11W ICYMI:
- Urban Meyer's Monday presser bullets.
- An in memoriam highlight reel of Will Smith's 2002 Ohio State season.
- Film Study: Michigan DC Don Brown's aggressive approach.
PAPA TYVIS TELLS A STORY. Tyvis Powell sat down with The Associated Press last week to give an inside scoop on his former teammates. One name in particular was left of that list: Cardale Jones. That was rectified on Monday.
Powell took the AP back to high school when, in defiance of genetics, he and his son were in different Cleveland-area high schools.
From pro32.ap.org:
"Let me tell you about the first time I seen him throw the ball. So what happens was it was at the 7-on-7 (high school tournament). My high school coach was the coach at Glenville (High School) once upon a time. He goes 'Tyvis, they got this quarterback over there. I'm telling you he's 6-5, he got a gun. I'm talking about it's a straight laser.' And I'm sitting there like. 'There ain't nobody throwing the ball that fast.' He's like, 'Ty, I'm telling you, when you see him you're going to be like the kid can go to the NFL today. He's going to the NFL for sure.'
"We got to the 7-on-7 and I'm like, let me see this big arm that everybody gabs about. Man, he threw that ball and I said 'Holy shoot! Oh, shoot!' It was like, you blink, you missed it. This is ridiculous.
"We actually won because I picked him off to seal the deal, He's going to tell you it was tipped, but anyway I caught the pick. I got Cardale twice in my life when it counts. I got him in the spring game. I got him in the 7-on-7. When he sees me on the next level, he might go the opposite way. He tries me again, it's going to be bad. I want to see him do good on the next level. He just needs to stay away from me."
"I'm talking about it's a straight laser." That slayed me.
But it's crazy how life shakes out. Little did Tyvis Powell know that a DNA test five years down the road would prove that laser-thrower to be his son or that they'd room together at Ohio State.
IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME. Cardale Jones flamed the NCAA yesterday. I disagree with his stance as I prefer college football to remain pure, which is why I applaud all these coaches turning down eight-figure contract deals and why I take my salary in free Dry Goods t-shirts.
Some people think this rant will hurt Cardale Jones' draft stock, as if the merciless goons in NFL care about the ongoings of a boot-strapped charity like the NCAA.
And while pre-draft analysis has dubbed North Dakota State's Carson Wentz and California's Jared Goff as the "top QBs available," there's a case to be made Cardale Jones is better than them both.
WHO WANTS TO TO MAKE THAT ARGUMENT? ANYONE?
From draftcharge.com's thorough breakdown:
He just can’t read defenses — struggles to see the field: Not only is this misconception misplaced, but simply put, very inaccurate.
In this case, I feel as if evaluators are looking at the structure of Ohio State’s offense and then turning around and docking Jones for it. However, this isn’t uncommon, in fact, you see it almost every year, and yet same mistakes continue to be made. In this case, with Ohio State’s offense, there’s a silver lining to this dilemma. Sure, Ohio State runs a spread offense, but much more weight is placed on the quarterback’s ability to think through a play, compared to other spread systems such as Penn State, Fresno State, Baylor, etc., which is helpful when evaluating someone like Jones.
Jones has a knack for processing what defenses gives him, quickly and efficiently. Take this play against Maryland for example. Maryland decides to give Jones what appears to be a cover 1 look, where they send five players after the quarterback, drop the strong safety into a deep zone, and have the free safety act as a “robber,” which means he’s looking to undercut a route. However, this left the Mike linebacker, Jalen Brooks, lined up one on one with Ezekiel Elliot coming out of the backfield on a screen, and no offense to Brooks, but when Elliot is matched up one on one with a linebacker in space, more often than not it’s going to be a mismatch, especially when the linebacker in the situation is late to diagnose what’s happening.
Jones read the situation both quickly and efficiently and then smoothly turned his upper body and delivered a pass, and even with pressure barreling down on him, Jones was able to lead Elliot, allowing for a yards after the catch opportunity.
Looking back, it's mystifying Ohio State coaches asked Cardale to run the same offense as J.T. Barrett. Just thinking about it gives me flashbacks to the jungle where I defended Cardale's honor with Waffle House utensils against vitriolic Buckeye fans.
Dark times that are behind us, thankfully.
ZEKE'S BEST LANDING SPOT? As the NFL Draft looms, Ezekiel Elliott will continue to be one of its most intriguing prospects. Though he may be the best football player in the draft, nobody is projecting him to go No. 1 due to his position.
So what's the best landing spot for him? NFL analysts Heath Evans and Willie McGinest broke it down on the NFL Network:
I like McGinest's #take. Andrew Luck and Ezekiel Elliott could be an offensive hydra for the next six to seven years.
I hate to admit it, but there's no doubt Dallas would be the best landing spot—all things considered. Do the Cowboys have the heart to take a RB at No. 4? Intrigue like that is why we watch the draft, folks!
ANTONIO WILLIAMS IMPRESSING EARLY. The big thing Ohio State coaches want to see from freshmen is a desire to compete. The knowledge will come later, but that competitive motor comes from within.
Looks like freshman RB Antonio Williams will be just fine at Ohio State.
From theozone.net:
Mickey Marotti runs the Ohio State strength and conditioning program and has a reputation for instilling toughness. Toughness is a high-value trait for Marotti, one that he doesn't take for granted. If you can impress Marotti with your toughness, you've done something, and Williams has done just that.
"I have, yeah," said Marotti when asked if he has seen a edge to the way Williams has handled himself thus far at OSU.
"He’s relentless. He’s a high-effort guy and a high-character guy."
Michigan fans (who read my work for some reason) please fave this tweet: Antonio Williams is to Ezekiel Elliott as Kareem Walker is to Derrick Green.
THE DEFENSE OF CARDELL HAYES TAKES SHAPE. Former Ohio State DE Will Smith was shot and killed in New Orleans on Saturday night in an apparent road rage incident.
The identity of his shooter does not seem to be in question as 28-year-old Cardell Hayes didn't flee the scene. What remains in dispute, however, are the circumstances of the shooting.
From theneworleansadvocate.com:
One interview with a bystander recorded in the aftermath of the shooting and posted on Facebook by user Christopher Nit Sheffield raises the possibility that Hayes at least believed Smith — or one of his companions — had a gun.
[...]
Recorded at the scene of the killing shortly after it occurred, Sheffield’s video shows an unidentified man describing what was supposedly heard during the deadly violence.
“(They) start freaking out on this guy. They’re like, ‘We’re going to fight you,’ ” Sheffield’s video shows the man saying, in audio that is at times difficult to decipher. “And then he’s like, I guess ... ‘I have a gun,’ and he goes, “(expletive), I got one, too.” And then he grabs his gun and then he shoots him in the back and he’s dead.”
NOLA police say they didn't find a second gun on the scene, but Hayes' lawyer, who apparently fears a police conspiracy, is keen on the results of Smith's toxicology report.
From cnn.com:
He described Hayes as soft-spoken, easily approachable and "a lot nicer than he appears."
[...]
If toxicology tests are conducted "honestly," Fuller said, they will "absolutely" play a key factor in his client's case. He did not elaborate. Police have said toxicology reports won't come back for six weeks.
As the world turns...
THOSE WMDs. An internet glitch turned a Kansas farm into a digital hell... No such thing as an addictive personality... The worst karaoke attempt ever... Howard Marks, drug smuggler turned author, dies at 70... "I thought he was a genius until he agreed to work for the Browns."
