Twitter: The Josh Ball Era begins

[kiheikiwi]

Plus, it will allow him to practice with the team now - so the coaches will get to see where he is at strength and play wise. Even if he's not activated for whatever reason. It gives the. A jump on the off-season training.
For both players - smart move !

 

[losersgetcute]

Doubters say he is slow but he didn't look too slow against UTs DBs on film.

 

[Cowboyz88]

Doubters say he is slow but he didn't look too slow against UTs DBs on film.

I watched his entire Tech career.

Had moments of brilliance and lots of head scratchers.

He was supposed to be the next Crabtree… wasn’t even close, so I’m trying to caution Cowboys fans on judging him strictly on his measurables.

Hopefully he pans out, but that’s what most Tech fans thought as well.

 

[texbumthelife]

I’m ecstatic for the Ball family. I wonder if he called his ex-girlfriend to share the great news?

Savage.

 

[Floatyworm]

Honestly...when you bring a guy like this into your locker room....it just goes to show how desperate you are to win a championship. Jerry mortgaging his soul for a 4th time.

 

[DuncanIso]

Whos to say they are scrubs? Let me guess. Parsons was a bad pick because we missed out on Slater? LOL.

Im talking about our 2nd round pick….

although Slater is a beast at LT.

 

[xwalker]

Am I missing something........not seeing anything close to starting material



Early years[edit]
Ball grew up in Fredericksburg, Virginia and played football at Stafford Senior High School. As a senior, he was a starter at left tackle, while receiving All-State and All-conference honors.

He was a four-star recruit coming out of high school and committed to Florida State University to play college football.[1]

College career[edit]
As a redshirt freshman in 2017, he was named the starter left tackle in the fifth game against Duke University. He would remain as the starter on the left side for the last 9 contests of the season. In 2018, he was expected to be the Seminole's starter at right tackle, however, on May 21, 2018, he was suspended by the school for one year, after being accused of dating violence against his former girlfriend.[2] Although he was never charged, he opted to transfer to Butler Community College, where he was named the starter at left tackle.[3]

In 2019, he chose to transfer to Marshall University, instead of returning to Florida State University. As a junior, he was a key reserve on the team's offensive line, while playing in 13 games with one start against Western Kentucky University.

As a senior in 2020, the football season was reduced to 10 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He started 8 games at left tackle. He was ejected from the Conference USA Championship Game against the University of Alabama at Birmingham for incurring in two personal foul penalties. He did not play in the 2020 Camellia Bowl, opting instead to start preparing for the NFL Draft.[4] He was named first-team All-Conference USA after the season.[5] He was forced to miss the 2021 Hula Bowl, after testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professional career[edit]
Ball was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 4th round (138th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft. He signed his rookie contract on May 20, 2021 [6] He was placed on injured reserve on September 2, 2021 to start the season.[7]

He was better playing LT at Florida State in 2017 as a redshirt freshman than Steele playing RT at Texas Tech in 2020 as a Senior...

 

[xwalker]

Nope he was in camp

@bayeslife

He was injured very early in camp. He didn't play in any preseason games.

 

[xwalker]

Watched tape on him, tall 6'7 and he's a waist bender, speed rushers will give him alot of problems and not physical enough

If you watched anything it was YouTube highlights, not 'tape'.
'Tape' infers coaches film not highlights from game broadcasts.

One of Josh Ball's top attributes is good leg bend (i.e. The opposite of a 'waist bender').
- Extra tall OL are going to appear to have some waist bend, but a 'waist bender' is a player that does not have good leg bend.

From NFL.com:

• Desired pro blend of size, length and athletic ability.
• Natural knee-bender with fluid movements.
• Quick, rhythmic pass slides gain proper depth.
• Punch is sudden and snappy.
• Loose hips to recover and run rushers past the pocket.
• First-step quickness to gain positioning advantage in run game.
• Bend and upward strikes create leverage point.
• Can get to all the angles to reach, seal and/or climb.
• Sustains his block with big, strong hands.
• Extra fluid and agile as blocker in space.
• Runs feet through block and is angry finisher.

Other Scouting Reports:

• Starter-level foot speed and twitch in his vertical and angle sets to get to his landmark against Wide 9 speed rushers
• Impressive mobility in his hips and ankles for being nearly 6'8"; plays with the pad level and leverage of someone 6'5"
• Has plenty of lateral quickness to execute in the zone run game with the heavy handiness to knock over defensive tackles on Deuce blocks
• Shows the recovery balance and core strength necessary to stay latched after initially losing position
• Packs a strong punch with controlling grip strength to deliver jolt and tie up defenders

 

[xwalker]

8 OL and 1 QB and 1 TE , 1 RB , bulldoze formation .

Just for fun ,come to think of it where will the 8th OL go, 5 OL and TE on the line , 2 OL behind QB ( Flanking ) and 1 more OL ? ( as a FB - lead blocker ) Will be tough to get the ball to RB ,isn’t it .

I would like to see a wildcat play with 10 OL.
- Pollard at QB (He ran some wildcat in college).
- Note: Yes, I know they never actually have 10 OL active for a game.