Is the SEC really faster than other leagues? The Heisman Pundit, who by the way is based here in California and is a huge follower of track and field, hates this theory and goes on the attack.
My three cents: It's interesting off-season debate stuff since there are plenty of examples that can riddle holes in any side of the discussion.
I respect the opinions of both the Pundit and Orson Swindle, who writes about the SEC speed theory. As you know I'm a fan of both bloggers. I've talked to both guys before about this topic.
This morning, while reading the HP site, something struck me: I wonder what makes us perceive a team as "fast"?
A team of guys who also star on the track team?
A bunch of linebackers who reportedly run sub-4.6?
One shining example of a player who is by far the fastest at his position?
A highlight of a non-descript player running down a supposed speedster in the open-field?
USC was an interesting study to me last year. I don't think that was a very fast Trojan team, although if you go out to practice and you see Taylor Mays running around, you obviously could say otherwise since how many teams have safeties who run 4.3, much less a 230-pound safety?
(Right, none.) But I don't think they were very fast because their receivers weren't blazers and seemed to struggle getting much separation. Plus, after having Reggie Bush, their tailbacks didn't come across as home-run threats. I think one of the bench marks of a speedy team should be how many big plays they hit. But as the Heisman Pundit might argue that, too, is a function of the system a team runs and executes.
At issue, I think it is about "playing fast" and of course, that can be very subjective especially since we like to win our debates with quantifiable points with things like recorded track times. But that doesn't cut it. Devin Hester is a great example of this. Miami had a handful of guys in their program who ran faster on a track, but were nowhere near as explosive or dynamic or fast on the field. And what Hester has done in the NFL has been truly amazing. If I'm working for EA Sports, that's the one guy I'm giving 100 in the speed category because being fast, at least in football teams, is about much more than just straight-line speed. (I stopped keeping track how many times I heard about how some supposed 4.5 guy was "stiff" from Ed Orgeron while I worked on Meat Market. It was the change-of-direction factor that coaches fret about most, at least that was what he had learned from his days working for Jimmy Johnson at Miami.)
West Virginia's offense plays fast. Do we really need track times to validate it? I don't care that QB Pat White couldn't outrun Baylor QB Robert Griffin or that Steve Slaton probably doesn't run a 40 faster than Chauncey Washington. On the field, in their system, those Mountaineers are blazing.
If pressed to say the fastest team in the country, my first two thoughts are LSU and Florida. Of course I say LSU because of Trindon Holliday and I'm sure there's some Big Ten fan who will remind me that the Tigers best linebacker last year Ali Highsmith barely cracked 5.0 at the combine in the 40. I say UF because of Percy Harvin, Chris Rainey and Carlos Dunlap, and then I remember back to seeing the Gators in person in Oxford and thinking about how slow Ole Miss WR Mike Wallace made their secondary look.
RANDOM STUFF
• The Jimmy Johns story is sad and it is embarrassing for the proud Alabama football program. Kevin Scarbinsky wonders why Nick Saban didn't get rid of Johns sooner.
How much responsibility should Nick Saban take here, as stories detail how this is his 10th player to be arrested in the past year? In fairness to Saban, most of these players he didn't recruit. Most programs take a few talented prospects they know might have some character issues. The coaches hope that if the player is brought into a more welcoming, structured environment, that the guy will mature and settle down with the proverbial light bulb coming on. Sometimes, that happens. Many times that does not. Quite frankly, I think the thing that scares coaches the most is rolling the dice on too many of these players to where it not necessarily embarrasses the program but these guys become cancerous in the locker room and become distractions to other players and the coaches who have to babysit them.
I remember talking to Pete Garcia, Butch Davis' right hand-man when the Miami program was being rebuilt, and he talked about how it was vital early on that they make sure they had a good locker room. Then, as the program developed they might be able to take a chance on a player or two because they believed their leadership inside the locker room was so good, it would police itself to a large extent.
I was on the Paul Finebaum radio show yesterday in Alabama and was asked how long before this run of police blotter news will stain Saban, if it already hasn't. My answer is that I think it would take two or three years of these kind of consistent headlines. Of course, I'm sure the people who already believe Saban is a fraud don't need to see any more incidents. But from a global perspective, I think these things take time. In Saban's defense, he can say he didn't recruit many of these guys. He inherited them. Also lots of programs have nightmarish offseasons. Urban Meyer had one last year. Joe Paterno has had them. You just hope that players realize the opportunity they have and learn from others mistakes.
• Jon Tenuta was an outstanding D-coordinator for Georgia Tech, but some of the Yellow Jacket players are really excited about the new scheme Dave Wommack has brought, reports Matt Winklejohn:
"It's a lot more multiple than what we did with Coach Tenuta," DT Darryl Richard said.
Under Wommack, Tech's ends will play wider, backs will blitz less frequently, and even the big guys in the middle, like Richard and All-ACC tackle Vance Walker, will have more room to roam.
• Should Michigan fans be worried about losing blue-chip QB recruit Kevin Newsome? Maybe. Virginia Tech is putting on some pressure for the Virginia
product, who is going to play his senior season at Hargrave, a la Vidal Hazelton a few years back. Newsome's former high school coach doesn't like that the Wolverines have been recruiting more than just Newsome at QB, although as Brian Cook writes that is what the young QB expected when he committed:
"I know they want to take two and they're looking at Tate Forcier, Eugene Smith and some others," Newsome was quoted as saying previously.
"I'm not really worried about that. They told me I was their top guy and I know I have to compete. I just think the school and the football situation fit me right."
I suspect Rich Rodriguez is happy Newsome is at Hargrave for his senior season. For more on Newsome and his showing at a regional Elite 11 camp in Las Vegas, check out this story by Brendan Murphy.
• Duke landed an Elite 11 QB (Sean Renfree) last year and now David Cutcliffe has seemed to strike gold again on the recruiting trail, nabbing a commitment from one of the country's most talented DTs, John Drew.
The 6-foot-1, 300-pounder had previously committed to Georgia Tech but word is he really liked the Blue Devil coaches and wasn't sold on going to college in a big city like Atlanta.
• To say Tim Tebow's got a following would be an understatement, although as Alan Schmadtke writes, there are some things that trump the Gator phenom in conjuring up interest.
• Touted QB Josh Nunes is planning on going to Tennessee, reports Tom
Luginbill:
"Nunes is the Matt Ryan of the group -- tall, well-armed and accurate.
May be as well groomed and college ready from the neck up as any in this class. His ball handling, timing and footwork are among the best in this year's quarterback class. He can make all the throws and works through his progressions very well.
"What a huge pick-up this is for the Vols. To go out west and snag a top-tier QB with the needs they have at the position is big for them.
David Clawson (UT OC) has obviously made a huge impact on recruiting with his pass-happy, wide open scheme as Tennessee is off to a fast start for the 2009 class."
• I'm heading over to USC's Rising Stars Camp today. Scheduled to attend are blue-chip QB Matt Barkley and players ranked among the top at wideout, TE and DL.
• Ohio State continues to snag recruits from Joe Paterno's backyard, reports Jason Lloyd:
• Veteran assistant Kevin Cosgrove won't be coaching college football for the first time in 28 years. Instead the former Wisconsin coach has moved back to Madison, where he will volunteer his time to help mentor his son with the Edgewood High School football program, writes Mike Lucas:
"I had a couple of opportunities to coach this season," Kevin Cosgrove said. "But I just couldn't pull Connor out of a Lincoln high school and move him to another unfamiliar school district or part of the country.
Because of his familiarity with Madison, and the friends that he still has here, I felt like this was the most logical move to make. Our older kids had a great experience at Edgewood, and this gives me a chance to be around my youngest and get him through his senior year."
• I ended up watching the Celebrity Family Feud last night. I know, bad admission. It was awful, and yet, I couldn't turn away. Although a more apt title is "D-Listers who have had bad Plastic Surgery do the Feud."
• A tip: check out this Tom Friend story on Pete Rose and Alex Rodriguez.
It is one of the best stories I've read in a long time. I'll admit I rarely make it through stories that run longer than 4,000 words. This one was well worth it. The reporting and writing are both outstanding.
Bruce Feldman
