Blog may be quiet during ‘big’ weekend

 

There are so many quality match-ups this weekend in CFB with lots of 2011 draft prospects to watch. The blog is going to be quiet although I have a legitimate excuse. I’m getting married on Saturday, so I’m saving up the games to watch over the next seven days. Here are some of the key games I’ll be watching and what I’ll be looking out for. Expect analysis from Monday.

Florida State vs Oklahoma
Christian Ponder looked excellent… against Samford. Can he do it against a far superior defense on the road? He’ll have to carry the team on offense and put points on the board. If he can perform and lead his team to a win, you’re going to here a lot about Ponder. You’ll see him in the top five of mock drafts. The hype will go into overdrive. Watch FSU’s top offensive lineman Rodney Hudson (LG, Florida State) as he is by far the best in CFB and a perfect fit for zone blocking teams.

Penn State vs Alabama
Still no Mark Ingram or Marcell Dareus for Alabama, so keep an eye on Julio Jones. He made one of the best TD catches you’ll see this year last week and he’s got the physical set up to become a top NFL wide out.  Last year he suffered something of a sophomore slump – struggling with concentration and drops. With so much potential, it was disappointing to watch such sloppy play from a potential top-15 pick. He’s likely to declare for the 2011 draft as a junior, so let’s see if he’s focused on becoming a top pick.

Stanford vs UCLA
For me this is a double opportunity. Firstly, we get to see Andrew Luck without Toby Gerhart against good opposition on the road. Can he lead Stanford and put up the big numbers? If he does so consistently this year, it increases the likelihood he will declare for next April’s draft. On the other side, Akeem Ayers will be rushing at Luck and roaming around in coverage. He l0oks like a logical fit for the LEO position now used by Seattle and might be as good as any player that fits that role in CFB. Watch both prospects.

Ohio State vs Miami
If Terrelle Pryor wants to be talked about amongst the other big name QB’s, he has to win a game like this. He also needs to show poise in the pocket, an ability to control possession and be a leader. These are all things that have stopped Pryor and Ohio State becoming a more dominant machine. He showed up at the Rose Bowl. It was an OK start last week, let’s see if he can get another big victory.

5 Comments

  1. Patrick

    Congrats Rob!!

  2. Kelly

    Although they faced Iowa State, Adrian Clayborn looks like a beast on ESPN 2. There was one play when the opposite DE got a sack but Clayborn pressured from the other side pushing his blocker straight on top of the QB. He looked imposing!

    I know his character is some concerns, but I gotta think a DE is a huge need for this team. I was partly shocked that we didn’t take Derrick Morgan with the second pick this year.

    This may seem a bit like a “DUH” statement, but I really think our draft position will landscape who will go after. If we are close enough to the top, we may grab one of the top 2 QB’s, if we can’t…maybe we switch positons and grab a DE.

    Whatcha think?

    • Rob

      I think that’s a fair suggestion to make at this early stage. I think until the Seahawks get a definitive long term answer at QB (in terms of investment anyway) that has to be the teams priority. If they cant get at the top QB’s, then DE is a very real possibility if the right prospect is available.

  3. Jay

    Gratz Rob!

  4. Michael Kelly

    Congratulations man. Take any time you need. Your wife will be with you long after we are gone (probably.)

    Mike Kelly

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