RS12
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1. The intrigue around Manti Te'o grows. But now it's growing about the merits of the former Notre Dame star's skills on the field. Yes, there was a lot of talk about Te'o off the field as folks were trying to get in his head, but it was his underwhelming measurables that will drive talk in NFL Draft circles for the next few months. Te'o, who had been listed by Notre Dame at 255 pounds, measured much smaller than expected at 241, and he clocked a 4.82 officially in the 40, making him one of the slowest linebackers in Indy. I spoke to four NFL personnel people who all felt Te'o was overhyped as a player in college. They each said he wasn't as bad as the player you'd see on tape from the Alabama game but that he doesn't look like a guy who'll be making many trips to the Pro Bowl either. "Good player... solid... very instinctive... not truly elite ... he's a two-down player ... he's not a 'match-up' player," were the comments. "Based on all those awards he won in college and all the hype he got you'd think he had Patrick Willis talent; he doesn't."
Another one of the NFL guys who interviewed Te'o in Indy said, "I found him to be rehearsed and disingenuous." Aren't all the prospects answers rehearsed though? So I asked the coach if lying to NFL people about Te'o's "girlfriend" is a real issue or does it only really matter how good of a player he is at this point?
"Don't know. I'm just not sure he's good enough to offset the crap. It's a road I hope we don't go down. I'd rather find a better athlete."
A couple of the NFL Network analysts made an interesting Te'o comparison, bringing up the name of former Ohio State standout James Laurinaitis, whose numbers in Indy were very similar to the Notre Dame linebacker's. Laurinaitis was three pounds heavier and ran the exact same 40. He's proven to be a very solid, productive player for the Rams. He's never been a Pro Bowler but has piled up tackles and emerged as one of the better players on a nonplayoff team.
2. Star Status. Utah's all-American DT Star Lotulelei has been touted as a potential No. 1 overall pick, but that was before the news that he has a heart condition that was detected in NFL medical exams. Many scouts watch his tape and see an ideal 3-Technique. Now, there will be questions and much attention about whether subsequent exams determine if it's a chronic condition. His agent told colleague Jason La Canfora that Lotulelei will compete in all the physical tests at his pro day in March. A DT who everyone seemed to be falling in love with was Florida's Sharrif Floyd.
3. Eric Fisher's story is one to keep in mind every Signing Day. The Central Michigan offensive tackle, who is projected to go in the Top 15 by many draft analysts, on why he wasn't recruited heavily out of high school, when he was a 6-7 kid who also excelled on the basketball court: "I was a 230-pound offensive tackle," he said, adding that "it's just amazing watching my dream becoming reality slowly. It's surreal."
I asked him the other day if any Big Ten schools even talked to him about walking on. "The only Big Ten schools I talked to was Michigan State and Purdue, and neither of them really wanted anything to do with me," Fisher said. "So hey, it doesn't matter where you start, it's where you end up. That's a big thing I take to heart."
Another project who blossomed: Terron Armstead, a 6-4, 306-pound OT who ran a 4.71 40 and had folks trying to search the Ark-Pine Bluff website. Armstead, also a stellar shot putter, had interest from Big 12 schools coming out of Cahokia High School in Illinois but told reporters that he didn't take his ACT until after Signing Day and is one of those guys who falls through the cracks of big-time college football every year.
4. Matt Scott is the QB "sleeper" many scouts like.
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefoo...081/top-10-compelling-nfl-combine-story-lines
Another one of the NFL guys who interviewed Te'o in Indy said, "I found him to be rehearsed and disingenuous." Aren't all the prospects answers rehearsed though? So I asked the coach if lying to NFL people about Te'o's "girlfriend" is a real issue or does it only really matter how good of a player he is at this point?
"Don't know. I'm just not sure he's good enough to offset the crap. It's a road I hope we don't go down. I'd rather find a better athlete."
A couple of the NFL Network analysts made an interesting Te'o comparison, bringing up the name of former Ohio State standout James Laurinaitis, whose numbers in Indy were very similar to the Notre Dame linebacker's. Laurinaitis was three pounds heavier and ran the exact same 40. He's proven to be a very solid, productive player for the Rams. He's never been a Pro Bowler but has piled up tackles and emerged as one of the better players on a nonplayoff team.
2. Star Status. Utah's all-American DT Star Lotulelei has been touted as a potential No. 1 overall pick, but that was before the news that he has a heart condition that was detected in NFL medical exams. Many scouts watch his tape and see an ideal 3-Technique. Now, there will be questions and much attention about whether subsequent exams determine if it's a chronic condition. His agent told colleague Jason La Canfora that Lotulelei will compete in all the physical tests at his pro day in March. A DT who everyone seemed to be falling in love with was Florida's Sharrif Floyd.
3. Eric Fisher's story is one to keep in mind every Signing Day. The Central Michigan offensive tackle, who is projected to go in the Top 15 by many draft analysts, on why he wasn't recruited heavily out of high school, when he was a 6-7 kid who also excelled on the basketball court: "I was a 230-pound offensive tackle," he said, adding that "it's just amazing watching my dream becoming reality slowly. It's surreal."
I asked him the other day if any Big Ten schools even talked to him about walking on. "The only Big Ten schools I talked to was Michigan State and Purdue, and neither of them really wanted anything to do with me," Fisher said. "So hey, it doesn't matter where you start, it's where you end up. That's a big thing I take to heart."
Another project who blossomed: Terron Armstead, a 6-4, 306-pound OT who ran a 4.71 40 and had folks trying to search the Ark-Pine Bluff website. Armstead, also a stellar shot putter, had interest from Big 12 schools coming out of Cahokia High School in Illinois but told reporters that he didn't take his ACT until after Signing Day and is one of those guys who falls through the cracks of big-time college football every year.
4. Matt Scott is the QB "sleeper" many scouts like.
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefoo...081/top-10-compelling-nfl-combine-story-lines