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NFL Mock Draft 2009 Draft of 2009 Lacks Star Power NFL Draft 2009: Getting Started Super Bowl Well Worth Tuning In For
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| NBA | |
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Prospects On Center Stage NBA Preview 2008/09: Final Call
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Maybe They Are That Good... By Ron Jumper It is truly amazing to me that in this day and age the same mistakes are still being made. With recruiting almost a sport of its own now, how do good players keep slipping through the cracks? When that forgotten guy blows up on the college football scene, why is he still not given any love just because he is at a smaller school? Those guys get the last laugh though at the next level, NFL greats like Brett Favre, Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens, Steve McNair, Randy Moss, and Ladainian Tomlinson all came from smaller schools. Garrett Wolf is doing something amazing right now. He has 1,181 rushing yards this season. The next closest rusher in all of college football is barely above 800. Why does no one consider it legit? Because Wolfe plays for Northern Illinois, a small school in the MAC. Never mind that Wolfe put up 177 yards rushing against Ohio State, not to mention another 122 yards receiving in that same game. Born in Chicago, Wolfe wasn’t highly recruited because of his size (5’7” 177) but has proven that he can do it regardless. Take Damion Fletcher, the leading rusher in Conference USA as a true freshman, and you’ll see another overlooked prospect. Fletcher averages 122.8 yards a game, which is good for 8th in the nation. Another guy who wasn’t considered a big time prospect, Fletcher has made the most of the opportunity that Southern Miss has given him. Southern Miss will always be under the radar due to the lack of attention it gets even in its own state.  Not all the studs at small schools were just overlooked, some just chose a different route to make a name for themselves. Take Kevin Kolb at Houston, this is a guy who was a standout at a powerhouse high school in Texas. With schools like Texas Tech and Oklahoma State coming after him, he decided to go to Houston. Kolb is now shredding defenses apart, with 12 touchdowns and only 1 interception so far this season. Just last week his Cougars almost pulled off the upset at Miami. If you watched that game, you could tell Kolb was better than any QB on the Hurricane roster. The recruiting process is always going to have flaws for several reasons. It is surprising how many high school coaches don’t help get their players on college rosters. In a recent poll by RecruitZone.com, 57% say their high school coach was not helpful in the recruiting process. That is a pretty staggering figure if you think about it. Of course, there are other factors that go into guys being overlooked. Plenty of guys have someone ahead of them and don’t get to shine until their senior year. With recruiting starting so early now, it is hard to break on the scene in your senior season. Another area that frustrates me is when scouts say that a guy lacks “ideal size.” How can a player be a textbook size when the next chapter of greatness hasn’t even been written? October 4, 2006 |
| NCAA Football | |
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Be Careful What You Wish For
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| NCAA Basketball | |
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Jumpology: My Bracket Jumpology: Scouting The Heavyweights Jumpology: Reviewing The Bracket
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