SB Nation - Michael Switzer

Buffalo Bills Announce Seven Practice Squad Members

MattRichWarren — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:24:25 -0000

The Buffalo Bills announced the addition of seven players to the team's practice squad, and all the names should sounds familiar. All seven members were part of Buffalo's 80-man roster prior to final cuts.

Here is the list: quarterback Levi Brown, receiver Kamar Aiken, tight end Mike Caussin, center Michael Switzer, end Lionel Dotson, nose guard Michael Jasper and safety Josh Nesbitt.

Absent from the taxi squad are two names many Bills fans and media expected to see: receiver Naaman Roosevelt and rush linebacker Antonio Coleman. Both were on Buffalo's active roster a year ago, but not for enough games to exclude them from practice squad consideration. Their absence could be due to interest from other teams in adding the players to their active roster.

One or both of these players could still be added, as could recently released tight end Zack Pianalto, as the maximum practice squad allowance is eight players. Pianalto needs to clear waivers before he can sign to any team's practice squad.

Re-Assessing The Bills' Offensive Line Depth Chart

Brian Galliford — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 13:59:44 -0000

Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey made it clear following his team's pre-season loss to the Chicago Bears that he wasn't pleased with the play of his depth players, particularly along the offensive line. Now, he's made a switch at left guard, promoting Chad Rinehart over Andy Levitre (if only for a day), and GM Buddy Nix has joined Gailey in commenting on the team's glaring lack of depth up front.

Given that things are being re-assessed up front by the team, I figured it was high time to do so here. There's a lot of confusion in the fan base regarding the Levitre demotion, and I figured I'd offer my own take as a starting point for hashing this thing out.

Gailey has also made it very clear that he was satisfied with the play of his first unit offensive line - including Levitre's play - in Chicago. That said, we're still going to lump the starters into this re-assessment to try to get a fuller understanding of the team's depth chart. Again, this is all guesswork, so bear that in mind.

Swing Tackles
We'll start at the crux of the team's line depth: players that the team views as options both inside at guard and outside at tackle. These are the players around which true line depth is built.

Mansfield Wrotto: Signed to a two-year deal in March, prior to the lockout. Has more playing time in Gailey's offense than most of his depth peers. Has been the second-team right guard throughout training camp.
Cordaro Howard: Also has playing time in Gailey's offense. Missed some camp time due to injury, and has seen time at both left and right tackle when healthy.

Offensive Tackles
The team's two starters at tackle, for better or worse, appear set. Figuring out the rest is a very difficult task, indeed.

Demetrius Bell: Nobody's job in the front five is safer than Bell's - mostly because he's got no competition. The team desperately needs another 16 healthy games from him.
Erik Pears: He's been the starting right tackle since Week 16 of the 2010 season, and that won't be changing any time soon. By year's end, Pears might be the least of our problems up front.
Chris Hairston: It seems like the Bills will be going out of their way to keep Hairston off the field in 2011, as he's not remotely ready to play. They like him, however, and it's likely his roster spot is safe.
Ed Wang: Technically, we could argue that Wang belongs in the swing tackle group, but as he's been the chief understudy of Bell all summer, we'll put him here instead. Wang has struggled, to put it mildly.
Jason Watkins: An intriguing athlete, Watkins has never been able to ascend the team's depth chart. He's a huge longshot to make the team.

Guards and Centers
Obviously, this is where the most upheaval has occurred within the past 24 hours. We're not sure we're comfortable with the pecking order below, either, but we still think the logic is sound.

Eric Wood: Aside from Bell, nobody's job is safer than Wood's. It's clear that Wood is the team's best lineman, and any lingering doubt as to where he'll line up this year is quickly subsiding. He's the center.
Kraig Urbik: For whatever reason, Gailey hasn't seen fit to give Urbik a challenger yet. That means he's more satisfied with Urbik's play than Levitre's, right? Or, at least, he's higher on Urbik's upside.
Andy Levitre: Rinehart hasn't taken Levitre's job yet, as evidenced by Levitre returning to the first unit Wednesday morning. Gailey said that he'll compete for a starting job, and thus far, Levitre's made more starts at the position this pre-season than Rinehart has.
Chad Rinehart: The one reserve (to start camp) lineman that has proven to the coaching staff that he deserves consideration as a starter. His chances of making the team skyrocketed yesterday.
Geoff Hangartner: It's been a quiet pre-season for Hangartner, who remains entrenched as the second-team center.
Colin Brown: A longshot to make the roster.
Isaiah Thompson: A longer shot to make the roster.
Michael Switzer: A longer shot to make the roster.

Last year, the Bills had nine offensive linemen on the active roster to start the season. Pick nine, folks. It's not easy to do.

MAC Players Signed By NFL Teams As UDFAs: A (Mostly) Complete List

Matt Sussman — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 12:59:59 -0000

Bear in mind that this information was mostly Twitter-harvested and is compiled on websites run by diligent humans corralling kittenish rumors. Much of this has been verified. But here's a list of all the known Mid-American Conference players who signed with NFL teams this week. And all of this becomes official Wednesday morning.

If we're missing anybody, speak up!

UPDATE 1: Added Matt Berning.
UPDATE 2: Added Neal Dahlman and Sean Murnane.
UPDATE 3: Added Marquise Liverpool.
UPDATE 4: Added Michael Switzer.
UPDATE 5: Added Davonte Shannon.
UPDATE 6: Added Jeremy LaFrance.

AKRON
OT Corey Woods — Patriots
WR/CB Jalil Carter — Rams
WR Jeremy LaFrance — Eagles

The first UDFA I heard about was Woods. An offensive player from Akron. Try processing that. Amazed that Carter also found a team. Great to hear that a man who switched sides of the ball his senior year is able to get a chance at the next level. And then LaFrance was signed to the Eagles. I don't know if he'll have much of a chance to crack that talented team, although he was Akron's top wideout coming into the 2010 season.

BALL STATE
DE Robert Eddins — Bills
OL Michael Switzer — Bills

I'm a little surprised he was signed, but good for him. He was second team All-MAC and had a season-high 4½ sacks against CMU. Switzer will join him in Buffalo.

BOWLING GREEN
OL Tyler Donahue — Rams
LS Neal Dahlman — Bengals

The offensive line is what actually killed BG, but he was one of the healthy highlights.

BUFFALO
S Domonic Cook — Bills
S Davonte Shannon — Redskins

For Cook, this just makes it easy to remember where he signed. Keep it in the same town. Shannon will have to go a bit farther from home, but I have a feeling he's going to see a decent amount of playing time this year. I'm still waiting for Brandon Thermilus to get with a team — he has NFL size and they say he's recovered from his injury.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN
CB Vince Agnew — Dolphins
LB Nick Bellore — Jets
OL Jeff Maddux — Lions
P Brett Hartmann — Texans
C Colin Miller — Steelers
LB Matt Berning — Jets
DT Sean Murnane — Bears

The Chips production of NFL talent continues here. Bellore was a no-doubter who may find it hard to crack the linebacker depth chart in New York. Brett "The Puntman" Hartmann has a decent leg who can routinely get a 40-yard punt every time. Agnew was a third team All-MAC cornerback. Jeff Maddux was second team, playing mostly left guard. Miller was second team as well. And Murnane was a third team All-MAC defensive lineman.

EASTERN MICHIGAN
None yet.

KENT STATE
S Brian Lainhart — Bengals
CB Kirk Belgrave — Falcons
LB Monte Simmons — 49ers
LB Cobrani Mixon — Lions

I'm really curious how many schools overall had four senior defensive players sign as UDFAs.

MIAMI
WR Armand Robinson — Steelers

One of the standouts of the MAC Championship game got his payday with Pittsburgh, who appareantly loves their MAC offensive players.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS
RB Chad Spann — Colts
WR Landon Cox - Bengals
CB Chris Smith - Rams

Spann was a no-doubter, simply a matter of where-is-he-going. Cox didn't get much recognition as one of Harnish's primary targets but he did snag a third team All-MAC. Smith, a first team All-MAC cornerback, was the lone UFL pick from the MAC, therefore so much for that dream. And it doesn't look like Jake Coffman even pursued the NFL otherwise he'd be on this list.

OHIO
DL Stafford Gatling — Jets
CB Julian Posey — Jets
WR Terrence McCrae — Steelers
WR Steven Goulet — Raiders

Posey has some talent, but can he make the 53-man in New York? I'm not sure. McCrae is yet another MAC receiver in Pittsburgh, joining Robinson and CMU's Antonio Brown. Gatling and Goulet were total shocks to me. But you know the Raiders and their mercurial wideout chocies. Still, congratulations to them and their chance at becoming a pro.

TOLEDO
C Kevin Kowalski — Cowboys

I read that he might stay home and play with Cincinnati, but instead Kowalski will join former teammate Barry Church down in Dallas. He just might have a chance as Dallas continutes to slough off veterans. Still expecting linebacker Archie Donald, if nobody else, to find a team.

TEMPLE
LB Amara Kamara — Chiefs
LB Elijah Joseph — Packers
NT Elisha Joseph — Packers
OL Colin Madison — Ravens
OL Darius Morris — Ravens
QB/TE Vaughn Charlton — Steelers
WR Michael Campbell — Jets
DB Marquise Liverpool — Lions

The motherlode! Seven total signees to go with their two draftees. So, so much to digest here. First: the Joseph twins remain together in Green Bay. A pair of linemen in Baltimore. Vaughn Charlton counts as both a quarterback and receiver for MAC obsession purposes; nice hybrid pickup! Amara Kamara rhymes, and that's why the Chiefs took him. And if all his teammates are doing it, Campbell deserves a chance too.

WESTERN MICHIGAN
WR Juan Nunez — Browns

This could be another steal for Cleveland who's tapped into the MAC well before with Josh Cribbs. Nunez probably won't be that type of player but the opportunity is there in Cleveland to be a presence in the offense and, if nothing else, another person for kickoffs.

Are we missing any players? No doubt we are. Pipe up!

2010 MAC Football Postseason Awards Cheatsheet

Matt Sussman — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:34:22 -0000

Well, here I was, about to hand out some hand-made awards, but the MAC was rapid-fire on their full list, so I'll defer to that one. Nothing left to do but to count up the Hustle Belt belts.

Oh, wait! But we could make the All-MAC lists a little prettier. One rolling scrolling webpage isn't all that sexy. But tables are. As an added flair, we're going to give three, two, and one points each for every first team, second team, and third team selection. Just to see what happens. Points are redeemable at any local grocery store. Just tell them I said so.

Non-table items: Chad Spann (called it preseason!) predictably took home MAC Offensive Player of the Year and the Vern Smith Leadership Award. Michael Haywood is your Coach of the Year for flipping Miami from a very binary 1-11 to East champions. Roosevelt Nix becomes the first person to sweep Freshman of the Year and Defensive POY. And Eric Page is the Special Teams Awesome Dude Of All Time.

Other notes: Davonte Shannon is the fourth MACster in history to be named to four first teams. Temple had eight first-teamers, which is more than NIU and Miami (seven) combined. Eastern Michigan had zero players named, although they beat a team who had three first-teamers.

To the tablemobile!

School	First Team (3 pts/selection)	Second Team (2 pts/selection)	Third Team (1 pt/selection)	Total Points
Northern Illinois	QB Chandler Harnish C Scott Wedige OL Trevor Olson RB Chad Spann DL Sean Progar DB Chris Smith	OL Joe Pawlak DL Jake Coffman	TE Jason Schepler WR Landon Cox LB Alex Kube LB Devon Butler KR Tommy Davis	27
Miami	K Trevor Cook	QB Zac Dysert OL Brandon Brooks WR Armand Robinson WR Nick Harwell DL Austin Brown	OL Bob Gulley P Zach Murphy	15
Toledo	WR Eric Page KR Eric Page	RB: Adonis Thomas LB: Archie Donald	OL: Mike VanDerMeulen LB: Dan Molls DL T.J. Fatinikun	13
OHIO	OL: Joe Flading	OL A.J. Strum TE Jordan Thompson DL Stafford Gatling DB Steven Jackson DB Donovan Fletcher	WR Terrence McCrae	14
Temple	OL Colin Madison OL Darius Morris TE Evan Rodriguez RB Bernard Pierce LB Adrian Robinson DL Muhammad Wilkerson DL Elisha Joseph DB Jaiquawn Jarrett	RB Matt Brown LB Peanut Joseph	WR Michael Campbell	27
Western Michigan	WR Juan Nunez WR Jordan White	None	QB: Alex Carder K John Potter DL Paul Hazel DB Jamail Berry	10
Kent State	LB Cobrani Mixon DL Roosevelt Nix P Matt Rinehart	WR Tyshon Goode DB Brian Lainhart	C Chris Anzevino WR Sam Kirkland OL Brian Winters LB Dorian Wood	17
Ball State	None	K Ian McGarvey LB Robert Eddins DB Sean Baker KR Eric Williams	OL Michael Switzer RB Eric Williams DB Jason Pinkston	11
Central Michigan	LB Matt Berning LB Nick Bellore	C Colin Miller OL Jeff Maddux WR Cody Wilson	DL Sean Murnane DB Jahleel Addae DB Vince Agnew PR Cody Wilson	16
Eastern Michigan	None	None	None	0
Buffalo	DB Davonte Shannon DB Domonic Cook PR Terrell Jackson	None	None	9
Bowling Green	WR Kamar Jorden	LB Dwayne Woods P Bryan Wright PR Eugene Cooper	RB Willie Geter DL Chris Jones	11
Akron	None	DL Shawn Lemon	None	2

Know thy Opponent 2010: Ball State Cardinals

BoilerTMill — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 18:19:59 -0000

Holy crap what a morning! Here I thought I had wasted my day with that U.S. match, but they totally redeemed themselves in about the most dramatic fashion possible. I am still jittery hours later. Fortunately, I had the Ball State preview to focus on.

It was week three last season that everything began to fall apart. We had a convincing win over Toledo in the opener, followed by the tough loss out at Oregon. Things were looking pretty good with a mediocre MAC team coming to town. That is when the bottom dropped out. The team can make all kinds of excuses about being tired from the west coast trip and what night, but I know 18-22 year-olds don't need a week to recover from a cross country flight. We looked disinterested at best and inept at worst as Northern Illinois pantsed us in our own home.

That game was really the low point last year. If you play it nine more times I would bet Purdue wins eight of them, but we were never really in sync at all. This year, we get another MAC opponent in week three as Ball State comes to town. The Cardinals are a regular on the schedule every four or five years. If Purdue can manage a win in the opener it will give us an edge in the Indiana state championship for Division 1A

2009 Record: 2-10 (2-6 MAC West)

Bowl Result: None

Blog Representation: Over the Pylon

Series with Purdue: Purdue leads 7-0

Last Purdue win: 38-28 at Purdue on 9/16/2006

Last season for the Cardinals

Ball State fans have been on quite a roller coaster of late. In 2008 the Cardinals won their first game ever over a BCS conference team when they won at Indiana. The Cards started that year 12-0 to reach the MAC Championship game and the highest ranking in school history at #12. That is when things went south. Buffalo upset Ball State in the MAC title game 42-24. The Cardinals then lost the GMAC Bowl to Tulsa 45-13 before starting last season 0-7. it was enough to make David Letterman even not claim them.

In that 0-7 start the Cardinals showed how much they missed star quarterback Nate Davis, who left for the NFL early. Losses to North Texas (who finished 2-10) and 1-AA New Hampshire at home did not help matters. Only a 29-27 win over Eastern Michigan (who was 0-12) and a season ending 22-17 win at Western Michigan prevented the year from being a total disaster. Both of those victories came away from Muncie, so they finished without a home win for the first time since going 0-11 in 1999.

As for their history with Purdue, it is not great. The closest game of the series came in their last visit to West Lafayette. As mentioned, their only win ever over a BCS conference team came over Indiana, which barely counts. In 2007 they put a hefty scare into Nebraska in Lincoln before losing 41-40. Also, in 2006 they lost a tight 34-26 game at then undefeated Michigan. In addition to the 10 point win in 2006 Purdue has wins by margins of 52, 14, 22, 28, 17, and 19. They should be 2-0 coming into the game against us as they host Southeast Missouri State and Liberty, both 1-AA schools, before coming to Purdue.

Ball State offense

This should be the second straight week that Albert Evans, Michael Eargle, Chris Quinn, and company in our secondary has a fairly easy week. In 2008 Nate Davis passed for almost 3,600 yards in Muncie. The production in the passing game dropped off dramatically with his departure as well as coach Brady Hoke's defection. Kelly Page had a rough freshman campaign under center, throwing for only 1,019 yards and seven touchdowns against nine interceptions. Tanner Justice also saw time at quarterback in what was his senior season, but he only threw for 594 and two score against five picks. Page started the first seven games of last year before breaking his thumb against Bowling Green and missing the rest of the season.

The lack of a top receiver was one reason that Ball State struggled. A porous offensive line that gave up 29 sacks was another. Junior Briggs Orsbon had a decent year with 51 catches for 461 yards and a score, but those totals were tops on the team. Torieal Gibson was the #2 target with 25 cactches for 337 yards and three scores, but those aren't good numbers. Ball State will likely benefit from getting Page another year in the system. Since most of his team returns, they should be better.

One very nice piece to work with is senior running back MiQuale Lewis. Lewis had a bit of a down year last year with just 871 yards rushing and five scores. He also had 28 catches for 151 more yards. This was after a monster 2008 season where he ran for over 1,700 yards and 22 touchdowns. He was granted an additional season in 2010 because of a knee injury suffered at Nebraska in 2007. He might regret having not declared for the draft after that huge 2008 year, so he comes into his final season with something to prove. Though only 5'6", Lewis is a powerful 201 pounds with good speed. He is a big play threat that can also give you 25-30 carries per game. The Cardinals will look to establish him early.

Ball State's offensive line is one that struggled to keep the ground game moving last season. As mentioned, they gave up 29 sacks while Cory Sykes (559 yards, 3 touchdowns) and Lewis were the only consistent offense. There are some decent pieces to hope for a turnaround though. 6'8" 297 pound tackle Travis Arnold returns for his final season with five starts under his belt. Arnold was a high school teammate of Lewis, giving them a small advantage together. Cameron Lowry also had 12 starts at tackle last year, giving the Cardinals experienced player on both ends. Kreg Hunter started all 12 games at center last year to give even more consistency. Dan Manick and Michael Switzer each have starting experience at the guard spots. Switzer has made 39 consecutive starts since he was a true freshman. This should provide an interesting challenge for Ryan Kerrigan, Gerald Gooden, Kawaan Short, and the rest of our line.

Ball State defense

While the offensive numbers were bad, the defensive numbers were even worse. Ball State gave up more than 28 points per game last year and more than 150 yards per game rushing. Al-Terek McBurse, Dan Dierking, Keith Carlos, and maybe Ralph Bolden should have plenty of running room. The pass defense did even worse with only 10 interceptions and 26 touchdowns given up through the air.

Junior safety Sean Baker was one of Ball State's best defensive players with four of those interceptions, a fumble recovery, and 61 tackles. He is joined in the secondary by sophomore cornerback Jason Pinkston, who had three interceptions and 25 tackles. Charlie Todd is another experienced cornerback that had 8 tackles and an interceptions last year.

Senior linebacker Davyd Jones, a high school teammate of Kerrigan, returns after a 100 tackle season to be the best Cardinal linebacker. He is joined by Travis Freeman (93 tackles, 1 interception) at middle linebacker. These are two quality players with loads of experience that can make Ball State a lot better in a hurry.

Getting to the quarterback was a difficult proposition for everyone last year except Robert Eddins. He comes into his final season with seven sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss as Ball State's best pass rusher. Unfortunately, he is their only proven threat at getting to the quarterback.

Ball State special teams

If the Cardinals can get into the scoring position hey will put points on the board thanks to senior kicker Ian McGarvey. McGarvey was 18 of 21 on field goals last year and has range from 50 yards. For his career he is a solid 41 of 51. Scott Kovanda had plenty of practice punting last year with an amazing 57 kicks for a 40 yard average. He was one of the best in the nation at limiting yardage as Ball State only gave up 3.8 yards per punt return and he down 15 punts inside the 20.

Todd represents a danger as a punt returner. He averaged better than 11 yards per return in 2009 and even had an 87 yard score on a punt. Running back Eric Williams handled kickoffs returns with a respectable 23 yard average and he will be back to see some action in 2010.

Intangibles

When I look at Ball State I see a team that struggled to replace some big names like Davis and Dante Love, but they return a lot of experience. That could pay huge dividends in MAC play. They get a pair of games to get warmed up before coming to Purdue, so we had better be on our guard lest we get bitten again. Lewis is the type of player that can dominate a game if you let him. Ball State's offense was explosive just two years ago, but that was with a different quarterback and head coach. There are some nice pieces on both sides of the ball that could make this game interesting.

My colleagues over at Black Heart Gold Pants have done an excellent preview, as they face Ball State later on. As they point out, 17 starters return, including 10 of 11 on offense. That is just enough to make this team a little feisty. The defensive preview shows that there are some players to watch out for like Eddins and Baker, but we're still an improving Big Ten team. This has to be a win.

Game Outlook

This one may turn out a lot like our 2006 game. Ball State hung around in that one, but mistakes (such as a pair of turnovers in the red zone) cost them. The thing everyone remembers most in that game is Dustin Keller trucking about 493 players in the Cardinal defense:

Dustin Keller trucking Ball State defenders

As I said above, this has to be a win. A loss means we're looking at a long Big Ten season because we should be better than Ball State at all times. This is a program that has rarely played us close and was often a whipping boy even for a Colletto coached team.

Prediction:

Ball State hangs around for about a half, but Purdue begins to pull away in the third quarter because of depth and talent. Our quarterbacks also love to go apeshit against them (see Kyle Orton in 2004) so Robert Marve could have a huge day. Purdue 41, Ball State 17