and in a deep receiving corps. These freshmen are beating out veterans in units that, for the most part, underperformed last year. If anything, the whippersnappers giving the rest of the team motivation.

The staff is continuing to shed its "loyal to a fault" label

2008 may have been the death knell for the "Jim Tressel is loyal to seniors" meme. Todd Boeckman beat out Terrelle Pryor in camp for reasons that no longer seem clear to those of us who watched him struggle against Ohio and USC. It's very possible that in camp, Boeckman looked solid, even behind an offensive line that gave him jack and shit to work with. Whatever the case may be, Boeckman barely looked like a Big Ten quarterback once the Buckeyes got past Youngstown State.

To some (including myself), he's the poster child of a meme that hasn't quite died the death I want it to: that Jim Tressel, and by extension the rest of his staff, will give its upperclassmen a lot more leeway than underclassmen. Mistake-prone underclassmen were much quicker to get the hook than underperforming seniors. Last year ended up being just the opposite of that. Tressel saw a barely functional offense because he is not blind, and inserted the touted true freshman who could evade the inevitable pass rush, because it was coming and there was clearly nothing Bryant Browning or Alex Boone could do about it. It worked out splendidly. Tressel now seems a little less reluctant to place freshmen in positions of importance as a result of both Pryor and Michael Brewster's emergence, as long as they earn the reps they get. This creates a system of allotting playing time that is much closer to that of USC, Florida and Alabama than, uh.... the old Ohio State and should make the Buckeyes a much more competitive team week-to-week, because players will be constantly fighting for their jobs.

But there's always a stinkin' caveat...

Of course, there is one potentially bad outcome: these freshmen may end up getting playing time, and.... will actually look like freshmen. If nothing else, Brewster and Pryor's freshman years should inspire you: perhaps the staff has learned from the fact that Boone and Steve Rehring never panned out, and as a result freshman will play like sophomores. Or something.

Just think happy thoughts, damn you! Kickoff in four days! There's still time for mindless optimism!

Comparing the Online Recruiting Ranking Services

Buck Bravo — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:00:11 -0000

Rivals, Scout, and ESPN all provide ranking systems for recruits headed to Division 1 football programs. Often, ratings of individual players will vary greatly from one service to another. In an attempt to determine which service most accurately projects the future performance of players, let's take a look at the ratings that were given to the 2009 NFL first round draft picks back when they were being recruited for college football:

PICK

NAME

COLLEGE

TEAM

RIVALS

STARS

SCOUT

STARS

ESPN

RATING

Matthew Stafford

Georgia

Jason Smith

Baylor

Tyson Jackson

LSU

Aaron Curry

OLB

Wake Forest

Mark Sanchez

USC

Andre Smith

Alabama

Darrius Heyward-Bey

Maryland

Virginia

Boston College

Texas Tech

Penn State

Georgia

Texas

Ohio State

OLB

USC

Northern Illinois

Kansas State

Tennessee

Missouri

Oklahoma State

California

Florida

Ole Miss

Ole Miss

Illinois

OLB

USC

Donald Brown

Connecticut

Louisville

North Carolina

Rutgers

Ohio State

Missouri

ESPN did not start ranking recruits until 2006, so players from before that time have no ranking. Despite this limitation, let's look at the trend lines for the different services:

While Scout may have had the most 5 star rankings for recruits who ultimately became first round NFL draft choices, Rivals had the best trendline for accurately ranking future NFL talent. A more comprehensive analysis looking at later rounds and previous years would best determine which service best analyzes talent. If I were retired or writing for TDG full time, I'd be eager to put such a report together for later this week. For now, the first round of the 2009 NFL draft will have to suffice.

Penn State's Reason For Hope #3 - Evan Royster

BSD — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:00:14 -0000

Let's say for a moment the wide receivers don't come together. Let's say Daryll Clark has nothing to work with in the passing game. And let's say the offensive line is adequate, though not great. Can the offense be successful? Can they still move the ball and score enough points to cover the defense and win some ball games?

If history is an indicator, all Joe Paterno needs is a good running back and he can win a bunch of football games. This year he has Evan Royster, and Paterno has proven he can win with a whole lot less.

Evan Royster didn't get nearly the publicity he deserved last year. In the preseason all we read about was Beanie Wells, and P.J. Hill, and Javon Ringer. Even Tyrell Sutton was getting more preseason love, and once the season started Shonn Greene was the toast of the conference. But the fact is that on a per carry basis Evan Royster outperformed all of them.

Name	Carries	Yards	Yards Per Carry
Evan Royster	191	1236	*6.47*
Shonne Greene	307	1850	6.03
Beanie Wells	207	1197	5.78
P.J. Hill	234	1161	5.14
Javon Ringer	390	1637	4.30

Usually when you scan up and down the conference before the season looking for potential Heisman candidates you look for the top returning passer and the top returning rusher. So conventional wisdom would say that Daryll Clark and Evan Royster should be on the short list. But instead all we hear about is the Crybaby and, well, nobody else. No respect for Royster.

The major knock on him has been his durability. Despite playing in all 13 games, Royster had fewer carries than all the guys on the list above. His entire career has been riddled with ankle sprains, shoulder stingers, deep thigh bruises, and twisted knees.

How far Penn State goes will depend a lot on the legs of Evan Royster. If the passing game sputters, he will have to pick up the load and carry the ball 20-25 times per game.

(By the way, did I mention Royster used to play lacrosse?)

PROTEST PLAYOFF '07: Sweet Sixteen (Day 1)

BracketCat — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:00:29 -0000

19 DAYS UNTIL KICKOFF!

Cotton Bowl: The boys in Dallas are guaranteed either Florida (SEC) or Missouri (Big 12), but not both.

Capital One Bowl: The Capital One Bowl was lucky to get Ohio State, the only Big Ten team in the field. Potentially landing USC would just be a bonus.

Today's Games

Game 1: No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1) VS. No. 16 Central Michigan Chippewas (8-5)

Ohio Stadium - Columbus, Ohio
Friday, Dec. 14, 2007 - 11 AM EST

Precipitation: none
Temperature: 23
Wind: calm

Final Score: Ohio State 33, Central Michigan 6

Player of the Game
Ohio State RB Chris Wells

Box Score

recap will be up tonight

Game 2: No. 13 BYU Cougars (10-2) VS. No. 4 Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2)

Lane Stadium - Blacksburg, Va.
Friday, Dec. 14, 2007 - 1 PM EST

Precipitation: none
Temperature: 18
Wind: calm

Final Score: Virginia Tech 37, BYU 24

Player of the Game
Virginia Tech RB Branden Ore

Box Score

recap will be up tonight

Game 3: No. 5 Missouri Tigers (11-2) VS. No. 12 Florida Gators (9-3)

Faurot Field - Columbia, Mo.
Friday, Dec. 14, 2007 - 3:30 PM CST

Precipitation: none
Temperature: 24
Wind: S 9 MPH

Final Score: Florida 38, Missouri 20

Player of the Game
Florida QB Tim Tebow

Box Score

recap will be up tonight

Game 4: No. 8 USC Trojans (10-2) VS. No. 9 West Virginia Mountaineers (10-2)

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum - Los Angeles, Calif.
Friday, Dec. 14, 2007 - 5 PM PST

Precipitation: none
Temperature: 61
Wind: calm

Final Score: USC 45, West Virginia 3

Player of the Game
USC RB Chauncey Washington

Box Score

recap will be up tonight

All helmet images are courtesy of The Helmet Project. Check it out - it's pretty cool.

Tomorrow's Games

#15 Florida Atlantic @ #2 LSU
Tiger Stadium
Baton Rouge, La.

#14 UCF @ #3 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
Norman, Okla.

#11 Arizona State @ #6 Georgia
Sanford Stadium
Athens, Ga.

#10 Hawai'i @ #7 Kansas
Kansas Memorial Stadium
Lawrence, Kan.

BracketCat's Protest Playoff Archives

2007: Selection Sunday

A Way Too Early Look At The 2009 Schedule - Week 8 - Ohio State

GopherNation — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:45:49 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

Probably more fans here for the spring game than will bother to show up for the Gopher game!

Browse more photos »

Let me start this schedule preview with a bit of final Jeopardy, I'll give you the answer followed by the question...

The Answer: USC, Texas and Minnesota

The Question: Who are the only three teams to score 21 points on the 2008 Ohio State Buckeyes?

Now on to the preview...

The Gophers have the incredible misfortune of getting to play Ohio State in Columbus in back to back seasons. This wouldn't have been the worst year to play the Buckeyes at home considering they lose about half of their starting lineup and we are a fairly experienced and a relatively talented team. Clearly this is a conspiracy by Jim Delaney and the Big Ten bigwigs to keep the Gophers down and make sure Ohio State gets itself back to the BCS for yet another chance to redeem itself. Honestly though, I'm not trying to say that on paper these teams are relatively equal and a home game gives us a great shot at winning. Regardless of the venue we are likely to lose to OSU the majority of the time. I'm just saying a home game moves our chances of winning from 8% to maybe 18%. We'll get to the outcome later, lets take a look at the Buckeye's.

Once again I took the easy route and had a local blogger answer a few questions for me regarding his favorite team. This time I went to Sam at We Will Always Have Tempe to help me out.

TDG - The Buckeye's are replacing 10 starters plus their K and P. We all know that Ohio State reloads, but that is a lot of quality and quantity to replace. What, in your opinion are realistic expectations for the 2009 Buckeyes?

WWAHT - Well, Ohio State has just finished racking up two excellent recruiting classes, so the talent level is actually roughly the same; that being said, the overall level of experience has taken a bit of a hit. That being said, with this schedule and in this Big Ten, anything less than 9-3 would be a disappointment..

I'm assuming 9-3 would mean a losses to USC, @ Penn State and...Minnesota (?). Sorry, with fall camp starting this week I am a little drunk on the kool-aid. Crazier things have happened and that is a lot of experienced snaps to replace but I'm not that delusional. Ohio State is replacing a number of very big names on both sides of the ball. Offensively they basically bring back their QB and most of their OL. In my book those are the key positions in college football so if you are only going to bring back 5 starters on offense those would be the ones I want to bring back. Defensively they lose some big names at all position groups. As Sam points about above they do have some very talented kids stepping in to fill the shoes of Chris Wells, Malcolm Jenkins, James Laurinaitis, Marcus Freeman, etc. But one has to expect that regardless of how talented these guys are there will be an adjustment period and likely a small step back.

It will also be interesting to see how things go on special teams for the Buckeyes as they are replacing their P and their K. That is often overlooked but should also contribute to OSU coming back to the entire Big Ten pack in 2009.

The Buckeyes on Offense

TDG - Offensively every skill position player is being replaced, with the exception of Pryor. Is this going to hamper his growth, or at least his numbers, as he moves into his sophomore season as the most experienced skill position player in the backfield? Also talk about Dan Herron and what you expect out of him.

WWAHT - I don't think it will hamper his growth one bit; in fact, I expect his numbers to improve as the offense improves. Pryor has far more chemistry with the younger skill position players on the team, and I think the offense will jell much more easily as a result. Dan Herron will be the focus of the running game, and I expect him to put up monster numbers; think of him as Antonio Pittman with a nasty streak.

I think I worded the question wrong. I wasn't implying anything would prevent Pryor from improving, but not having other known commodities (mainly Wells) around him means defenses will be keying on him more than they did last year. So maybe he still improves but I'm wondering if his numbers will improve significantly.

I also really do not want to forget about Dan Herron here, he does concern me. I seem to remember when Wells was on the sideline, Herron didn't exactly offer a reprieve for the Gopher defense.

Overall, would any of you be surprised to know that the Buckeye offense actually finished 9th in the Big Ten in overall yards gained? They were the antithesis of the Gopher offense. OSU finished 3rd in rushing offense and a dismal 10th in yards gained through the air. The Gophers were the worst rushing team in the conference and finished 4th in passing. One would expect that Pryor will be better equipped to throw the ball in the Big Ten, but once again the OSU ground game should be the heart and soul of their offense. Fortunately I feel as though stopping the run will be a strength of the Gopher defense so maybe (just maybe) we can slow down their rushing attack this time around and force them to throw it.

Catching the ball will be a handful of names less familiar than Robiskies and Hartlines we often heard last season. The spring depth chart has sophomore DeVier Posey (former 5-star recruit) and junior Dane Sanzenbacher listed as the top two receivers. Senior Ray Small is also a returning contributor who had 18 catches last year but is a no show for fall camp due to academic issues. Of course some younger guys will likely be a factor this season (Taurian Washington, Lamaar Thomas and true freshman Duran Carter).

Those receivers could be very talented but if you are going to stop the Buckeye offense, you better start with the ground game. Herron is likely going to step into the starting role and will be a top 5 Big Ten back, plus you have the always dangerous Pryor. Basically I would expect the Buckeyes will move the ball about approximately the same clip as they did a year ago. Where they may struggle is putting points on the board with so many new skill position players. In 2008 the OSU offense was 9th in total offense but managed to finish 4th in points scored. I'm going to make an assumption that this was largely due to the experience of the offense and the very good defense putting the offense in great position to score without having to consume more field then they had to.

The Buckeyes on Defense

Speaking of that defense, what is this unit going to look like with three All-Big Ten players, including the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, gone? Sam gives us a position group breakdown...

TDG - Defensively, can you give me a small paragraph on each position group (DL, LB, DB)?

WWAHT - If the defensive line can find some modicum of consistency on the interior, it'll be one of the best units in the Big Ten. Thaddeus Gibson will be one of the more feared pass-rushers in the country, but he needs help. Look for Dex Larimore to develop into a very good run-stuffer.

The linebacking corps may be 2/3rds new, but Austin Spitler has seen so much time backing up James Laurinaitis it's like breaking in a second-year starter. He isn't very fast, but he hits hard and excels at play recognition. Tyler Moeller is the other new face here (ed note: Moeller was recently injured and is likely out for 2009), a converted safety who many remember for chasing Pryor down in the open field during the spring game. He's a little small for a Big Ten linebacker, but he'll terrorize offensive tackles with his quickness on the blitz. Lastly, Ross Homan is a true junior and possibly the second-best defensive player on the team.

The secondary is breaking in a new starter - Andre Amos - but overall, looks to be a solid unit. The two safeties have around four-and-a-half combined years (that "half" being Russell's solid redshirt freshman debut that ended in an injury at Iowa in late September of '06) of experience under their belt and could end up being one of the better tandems in the country. Opposing quarterbacks should avoid Chimdi Chekwa - or as I call him, "Chex"- at all costs.

So the secondary should be really good, while the D-line and linebackers break in some newcomers. Iowa and Ohio State are the only two teams who gave up fewer than 300 yards per game and less than two TDs per game in 2008. As mentioned Ohio State does lose a few key members of that imposing defense so I think it is save to assume they won't be quite as dominant this time around. What does that mean though? It means Ohio State may not be brilliant defensively, just very good. This side of the ball has ranked in the top 15 nationally five of the last six seasons, so one has to expect this unit will be very good once again.

What to Expect

TDG - Clearly Ohio State will be favored and favored heavily to win. If these teams played all 12 games in Columbus the Gophers would maybe win 1 out of 12 times. Paint me a scenario that could potentially play itself out where the Gophers go into Columbus and come out with that one win.

WWAHT - I think the key to the Gopher's chances will be Simoni Lawrence. He's your leading returning sacker and was also 2nd in TFL in 2008. If he can provide adequate pressure on Terrelle Pryor, the Ohio State offense will be at least partially stymied. Offensively, Minnesota has to consistently get 4-5 yards on the ground on first and second down. It absolutely has to find a way to do this, because if it gets into the 3rd and long situations, Thad Gibson will have his way with the Minnesota offensive line.

Lastly, Adam Weber can't turn the ball over. At all. The Minnesota passing attack may have go into the box; whenever Weber doesn't see an open man on his first few reads, he needs to tuck the ball in and scramble for whatever yardage is available. If these three factors converge on that fateful day, Minnesota will probably find itself victorious. And you will find me hanging from the rafters.

So you are saying there's a chance. Sam seems like he might take a Gopher win kind of hard, not to worry though, it's not like the blogging world would miss one of 328 Ohio State blogs (just kidding, I'd miss my SBN brother).

I think that Sam is dead-on (pun intended) when he says Simoni is a key, probably more so in this game than any other. He has to be able to contain Pryor or we will see the Buckeyes run up and down the field at will (again). The rest is pretty obvious. Run the ball well on the road and don't give the opponent any turnovers.

I'm not going to convince you that we are going to win this game. While I feel our chances are better this year than they have been in the last few years, chances are still pretty slim. We have an experienced offense with at least a couple serious weapons. We also have an experienced defense that should be pretty good against the run (at least inside the box) and pretty good against the pass. But Ohio State is Ohio State and we are playing at Ohio State.

Unfortunately this is a game where if we can be competitive most of us will be relatively pleased. I know that comment leaves me open to criticism that how can we ever expect to be great if we accept moral victories. And while I agree with that, I open myself up to further criticism if I say we are going to win this game. Because while we want to be competitive with the Ohio State's of the world, right now it is nothing but hope that should tell you otherwise. At some point I want this game to be viewed with the Gopher's chances being at least 35-40% on a regular basis. We aren't there yet, this team could surprise and this could end up being a game we look forward to, at this point I'm expecting a loss and hoping for the best.

Minnesota - 24
Ohio State - 31

what say you?...

Poll

How will the Gophers fare in Columbus (AGAIN, thanks a lot Mr. Delany)?

Ohio State dominates

73 votes

Ohio State gets caught looking ahead (to New Mexico St) but eeks out the W

28 votes

Minnesota wins a close one and riots ensue in Dinkytown

26 votes

Minnesota dominates in a perfect day of football

1 votes

128 votes | Poll has closed

Scarlet and Gray Greetings to: Roderick Smith

Sam @ WWAHT — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:00:31 -0000

via farm1.static.flickr.com

Despite having a loaded running back situation for the foreseeable future, Ohio State still appears to be a destination school for the country's top running backs . With the commitment of Fort Wayne, Indiana running back Roderick Smith, Ohio State's 2010 recruiting class has swelled to seven members. Here's what you should know about the newest addition to the Buckeye family:

Height: 6'2 according to Scout, 6'3 to Rivals

Weight: 215 to Scout, 220 to Rivals

Fake 40 times: 4.5 according to Rivals, 4.8 according to Scout

Other offers: Purdue, Tennessee (ESS EEE SEE SPEEEEEEED), Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State

Rankings: According to Scout, he's the 6th best running back nationally, and Rivals basically agrees, placing him at 5th overall. He's the 48th best prospect in the Rivals 100, below fellow Buckeye commits DE/OLB Jamel Turner and OT Andrew Norwell. ESPN has him on their 150 watch-list. He's very highly rated across the board, with no significant outliers to speak of.

Notable Quotable:

He's already got a good rapport with the staff, which, while expected, isn't always the case:

"Just the coaches are great," he said about OSU. "Me and the coaches have a great chemistry together. They’re easy to talk to. I got a chance to hang out with the players and that was all I needed. That about sealed it."

He got to hang out with the Big Man Terrelle Pryor himself, which I'm sure will send Michigan fans scrambling to their NCAA rulebook PDFs to see if that's a recruiting violation, a search which will probably be in vain. Again.

Highlights:

There's this, which was thrown up a little over a week ago and looks like it:

And there's this, from ScoutingOhio:

Re: Those runs starting at about twenty seconds in on the Scouting Ohio video:

What does it mean?

Well, with the commitment of Smith, I'd say Ohio State is essentially set at running back, but I'm not sure the staff would agree. Offers are still out to Spencer Ware, Corey Brown, and newcomer Storm Johnson, who's reportedly a heavy LSU lean. Smith has been an assumed Buckeye for months, but if he gave the staff a silent verbal before, they didn't stop offering other backs. They're probably not done. As far as Smith, the inevitable comparisons to Beanie Wells seem apt; he's ginormous, he reportedly has an excellent blend of size and speed, and he's got an Mjolnir stiff-arm that should be tossing hapless DBs into the third row of Ohio Stadium as early as his freshman year. Prepare to hear a lot of "Thunder and Lightning"/ "Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside" clichés in the booth, as sometime in the near future Carlos Hyde and Smith will probably come to complement smaller backs Jaamal Berry and Jordan Hall in a marked change from Jim Tressel's prior philosophy of feeding one guy the rock until his legs explode. In this system, you can simply never have too many excellent running backs.

11 Things I Want To See In the Big 10 During 2009, Part 3

grahamfiller10 — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 12:00:41 -0000

#4 - I want to watch a UM-OSU game where I reasonably believe that Michigan can win

In law, there are standards and tests that legislation or crimes are held up to determine their validity. The reasonable person standard, foreseeability of harm, etc. The above title is my standard for this years Rivalry showdown in Ann Arbor. I'm not asking for a victory or a close game. I just want to believe, for a brief second before kickoff, that Michigan can pull off an upset. Because that's what a rivalry game is about, right? "Throw out the records"..."Anything can happen"...etc...But I haven't truly believed that; even in 2006 when Michigan was undefeated and the apocalypseNOWundefeatedholyshit#1v2BO IS WATCHING FROM HEAVEN game was upon us...Michigan was injured and listless in '07 and in '08, yeah right.

#3 - I want the Big 10's best to continue thumbing the hit stick like a nervous gamer

Good god, 2008 was a fantastic year for Sportscenter-level smashing. Shonn Greene, crushing defenders all year, especially here at the 0:13 mark (listen to the lady say OMYGOD). Shonn Greene visiting lala land at the 2:20 mark. Sam McGuffie being told by Ohio State's kickoff team that, um yeahh, maybe you should probably not play in the Big 10 (2:22 mark). Terrelle Pryor and Chris Wells stiff arming the hell out of the entire Michigan State defense. Brian Hoyer leaving the same game due to fogginess from this hit at 5:05. Brian Hoyer getting face punched against Penn State.

Every time I turned around, someone was getting lit up. Who will be the killers this year?

See Part 1, Part 2....and the final installment coming next week...

Arizona Cardinals News: Chris "Beanie" Wells with a Sign of Things to Come (Part II)

Hawkwind — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 16:39:39 -0000

Yesterday we took our first in depth look at the Arizona Cardinals newest first round pick, Chris "Beanie" Wells by looking at each of his carries versus the Michigan Wolverines last year. Overall the sentiments were that Wells showed more promising aspects to his game, including good vision, toughness, speed and the ability to get stronger as the game progresses. It looked like Michigan was geared to shut down Wells and they did a good job of getting into the Buckeye's backfield and cutting down Wells before he was able to get going. The Wolverines preformed decently against Ohio State but their rushing defense wasn't exactly stellar last year and our second in depth look will be a much tougher test for young Beanie. The Penn State Nittany Lions had a great season last year and their defense against the run was certainly one of the big reasons why. Only seven teams in the NCAA allowed fewer rushing yards per game than the Nittany Lions and 2.9 yards per rush is an awfully good number for the team in the Big Ten. When Ohio State played Penn State both teams were ranked in the top ten so it probably goes without saying that Wells had a tough game. Let's take a look and we'll give some thoughts after the jump....

Two carries into the video this thought pops into my head, he's not dancing in the backfield today. It looks like he knows how tough the Penn State defense is and he's looking to find a small crease and get whatever positive yardage he can manage.
Of course right after saying that he's cut down for the loss on the third carry, but it wasn't his fault by any means. The defensive tackle shot a gap and got into Beanie's legs almost as soon as he got the ball. Very few backs would have turned that into yardage and maybe the only move he could have made would be a spin against the grain. The day we see a 230 pound back do that, we'll have made history.
Fourth play is simple middle screen that Wells pulls off nicely. It was a simple throw and easy catch but considering how rarely he caught the ball it's worth mentioning that he looked comfortable in space.
Back to back plays around the 1:10 mark show the Ohio State offense backed up against the own goal line and just looking for some wiggle room. Wells get the ball on first and second down and manages to pick up about three or four yards. To his credit though, both plays could have easily resulted in negative yardage.
In my mind, crazy as it may be, the most encouraging play I seen from Wells is at the 1:37 mark with the offense facing a second and one. If you only watch one play from this video, fast forward and find watch this one. Wells gets the ball on a simple dive play and meets three linebackers (one of his lineman is in the scrum as well) right at the first down marker, but you can clearly see Beanie's legs churning as he pushes the pile for another four or maybe even five yards. Might not look like much in the box score but a 'soft' back isn't going to push that pile four yards down field.
Another tough run by Beanie (1:55 mark) as he runs a counter play that's pretty well sniffed out by the Penn State defense. Two Beanie stiff arms gets him to the corner but runs out of room thanks to the sideline. Just like the play above, a two yard gain won't stand out in the box score but seeing it does show that Beanie's certainly not a soft runner.
I hate to sound like a broken record but Beanie's toughness is again on display at the 3:10 mark. He meets the Penn State middle linebacker in the hole and literally runs him over, spins off another defender and drives the next would-be tackler backward for another yard.
Last play is another good example of vision and patience as he picks his way through the trash for a six yard gain.

It sounds really weird to say I was much more impressed with Beanie's 22 carry, 55 yard performance against Penn State than I was with his 134 yards against Michigan but that's the feeling I got after watching each carry. He battled a really good front seven and fought for every single yard. Every positive aspect of his scouting reports was on display in this game, with the exception of open field speed, and on several carries he showed the ability to run with the toughness that his 230 pound frame would suggest. Enough of my thoughts though, what do you think? Am I over selling?

Arizona Cardinals News: Chris "Beanie" Wells with a Sign of Things to Come (Part I)

Hawkwind — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 21:18:55 -0000

I know we've all seen the highlight videos of Chris "Beanie" Wells stiff arming and powering his way over countless college spares but I was interested in seeing how he handled each and every carry. After some digging I came across what looks like a couple of videos that show every single time he touched the ball in a couple of key games for the Buckeye's last season. The first video that we'll look at is the Ohio State versus Michigan game in which Beanie had a decent game against the Wolverines with 15 rushes for 134 yards including a long TD. Here's the video and then we'll post some general thoughts after the jump....

After four carries that resulted in roughly five or six yards, Wells burst through the right side of the line and scampered 59 yards for a TD (around the :30 mark). He didn't have to break any tackles or really make any moves but he showed some good vision to find a relatively small crease and patience letting the blocks develop.
Beanie again show some good vision and some nifty feet as he makes a quick cut (almost a jump cut really) in the backfield and dives forward for about six or seven yards on a play where plenty of backs would have run into the backs of his offensive lineman for no gain (around the 1:25 mark).
Beanie takes a pitch to his right and sees a decent hole opening up and get a taste of his ability to turn the corner. Once he starts to get square to the line of scrimmage again you can tell he's building some speed before a safety comes in and gets nice shoe string tackle as Beanie tries to hurdle him. I wonder how he'll respond when the safeties are actually trying to tackle instead of diving at his shoe strings. It could lead to longer runs if he's able to break some tackles now that defenders won't be afraid to take him on.
This is one of the plays that gives Beanie the reputation of being soft. He breaks through another small crease and rumbles 40 yards down field (around the 2:20 mark). Around midfield he's pretty much bottled up as he's got a corner slightly trailing him and what looks like a safety coming to cut him off. The problem though is that instead of Beanie lowering a shoulder or jabbing the stiff arm, he practically takes a right turn and heads out of bounds. Now maybe he was already nicked up and didn't see the point of adding any unnecessary contact, but just watching the click looks bad. You'd like to see him at least make an effort deliver a blow but maybe when he's being paid instead of waiting on a pay day in a game that's already decided, his effort will be different.

Overall the Michigan defensive line looks like it lived in the Buckeye's backfield that day and were basically geared to stop Beanie. He ended the day with more rushing attempts and rushing yards then Terrelle Pryor had passing attempts for yards so basically Beanie was the offense. He got most of his yardage on two plays but he battled through backfield penetration for most of the game. One thing that did surprise me was how much Wells ran out of a single back formation with either double tights or multiple wide receiver sets. Given the offense that he's stepping into with the Cardinals, it's encouraging to see that he's comfortable operating without a true fullback all the time. Anyways watch the video and post some thoughts. Encouraged or discouraged?

Arizona Cardinals News: Chris "Beanie" Wells Versus Other Big Ten Running Backs

Hawkwind — Tue, 26 May 2009 18:18:00 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

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When the Arizona Cardinals selected Chris "Beanie" Wells with the 31st overall pick in this year's draft there was hope amongst the coaching staff and fans alike that the franchise had finally found the running back to establish a powerful ground game. Wells was a punishing back with a surprising burst while at Ohio State and the only red flag seemed to be his inability to stay healthy, but will his game translate to the NFL? We've seen in recent years that many Big Ten teams have struggled against other conferences and the struggles have also been shared with their running backs at the NFL level.

Since the 2000 draft, nine Big Ten running backs have been selected in the first or second round, although the league seems to be souring on the conference in recent years. After selecting six backs between 2000 and 2003, only four backs (including Wells) have been selected in the first two rounds in the past six drafts. So is Wells destined to join in Big Ten counterparts or will he break out of the mold? Let's take a look at each of the other nine backs.....

2000 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 11: Ron Dayne - Dayne had it all during his days at Wisconsin. He won the Heisman trophy, was the NCAA all-time rushing leader when he left and remains one of the only players in NCAA history to record four 1,000 yard seasons. As a professional though, he never got close to duplicating the kind of success that he had in college. He never even recorded 800 yards in a season and only topped 200 carries once in his career, as a rookie. Despite his size (5'10, 245) he could manage to even carve out a role as a goal line specialist and his last season was in 2007, with his third team in eight seasons.

Career line: 96 games (28 starts), 983 carries for 3,722 yards (3.8 avg) and 28 TDs. 57 receptions for 340 yards.

2001 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 27: Michael Bennett - Bennett was actually Dayne's backup for two seasons before breaking out with over 1,500 yards in his first season at a starter at Wisconsin and he was also a stand-out performer in the 100 and 200 meters. Despite his speed though, Bennett struggled with injuries for his entire career and has only logged 16 games in a season twice. His best season in 2002 was the only year that he broke 1,000 yards or 200 carries and his lack of size (5'7 207) kept him from being a factor around the goal line. Bennett finished the 2008 season with the Chargers, his fifth team in nine seasons, and has been traded or released in the middle of the season for two consecutive years.

Career line: 94 games (50 starts), 817 carries for 3,627 yards (4.4 avg) and 13 TDs. 151 receptions for 1,220 yards and 6 TDs.

2001 Draft: Round 2 - Pick 38: Anthony Thomas - Thomas was a standout at Michigan and still ranks second in the school's history in yards in a career and yards in a season. He blasted onto the NFL scene with 736 carries for 2,928 yards in his first three seasons. In the process he logged 35 starts and won the NFL Rookie of the Year award in 2001. The problem though is that in the five seasons since those first three seasons he's bounced around between Bears, Cowboys, Saints and Bills while managing just 308 carries for 963 yards. His final season in 2007 consisted of two starts, 36 carries and 89 yards.

Career line: 86 games (43 starts), 1,044 carries for 3,891 yards (3.7 avg) and 23 TDs. 113 receptions for 756 yards and one TD.

2002 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 18: TJ Duckett - Duckett can still be found in the top five of most rushing lists at Michigan State University and even though that success didn't completely translate, he's the first guy on this list who has found his niche in the NFL. After flirting with a starting role during his first two seasons, Duckett has basically settled in as a backup running back and goal line specialist. He's never logged 200 carries or 800 yards in a season but he has managed eight touchdowns or more in four different seasons, while playing for four different teams in seven seasons.

Career line: 93 games (14 starts), 717 carries for 2,814 yards (3.9 avg) and 44 TDs. 35 receptions for 303 yards.

2002 Draft: Round 2 - Pick 56: Ladell Betts - At the time Betts left Iowa he was the second leading rusher all-time at the school and was the only Hawkeye to lead the team in rushing each of the four seasons that he played. Betts has never been much more than a backup, although he did break 1,000 in the one season that he started in place of an injured Clinton Portis. During that season, 2006, he logged 245 carries for 1,154 yards but in every other season of his career he's failed to carry the ball more than 100 times or go over 400 yards. He is the first player on our list though that has spent his entire career, to this point, with the team that drafted him.

Career line: 93 games (11 starts), 720 carries for 2,966 yards (4.1 avg) and 11 TDs. 148 receptions for 1,326 yards and three TDs.

2003 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 27: Larry Johnson - Johnson's the first back on our list to become a bona-fide star. Johnson won multiple awards during his final season at Penn State but wouldn't truly break into the NFL until 2005 when he logged back to back seasons of more than 1,700 yards. Since the 2006 season though he's been hampered by injuries after being overworked to the tune of 416 carries. He showed some signs of returning to his former self in 2008 but has spent the off season amidst constant trade talks after multiple arrests.

Career line: 68 games (48 starts), 1,243 carries for 5,638 yards (4.5 avg) and 55 TDs. 139 receptions for 1,293 yards and six TDs.

2004 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 26: Chris Perry - Perry won the Doak Walker Award (nation top RB) after his senior season at Michigan but he's been worse than disappointing as a pro. In four injury plagued seasons he's almost missed more games (29) than he's actually played (35) and he didn't score a rushing touchdown until 2008. Over that time he's managed just 606 yards rushing and started a grand total of nine games. This past season was actually Perry's best season when he started six games and posted a career high with 104 carries but the Bengals were not impressed considering that they cut him shortly after the draft.

Career line: 35 games (9 starts), 177 carries for 606 yards (3.4 avg) and two TDs. 83 receptions for 474 yards and two TDs.

2006 Draft: Round 1 - Pick 21: Laurence Maroney - It's too early to tell what kind of careery Maroney will have but he's managed to decent seasons so far. If he can stay healthy he's proven to have the talent to succeed.

Career line: 30 games (9 starts), 388 carries for 1,673 yards (4.3 avg) and 12 TDs. 26 receptions for 310 yards and one TD.

2008 Draft: Round 1- Pick 23: Rashard Mendenhall - It's way to early to even look at Mendenhall's career considering that he broke his shoulder just 19 carries into his first NFL season.

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So of the nine selections (although we'll reserve judgement on Maroney and Mendenhall), and 53 seasons, Larry Johnson and maybe Anthony Thomas were the only picks would probably be considered 'successful picks.' Do you think "Beanie" can break the trend and what will set him apart from these guys? Is there even a trend here?