SB Nation - Ben Troupe

Alligator Army All-Decade Team: Tight End

mlmintampa — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:00:38 -0000

This position became a feature of the Gators offense this decade. Between the athleticism of Ben Troupe, the potential of Cornelius Ingram and the hands of Aaron Hernandez, Florida always had very good players at tight end.

Ben Troupe (2000-2003): 2003 Second Team AP All-American. 2003 First Team AP, Coaches All-SEC. Beloved for his ability to hurdle tacklers. 64 catches, 958 yards, 7 touchdowns.

Cornelius Ingram (2005-2007): 2007 Second Team AP, Coaches All-SEC. Played only two seasons as tight end after moving from quarterback to start the 2006 season. 64 catches, 888 yards (896 total yards), 8 touchdowns.

Aaron Hernandez (2007-2009): 2009 First Team AP All-American. 2009 First Team AP, Coaches All-SEC. 2009 Mackey Award for best tight end; the first Gator to win the award. 102 catches, 1271 yards (1286 total yards), 11 touchdowns.

The Worst Ten Tennessee Titans Draft Picks of the Decade

Jimmy — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:15:08 -0000

More photos » by John Russell - AP

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With the decade coming to an end in a few weeks, we here at MCM decided it would be a good time to do a top 10 list or two- because who doesn't love a top 10 list?

Today we have the worst 10 draft picks of the decade. Here is how this list was compiled- August, gramsey, hal and I all came up with our own list. They sent their lists to me, actually shared it with me via google docs (which are awesome), and I averaged the four lists together to come up with what I am posting here. After the jump I have added a link that lists all of the picks the Titans made in the decade.

One note on this list; if you need further evidence that the Titans are terrible at picking receivers, here it is- they drafted 15 receivers in the decade. 15! What makes it even worse is that only three of them are still on the active roster. (and gramsey notes that only two of the other 12 are still in the league)

So without further adieu I present the worst 10 draft picks of the decade as voted on by the esteemed panel:

1. Chris Henry, RB, Arizona (2007, Round 2, pick #50 overall)

The Chris Henry pick is pretty much the only one on the list that just never made sense. The Titans fell in love with hal's boy because of the numbers he put up at the combine. They apparently failed to check and see if he was actually any good in college. He was widely known as Cockroach because he ran to darkness. That isn't a good thing, in case you didn't know.

2. Andre Woolfolk, CB, Oklahoma (2003, Round 1, pick #28 overall)

If there were to be another guy on the list that never made sense it would be Woolfolk. Here is an interesting tidbit about Woolfolk that I did not know- all three of his career INTs were thrown by David Carr. If you ever wondered how bad Carr was..

3. Adam Pacman Jones, CB, West Virginia (2005, Round 1, pick #6 overall)

As Danno said yesterday, it has been far too long since we talked about Ol' Pacman. The pick of Adam made football sense but not common sense. He was a dynamic returner and a good cornerback when he played his assignment instead of what he wanted to do, which was about 32% of the time (get it?), but he there isn't really an adjective that adequately describes what he was off the field.

4. Paul Williams, WR, Fresno State (2007, Round 3, pick #80 overall)

P-Dub couldn't decide in college if he was a corner or a receiver. Maybe he should have picked corner.

5. Tyrone Calico, WR, MTSU (2003, Round 2, pick #60 overall)

August loves Calico. Calico had a lot of raw talent, but he had trouble staying healthy. He also had some trouble catching the football which is a problem for a receiver. Too bad for him that he didn't get drafted by another team because he would have gotten a lot of money from the Titans in free agency eventually.

6. Ben Troupe, TE, Florida (2004, Round 2, pick #40 overall)

Troupe had more NFL success than any of the other guys on this list. The problem was he could never put it all together. He had loads of potential but was hampered by injuries, the inability to learn the offense (allegedly), and the inability to catch the football at times.

7. Courtney Roby, WR, Indiana (2005, Round 3, pick #68 overall)

Roby was really good in the preseason pretty much every year.

8. Tank Williams, S, Stanford (2002 Round 2, pick #45 overall)

And now Danno hate us. Tank started his career playing pretty well but suffered an ugly ACL injury and was never the same.

T-9. Byron Frisch, DE, BYU (2000, Round 3, pick #93 overall)

This is a name that none of us even remembered. He actually never played a game with the Titans and was cut after the 2000 season. He ended his career with 5 sacks after playing one season with the Cowboys and one with the Giants.

T-9.Shad Meier, TE, Kansas State (2001, Round 3, pick #90 overall)

Shad Meier had my favorite stat line ever in a game at San Diego in 2004- 9 catches for 31 yards. That's 3.4 yards per catch. He finished his career with 42 catches. I need more than that from a third round pick.

Others receiving votes: Chris Brown (2003, round 3, #93), Brandon Jones (2005, round 3, #96) and Donnie Nickey (2003, round 5, #154).

$1,000,000 MCM bucks to the first person to identify who put Nickey on the list.

Click here to see the complete list of draft picks.

And there you have it. We would love to hear your comments on our list, or even your own list in the comments.

NFL Draft 2009 Review: WR Percy Harvin

Skeller — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Gonzalez - AP

Minnesota Vikings' first-round draft pick Percy Harvin speaks to the media on Sunday, April 26, 2009, at a news conference in Eden Prairie, Minn. (AP Photo/Star Tribune, Carlos Gonzalez)

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So what do these NFL players all have in common?

- WR Chad Jackson
- WR Taylor Jacobs
- WR Andre Caldwell
- RB Ciatrick Fason
- TE Ben Troupe
- QB Rex Grossman
- WR Jabar Gaffney
- K Jeff Chandler
- WR Reche Caldwell
- QB Jesse Palmer

If you answered "They're all guys I'm never drafting on my fantasy team" you're actually close. They are all (not some, all) the fantasy position players drafted in the first four rounds out of the University of Florida since 2000. And also you're never drafting them on your fantasy team.

It's not a smart fantasy move to discount every player out of a certain school just because of past history, but everybody who follows college football realizes that some programs are hyped and some are not. Florida is one of those schools that are hyped a lot. While their college success may justify the hype, the NFL production of their alumni does not. Percy Harvin went from "a mid-level RB" to "Not good enough to play RB in the NFL so he'll play WR" to "Percy Harvin will be very good NFL WR" to "Percy Harvin is the ultimate weapon!" to first-round NFL draft pick over the course of four months. I'm not sure how that happened. You should think about how that happened before you draft him too.

Harvin is small and fast and has great hands in a Maurice Jones-Drew / Brian Westbrook sort of way. The problem is that the Vikings aren't going to give Harvin the number of carries that Jones-Drew and Westbrook get (the Vikes have a pretty good RB already) so that reduces Harvin's fantasy value quite a bit.

He's too small to catch the ball over the middle. He may be the deep receiver the Vikings have lacked, but he only had two games with 4+ catches last year at Florida. I don't see exactly how Minnesota is going to integrate him into the offense. Have him return kicks? Run eight reverses every game? How many times can they direct-snap to him?

I'm not criticizing Harvin's ability, he seems to be quite the athlete. With the QB situation in Minnesota being iffy, the WR1 slot being iffy and the offense revolving around Adrian Peterson, I simply don't see how he provides enough fantasy value for your team. He's worth a shot, but don't count on him as anything more than a risky flier.

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: The Kindred Spirits Of BJ Raji And Kurt Vonnegut Edition

August West — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 13:38:56 -0000

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Did you fail a drug test? Apparently neither did BJ Raji. (AP Photo/Boston College)

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Make sure you subscribe to the Pigskin Pundits Youtube channel to catch the MCM Podcasts without having to download the podcast (which will be posted in a matter of minutes). This link leads to the first segment of this week's podcast: an interview with Titans beat writer Terry McCormick!

Speaking of which, make sure you check-out this story from Terry on a few of the WRs the Titans have worked out recently: Kenny Britt, Percy Harvin, Darrius Heyward-Bey and Hakeem Nicks.

Add BJ Raji to the growing list of players wh appear to have been falsely accused of failing a drug test, this time by SI.com. When will someone step in and regulate these uncontrollable websites with their reckless reporting lack of editorial oversight. It wouldn't surprise me if the guys who run this site are a bunch of amateurs working from their mom's basement... oh wait. If that happened to me I'd return my complimentary football phone in a heartbeat with a note saying "The horse just jumped the effing fence, again."

Part of me feels bad for the fact that Justin McCareins and Reynaldo Hill are still unemployed because that's a crushing turn of events for any self-respecting person, but then I think about them in Titans blue again and I'm fine with it. I mean they both seem like great guys, but no... Just no.

Jim Wyatt has cracked the Titans draft code, and it looks like we should expect a defensive player to be taken wit the first pick in the draft this year:

• 2008, offense: running back Chris Johnson

• 2007, defense: safety Michael Griffin

• 2006, offense: quarterback Vince Young

• 2005, defense: cornerback Pacman Jones

• 2004, offense : tight end Ben Troupe

• 2003, defense: cornerback Andre Woolfolk

Peter King pulls a heck of a quote out of Mike Mayock, and it makes me feel better about our draft spot:

1. "This is by far the worst year for the top 10 that I've seen. Down around 18, 20, you'll get every bit the player you'll get in the top 10 for a third of the price.''

Every time you email me a link the football gods smile upon you, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com! (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Contract Years All Around Edition

August West — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:45:53 -0000

It's easy to focus on a few of the big decisions that were made regarding free agency this year, but next year will be the year when things get crazy unless some of these contracts get reworked this off-season:

The defense is where the Titans will have the toughest decisions to make, as those up for free agency include linebackers Keith Bulluck and Stephen Tulloch, defensive ends Kyle Vanden Bosch, Jevon Kearse and Dave Ball, defensive tackle Tony Brown and cornerback Nick Harper.

On offense, those at the end of their deals include center Kevin Mawae, guard Eugene Amano, tight ends Alge Crumpler, Scaife and second-team running back LenDale White. Long snapper Ken Amato can also be a free agent after ’09.

For those counting, that is six of the current 11 defensive starters, plus one of the top backups in the defensive line rotation.

And if Vince doesn't reclaim his starting job, you can add him into the mix as well...

Coincidentally, Jim Wyatt has a good read on Vince Young's dedication to doing whatever it takes to get his starting job back:

In fact, [Vince's agent] Major Adams said when the Titans re-signed Kerry Collins — essentially committing to him as the starting quarterback this fall — it only made Young that much hungrier to win back his old job.

"That decision has no bearing on Vince's thinking,'' Adams said Wednesday. "He is just trying to get himself together, not worrying about what they are doing with Kerry. That doesn't matter to him.

"Vince is not upset. He is not asking for a trade or anything. He loves the organization, loves (Titans owner) Bud Adams, and he wants to be in Tennessee. But he still wants to play, and is approaching this offseason like he's going to.''

The Sporting News has a full-spread interview with Albert Haynesworth where he says his main focus is to grow his family name into 'something great like the Rockefellers'. Very noble Albert.

Chris Carr is visiting with the Patriots as former Jets CB/Return man Justin Miller comes to Nashville for an audition.

Here's a pretty thorough NFL Draft value chart that breaks prospects down by round.

Former Titans disappointment Ben Troupe is working-out with the Giants.

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Raise A Hand If Your Team Is More Likable Than The Pats Edition

August West — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:21:53 -0000

Wow. Last year I thought Mercury Morris was being a real jerk about the Pats because he didn't want anyone else to be perfect. Turns out, he just didn't like the Pats being anointed in week 5. As such, he likes our Titans because they're earning it every week, and they're playing old fashioned football.

Music City Miracles now has some stiff competition in the blog game, and it's from studly middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch! Make sure you check out the man's blog, because it really is a good look into the life of a burgeoning Pro Bowler.

Congratulations to David Thornton for winning this year's Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award for the Titans. The son of a preacher, Thronton's community service and charity work also brought him the honor with the Colts in 2003.

On the injury front, Eric King may be back before the end of the year after re-fracturing the same arm that landed him on the IR last year, while Boom King, Harper, McCareins, and Jason Jones will all have a shot at playing Sunday against the Jets.

Next time someone cracks on the Titans' offense, you tell them this:

Among AFC teams, only the Jets, Chargers (254) and Broncos (248) have scored more points than the Titans, who have rolled up 244 points.

And I will remind you that our defense is still only giving up a stifling 13.1 points per game.

This week's Yahoo! Team Report touches on the defensive reserves who have come from no where to cover for what could have been costly injuries.

DJ Gallo jokingly summed up everything I assume media folks are saying a little louder every week that we keep winning:

The Tennessee Titans are now 10-0. They are clearly a legitimate Super Bowl contender, yet they hail from a non-major media market. How annoying. How rude.

Kissing Suzy Kolber picks-up the torch of the recently ended Fire Joe Morgan ot roasts Peter King's latest column, and the results couldn't have gone better:

PK) Tennessee has to sign Kerry Collins to a fair-market deal, even if it means Vince Young has to sit behind him for two more years … or if it means the Titans lose Bud Adams’ favorite boy toy.
KSK) Never thought Bud Adams and Kevin Spacey had so much in common, did you?

A former 2nd round pick of the Titans in 2004, Ben Troupe just got cut by the Oakland Raiders after agreeing to an injury settlement. That's not exactly a career builder.

Our condolences go out to the family, friends and fans of former Oiler defensive tackle Orville Trask, who passed away last week at age 73. Trask was an Original Oiler, the franchise's first captain and a corner stone of 2 AFL championship teams while rocking the blue and white.

There's a whole lot of internet out there, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links, email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com! (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Chopped Off At The Knees? It's Merely A Flesh Wound Edition

August West — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 13:44:43 -0000

Albert Haynesworth, he of the offseason GM, puts his coach cap on this time and comes up with this solution to the Titans QB situation:

"I would run a two-quarterback system with Vince and Kerry,'' defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth said. "You look at some of the college teams that have done it and they've done all right. …

"Vince still is young, he is (25). And we have Kerry, who has seen a lot of stuff and he can get the ball in there. You get down to crunch time where you need to throw the ball you put Kerry in. Utilize both of them. You have money in both, why not use them both

Big Albert is in a trash talking mood when it comes to the Texans, but Sage Rosenfels says that the Texans offensive line is "excited to protect Matt (Schaub)". Yeah, good luck keeping whomever is back there upright after Albert and the Boom King get hot about being hit at the knees a few times.

Paul Kuharsky says Ahman Green may not be ready Sunday, but Big Albert is ready for those cut blocks that are the hallmark of an Alex Gibbs offensive line:

This will be just the second game for the Texans' cut-block heavy run scheme, which could prove cause for fireworks.

Asked about the concept in the preseason, Albert Haynesworth was wary.

"They always talk about us being dirty, maybe they need to look at that, trying to hurt people and stuff, he said. "If they aren't man enough to stay up, shoot, they shouldn't be in the league then. The coach either."

I love how just once or twice a year Fisher seems to let a few guys talk trash, but only against teams in the division.

Keith Bulluck, who hasn't seen much special teams action as a Titan, won AFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his blocked punt and touchdown recovery last Sunday.

Kerry Collins hasn't talked to Vince Young very much since taking over his spot... I'm trying to convince myself that isn't as weird as it seems.

Ben Troupe was cut by the Buccaneers on Tuesday... how does so much talent and potential go to waste like that? Oh yeah, by consistently running the wrong routes and not being a good blocker.

Our VY link of the day is a feature story by Sports Illustrated's Jim Trotter. It's a very good read about whether Vince can handle the criticism that comes with the job of NFL quarterback. And while it's generally full of the advice we've heard over and over again, it starts out with a bit I'd never heard before:

SEVERAL DAYS before the Titans' playoff opener against the Chargers last January, quarterback Vince Young sat in front of his dressing stall and calmly spoke about San Diego's marvelous offensive talent, most notably running back LaDainian Tomlinson, tight end Antonio Gates and wide receiver Chris Chambers. When asked what he could do with those players in his huddle, Young shook his head.

"I can't even elaborate on something like that," he said. "I hope guys like you can put that out for me. All I get is criticism, criticism, criticism. I can't even watch SportsCenter. I can't even watch NFL Network to check on all the people I'm cool with around the league. I can't go there without hearing some crap all the time: Vince Young did this wrong, Vince Young did that wrong."

If that was Young's frame of mind as he was leading his team into the playoffs, it's easy to understand his erratic, if not bizarre behavior after being booed at home two Sundays ago in a season-opening win over Jacksonville.

Who is the All-Decade tight end?
	Ben Troupe
	Cornelius Ingram
	Aaron Hernandez

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