AMERICAS_FAN
01-31-2005, 02:00 PM
By MICKEY SPAGNOLA
DallasCowboys.com Columnist
Jan. 29, 2004, 11:55 p.m. (CST)
MOBILE, Ala. - While the Senior Bowl is a game for college all-stars here in this southern Alabama city, there certainly was a little Cowboys' flavor to the festivities over the weekend.
Cowboys offensive guard Larry Allen, who by the way will be on his was to his ninth Pro Bowl appearance next week in Hawaii, was one of three men inducted into the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame. Also inducted over the weekend were former NFL and college coach head Ray Perkins and former Tennessee Titans kicker Al Del Greco.
Allen, Perkins and Del Greco were inducted as the Class of 2005 during a ceremony Friday night here, and all three were introduced to the crowd at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on Saturday before the North and South all-star squads clashed in the 56th annual Senior Bowl.
Allen, heading into his 12th season with the Cowboys, played in the all-star game in 1994 after finishing his college career at Sonoma State. The Cowboys drafted him that year in the second round.
This now gives the Cowboys six members in the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame. Allen joins former Alabama linebacker Lee Roy Jordan, former Tennessee State defensive end Ed "Too Tall" Jones, former Florida A&M wide receiver Bob Hayes, former West Virginia linebacker Chuck Howley and former head coach Tom Landry in the 84-member fraternity.
Jones and Jordan in 1999 also were named to the Senior Bowl's 50th Anniversary team.
Woo-Pig
Let's put it this way about Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones, who spent the week here playing wide receiver, a position he hasn't played full-time since a junior in high school:
Not only was he unfamiliar with this position, since he spent four years playing quarterback at Arkansas, but he was competing against all-star defensive backs, and all he did was catch two passes for 13 yards in the Senior Bowl - the second a five-yard touchdown pass to bring the losing South squad to within 23-13 with 1:05 top play. While he caught four passes during his Razorback days, he hadn't caught a touchdown pass since his junior year in high school.
Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden, the South head coach, compares the 6-6 Jones to his own wide receiver, Joe Jurevicius. And most scouts here were impressed with his speed for a big guy, routinely running past these top defensive backs.
"He has a chance to make a great conversion," Gruden said. "This is one interesting guy. Whether he'll be a quarterback, tight end or wide receiver, this is one interesting guy."
Jones seemed to have a feel for running routes, making a nice eight-yard catch on a slant. He did have problems getting off jams, but then the defensive backs weren't supposed to be jammin'.
Cadi In Shop
The buzz all afternoon was: Something must have happened to Auburn running back Cadillac Williams, who was conspicuous by his sideline stance for the entire game.
Evidently his chassis was out of whack, Williams saying he had a sore back, and Gruden saying the Senior Bowl doctors advised his coaching staff not to play the future first-round draft choice.
"If it was a regular-season game, Cadillac would have played," Gruden said.
Wonder how far away Williams' agent was?
Bow-Wow Or Meow?
You hear these stories all the time about the questions teams pose college players before the draft, but you know what, the one about whether you would want to be a dog or a cat always seemed to be one of those urban myths.
Not so.
Ole Miss guard Marcus Johnson was asked what was the silliest question he had to answer during the week while meeting with members of various NFL teams. And yep, he said the New York Giants asked him if he would rather be "a dog or a cat."
And the answer?
"It wasn't cat," Johnson said.
Oh Those 'Tweeners
The week of Senior Bowl practices, along with the game, always seem to produce experiments with these under-sized college defensive ends, the NFL coaches and scouts wanting to see them play linebacker, too.
And two of these 'tweeners the Cowboys certainly might be interested in if they indeed are considering playing a 3-4 are Cincinnati's Trent Cole and Troy State's Demarcus Ware. Now Ware, playing more of his familiar defensive end position in the game, tied for the South team lead with 3? tackles.
But this Cole guy had to turn some heads. A nearly unstoppable end at Cincinnati, he played a stand-up linebacker spot on the strong side of the North's 4-3 defense. And he, too, tied for his team's lead with six tackles. Runs extremely well, has a nose for the ball and saw him put two potential blockers down field on their back sides while chasing the ball.
Familiar Faces
Since the Oakland Raiders staff was handling the coaching duties for the North squad, there were a couple of familiar faces on the sideline.
Former Cowboys special teams coach Joe Avezzano and former offensive coordinator Norv Turner spent the week here working out the North squad. Avezzano spent 13 years with the Cowboys before moving on to handle the Dallas Desperados of the Arena Football League. Coach Joe was named special teams coach in Oakland last year by Turner, who served as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator from 1991-93 before becoming the Washington Redskins head coach in 1994.
Senior Shots
USC versatile defensive lineman Shaun Cody, a potential end in a 3-4 defense, played defensive tackle in this game . . . . How good must LSU's defense been? The Tigers had two corners playing in this game, Corey Webster and Travis Daniels . . . . Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell sure is smooth for a 6-4, 221-pound guy. Said Gruden, "He has a great arm. Can throw the ball from awkward body positions. Good presence." Campbell completed nine of 13 passes for 116 yards, earning the South's offensive MVP award.
DallasCowboys.com Columnist
Jan. 29, 2004, 11:55 p.m. (CST)
MOBILE, Ala. - While the Senior Bowl is a game for college all-stars here in this southern Alabama city, there certainly was a little Cowboys' flavor to the festivities over the weekend.
Cowboys offensive guard Larry Allen, who by the way will be on his was to his ninth Pro Bowl appearance next week in Hawaii, was one of three men inducted into the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame. Also inducted over the weekend were former NFL and college coach head Ray Perkins and former Tennessee Titans kicker Al Del Greco.
Allen, Perkins and Del Greco were inducted as the Class of 2005 during a ceremony Friday night here, and all three were introduced to the crowd at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on Saturday before the North and South all-star squads clashed in the 56th annual Senior Bowl.
Allen, heading into his 12th season with the Cowboys, played in the all-star game in 1994 after finishing his college career at Sonoma State. The Cowboys drafted him that year in the second round.
This now gives the Cowboys six members in the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame. Allen joins former Alabama linebacker Lee Roy Jordan, former Tennessee State defensive end Ed "Too Tall" Jones, former Florida A&M wide receiver Bob Hayes, former West Virginia linebacker Chuck Howley and former head coach Tom Landry in the 84-member fraternity.
Jones and Jordan in 1999 also were named to the Senior Bowl's 50th Anniversary team.
Woo-Pig
Let's put it this way about Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones, who spent the week here playing wide receiver, a position he hasn't played full-time since a junior in high school:
Not only was he unfamiliar with this position, since he spent four years playing quarterback at Arkansas, but he was competing against all-star defensive backs, and all he did was catch two passes for 13 yards in the Senior Bowl - the second a five-yard touchdown pass to bring the losing South squad to within 23-13 with 1:05 top play. While he caught four passes during his Razorback days, he hadn't caught a touchdown pass since his junior year in high school.
Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden, the South head coach, compares the 6-6 Jones to his own wide receiver, Joe Jurevicius. And most scouts here were impressed with his speed for a big guy, routinely running past these top defensive backs.
"He has a chance to make a great conversion," Gruden said. "This is one interesting guy. Whether he'll be a quarterback, tight end or wide receiver, this is one interesting guy."
Jones seemed to have a feel for running routes, making a nice eight-yard catch on a slant. He did have problems getting off jams, but then the defensive backs weren't supposed to be jammin'.
Cadi In Shop
The buzz all afternoon was: Something must have happened to Auburn running back Cadillac Williams, who was conspicuous by his sideline stance for the entire game.
Evidently his chassis was out of whack, Williams saying he had a sore back, and Gruden saying the Senior Bowl doctors advised his coaching staff not to play the future first-round draft choice.
"If it was a regular-season game, Cadillac would have played," Gruden said.
Wonder how far away Williams' agent was?
Bow-Wow Or Meow?
You hear these stories all the time about the questions teams pose college players before the draft, but you know what, the one about whether you would want to be a dog or a cat always seemed to be one of those urban myths.
Not so.
Ole Miss guard Marcus Johnson was asked what was the silliest question he had to answer during the week while meeting with members of various NFL teams. And yep, he said the New York Giants asked him if he would rather be "a dog or a cat."
And the answer?
"It wasn't cat," Johnson said.
Oh Those 'Tweeners
The week of Senior Bowl practices, along with the game, always seem to produce experiments with these under-sized college defensive ends, the NFL coaches and scouts wanting to see them play linebacker, too.
And two of these 'tweeners the Cowboys certainly might be interested in if they indeed are considering playing a 3-4 are Cincinnati's Trent Cole and Troy State's Demarcus Ware. Now Ware, playing more of his familiar defensive end position in the game, tied for the South team lead with 3? tackles.
But this Cole guy had to turn some heads. A nearly unstoppable end at Cincinnati, he played a stand-up linebacker spot on the strong side of the North's 4-3 defense. And he, too, tied for his team's lead with six tackles. Runs extremely well, has a nose for the ball and saw him put two potential blockers down field on their back sides while chasing the ball.
Familiar Faces
Since the Oakland Raiders staff was handling the coaching duties for the North squad, there were a couple of familiar faces on the sideline.
Former Cowboys special teams coach Joe Avezzano and former offensive coordinator Norv Turner spent the week here working out the North squad. Avezzano spent 13 years with the Cowboys before moving on to handle the Dallas Desperados of the Arena Football League. Coach Joe was named special teams coach in Oakland last year by Turner, who served as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator from 1991-93 before becoming the Washington Redskins head coach in 1994.
Senior Shots
USC versatile defensive lineman Shaun Cody, a potential end in a 3-4 defense, played defensive tackle in this game . . . . How good must LSU's defense been? The Tigers had two corners playing in this game, Corey Webster and Travis Daniels . . . . Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell sure is smooth for a 6-4, 221-pound guy. Said Gruden, "He has a great arm. Can throw the ball from awkward body positions. Good presence." Campbell completed nine of 13 passes for 116 yards, earning the South's offensive MVP award.