Friday Night Lights 2015 is now in the books. Ohio State picked up two commitments: 2016 four-star TE Luke Farrell and 2017 kicker Blake Haubeil.
Eric's five FNL takeaways was extremely good. As were Birm's in-depth recap, the social media roundup and the interviews with commits and targets.
GALLOWAY TALKS BRAXTON MOVE. Zach Smith said Braxton Miller could be the next Joey Galloway. Yesterday, Joey Galloway — who could still undoubtedly roast every DB in the college ranks — spoke on Braxton's move.
From Tim May of Dispatch.com:
“It will be great for him to find out that answer now. Plus, it puts another dangerous athlete on the field for Ohio State.”
But does he have the discipline to run proper routes, and the mental makeup to take hits after a catch, whether it be on a pass or after fielding a punt, something Miller also has professed a desire to do this season?
“You never know until you go do it,” Galloway said. “There have been some tremendous athletes who played quarterback in college who could not make that switch, because it is an entirely different world. Because you have to go from standing in the pocket, reading coverages and then throwing, to all of a sudden not just having to catch the ball but blocking. To play receiver at Ohio State you have to block as much as you have to go catch the ball.
NFL scouts seem to be giving it the thumbs up too.
From Dane Brugler of CBSSports.com:
Despite being a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year as a quarterback, most NFL evaluators view his pro football future at another position, especially considering the injuries to his throwing shoulder. And with Miller making the move prior to his final season in Columbus, scouts can base their evaluations on functional play, not simply projection.
"We currently have two grades on him, one as an "athlete" and one as a quarterback," a NFC scout said. "The grade of him as an athlete is much…better. Because that's when he's at his best – with the ball in his hands."
[...]
"It's a smart, unselfish move that I bet will pay off for him. Also makes my job easier," the scout added.
I'm curious to see what kind of blocker Braxton Miller will be. Sure, his game is based on his physical prowess, but it's not like he's ever mauled defenders. Urban Meyer and Zach Smith say receivers who don't block won't see the field, but it's still a mentality that sometimes has to be cultivated within players. Saying is also a lot easier than doing.
Another plot line: What kind of catch-radius he displays, and how good he is receiving in traffic.
If he does both those things adequately, we already know the abuse of which he's capable when he gets the ball in space. I honestly don't know how people will defend it.
HOKIES PRESS INTO THE HELLSTORM. I see what this writer is saying, I just don't agree with it.
From Andy Bitter of RoanokeTimes.com:
For Virginia Tech, though, all this news doesn't change a bunch. It just adds one more playmaker to worry about on an offense already full of them. The Hokies have gone over some of the defensive game plan for Ohio State, something that's expected to be some variation of the defense Foster installed that was so successful against the Buckeyes in last year's upset.
All Beamer offered earlier this week was that he'd like to see the Hokies get into fewer one-on-one situations in the secondary than they did last year. A front four that includes threats from Dadi Nicolas, Ken Ekanem, Luther Maddy and Corey Marshall could help reduce the number of times Tech feels like it has to rush linebackers or defensive backs to get pressure.
"Probably need to mix up how we do things a little bit more," Beamer said, "but we were effective and Bud has a great understanding and a knack of that during the ballgame. But probably try not getting into as many one-on-one situations as we had last year. Because probably you give them that many opportunities now with experience, they're going to hit on some of those balls.
There are playmakers, and then there's Joystick-6. As Jason pointed out on Twitter yesterday, Braxton is going to demand the attention of the entire defense by simply going into motion.
Tim Beck must feel like he rides a magic carpet to work every day.
THE BEST NON-#QBGEDDON CAMP STORYLINES. Ohio State's QB competition will still lead the way, but there are other interesting storylines afoot.
From Dan Murphy of ESPN.com:
When they decide to take a break from talking about quarterbacks in Columbus for a few minutes, the attention will likely shift to what it's going to take for the Buckeyes to live up to lofty expectations. Last year was supposed to be a warm-up for an Ohio State team that would be mature and healthy enough to take the nation by storm in 2015. They won a national championship anyway, and now Urban Meyer finds himself in the familiar position of having to keep a team focused and working hard when the outside world is ready to crown them in July.
Meyer has dealt with success in the past after winning a national title at Florida and taking another two years later. What he learned from that experience, and how he plans to apply that to his new team, will be a popular topic during the early part of the year.
I'm not worried about Ohio State's expectations, because — and you might not know this — Urban Meyer has a psychology degree. He's like Dr. Phil... if Dr. Phil were good and not bad.
My biggest question is the interior line, especially with Dre'mont Jones off on a rehab assignment.
My second biggest question is if American scoreboards are properly equipped to tally Ohio State's offense.
SABAN CRYING... BUT NOT ABOUT THE SUGAR BOWL. Here's something from the upcoming book, Saban: The Making of a Coach, I would've thought was fiction.
Nick Saban, having just left Michigan State for LSU, is in a Baton Rouge hotel having buyer's remorse. And then...
From Steve Schrader of Freep.com:
The next morning, Saban called then-MSU athletic director Clarence Underwood.
"It was five-thirty in the morning," Underwood is quoted. "He just said, 'I made a mistake, and I want to come back.' He said he was lonely. He was crying."
But while Ferguson tried to call him throughout the day to say, "Come back, Saban, come back," he couldn't reach him. When he did, Saban had changed his mind again.
Ferguson says: "He told me, 'Joel, this won't work. The first time I have a mediocre season up there, they'll remember this.'"
I want to know how many Sparty fans would trade Mark Dantonio for Nick Saban. I love Dino, and it'd feel about as good as shooting your family's cancer-ridden dog, but if I'm a Sparty fan (and haven't won a title since 1966) I'm making that trade all day.
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT TANKS RICHARD LECOUNTE'S STOCK. Rumors swirled last night that Richard LeCounte, a beast 2017 athlete out of Georgia, committed Ohio State last night. Here's a look at him plying his trade:
@LilEasy_35 (Richard Lecounte) with a catch then acrobatics: pic.twitter.com/gm0hNqwkZX
— Allen Trieu (@AllenTrieu) July 25, 2015
Easy to see why coaches are hot for him, but it doesn't look like LeCounte pulled the trigger last night (at least publicly):
Great Time At FNL No Commitment though , just enjoying everything
— Richard LeCounte (@LilEasy_35) July 25, 2015
What's holding him back? Probably shell shocked from getting dunked on by Ezekiel Elliott:
@LilEasy_35 welcome to the fam pic.twitter.com/g6ze8bTm6l
— EzekielElliott#15 (@EzekielElliott) July 25, 2015
(Pictured in the back: Happy Bruce Judson.)
Some people took this as Elliott outing LeCounte's commitment... but I think he's actually saying, "Welcome to the family," as in, "You're my son now."
THOSE WMDs. Randy Orton vs. Superman... Former NFL WR catches collegiate teammate burglarizing his house... Sexual History of Chicago Tour... 380 area code coming to Columbus in 2016....Hero woman acting in self-defense may have just offed a serial killer... Amazing.
