Spotlight on LB Pierre Banks, Appalachian State

Pierre Banks might be the best young safety that no one knows about. He can also move to linebacker although he is undersized for that position. He was a monster in the Appalachian State game against Michigan last year (2007).

Most of the rest of their defense was admittedly not too impressive with the exception of teamate and future NFL Draft pick Corey Lynch. I can still remember Banks coming free off the edge and sacking Chad Henne for a big loss. Banks' comment, "we should go to the Rose Bowl" will always stick in my mind.

Banks also came up with a pivotal fumble recovery in the Furman game and a forced fumble against James Madison. He has had back to back 100 tackle seasons and he is very durable starting 28 straight games. He is also an honor student earning a 3.24 GPA last year. He has a incredible blend of speed and athleticism and a knack for attacking the football and making big plays He just kept making plays all year leading his team to a National Championship. Next year will be his last in college but I am confident he will win another championship and I wouldnt be shocked if they have another upset this year of LSU when they play them in week one. I am confident next year we will get a serious look from several teams in the last couple of rounds of the NFL Draft. He will be an excellent player in the NFL and some team will get a mid to late round steal.

Unknown Prospects For The 2009 NFL Draft

Image: Ramses Barden

Every year a player is drafted without the media hype and the accolades announcing his coming hall of fame career. Yet this player or players have seasons that surprise the experts and even the teams that draft them. Below I've listed some of the top small school prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft in a look ahead to what is to come.

WR Ramses Barden, 6' 6" 228 lbs. Cal Poly 4.63:
He is 6'6" 228 lbs and bound to garner much attention at the NFL Scouting Combine in 2009. He had a couple of 200-yard games in 2007 and over the course of last season averaged 26 yards per catch. He is tough and strong and can break a ton of tackles. He has good hands and the size to excel in the red zone. His 4.63 40 time leaves something to be desired, but his big frame will be a good target at the next level. Right now, he's being projected as a 5th round pick. If he can improve his forty time into the 4.55 range he may move up into the third round possibly next year.

RB Herb Donaldson, 5' 11" 220 lbs. Western Illinois 4.53:
He has a good blend of size and speed and the vision to make the cut and attack the holes as they open. He piled up 1,491 yards last year. Many believe he could be a quality number two back for almost anyone who drafts him, maybe even a good starter.

TE Darius Hill, 6' 5" 235 lbs. Ball State 4.64:
He set a school record for a tight end with ten touchdown catches in 2006. Word has it he may move from TE to WR this year. It is possible this may hurt his draft stock somewhat but with good hands and speed. He has run in the 4.64 40 yard dash range. He should be taken in the middle rounds a potential TE prospect or WR project if he can get his 40 time down into the 4.55 range.

DE/OLB Brandon Swain, 6' 4" 255 lbs. West Texas A&M 4.69:
He is one of the most athletic defensive ends coming into the 2009 NFL Draft. He had 14 sacks and five forced fumbles last year. He is a quarterbacks nightmare. He has good speed off the edge and a desire to get in the backfield and make plays. His 40 yard dash time of 4.69 is quite impressive for a lineman. He should be a steal in the middle rounds.

CB Darren Banks, 5' 11" 185 lbs. West Liberty 4.43:
A former Marshal player before he transferred in 2004. He has good speed and the hands for the interception. He has all the tools to be a good playmaking corner in the league. He led his conference with ten interceptions last year.

QB Armanti Edwards 6'0" 180 Appalachian State 4.44:
He is an incredible athlete for a quarterback running a sub 4.5 40 yard dash. He is a excellent leader with a fairly strong arm and all the intangibles you could ask for. He doesn't always make the best decisions but he is coachable with a lot of upside. He nearly set his conferences rushing record with 1,588 yards last year. He completed 65% of his passes displaying excellent accuracy throwing on the run. Unfortunately at only six feet tall and 180 pounds he may be better off moving to wide receiver in the NFL. He will be a junior in 2009, so he may declare early, if not he will be one of the best late round QB options in the 2010 draft. If he declares in 09 he could go as early as the middle rounds, as next years draft class is considered to be one of the weaker ones at quarterback. He might start in this league at quarterback or be a good slot receiver somewhere, that much I am sure of.

James Banks, Carson Newman

It must have been almost comical seeing 39 year old former NFL quarterback Jeff George out there throwing the ball to Banks. Carson Newman had their Pro Day on March 1st 2008 and receiver James Banks put on a show for 18 NFL teams watching the workout.

Many of you that follow high school recruiting probably remember James Banks. He (Banks) played quarterback in high school and was named Indianapolis Star Indiana Mr. Football in 2001. He was recruited heavily and chose Tennessee over Notre Dame. However his division 1 career came to a sad halt after numerous disciplinary and academic problems.

Tennessee booted him off the team in 2004 and he eventually transferred to Carson-Newman, where he emerged as a dominant receiver, catching 22 passes for 370 yards and six touchdowns in 2007.

Banks wasn't invited to the 2008 NFL Scouting Combine, but he might be a late round selection in the 2008 NFL Draft if one of those 18 NFL teams liked him enough, he measured in at 6' 2" 215 pounds and displayed excellent hands and looked explosive.

Ah Yes, the 2008 NFL Scouting Combine

At the NFL Combine, speed sells. Ah yes, the 2008 NFL Scouting Combine is finally upon us. The long, agonizing wait is up, and grown men from across the country can once again travel hundreds, and sometimes thousands of miles to observe other, much larger men wearing tights sprint across a football field and bob and weave their way through cones. But as primitive as this event sounds, it is one of the most effective ways to measure a college athlete's most important attributes. And excluding "pro day", it is essentially the final interview for their new jobs in the NFL and just like at any other job fair, athletes are looking to impress. Speed is one way to get immediate attention from NFL Scouts.

The Combine seems to focus the most on the speed of the athletes participating. Multiple events, such as the three cone drill, as well as the 20 and 60 yard shuttles focus solely on determining the speed, quickness, and agility of potential NFL draftees. One of the more obvious ways to impress scouts is to excel in the most notorious event at the Combine, the forty yard dash. A player can go from a mere afterthought to a top prospect with a blazing forty time. Most athletes train vigorously for this event, understanding that a nice forty usually translates into a nice payday. But is too much stock put into the forty yard dash? Some analysts say the forty is not a good indicator of football speed, and they may have a case. Many athletes over the years have had poor forty times only to go on to have very successful careers. A 4.7 second forty yard dash would be considered average at best for a wide receiver in this year's Combine. Try telling that to Jerry Rice. Rice ran a 4.7 for twenty seasons in the NFL, and collected almost every receiving record along the way. Emmitt Smith was reported to have run a 4.71 during his pre-draft workouts, but that didn't stop him from becoming the NFL's all-time leading rusher.

And Devin Hester only ran a 4.45 at the 2006 Scouting Combine. He is now, for all you Madden lovers out there, the only player ever to be given a perfect speed of 100 on the popular game that now almost overshadows the sport its based off. Nevertheless, in a culture full of fast food restaurants and high speed internet, there's no denying speed sells. The same principle applies to the NFL Combine. Most of the Combine caters to speed. As a result, the quick, agile players should benefit from the combine the most. Look for players like California Wide Receiver DeSean Jackson or the speedy Tennessee State Cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to improve their draft stock. On the same note, players that perform poorly in the speed drills could do considerable damage to themselves. All eyes will be watching Arizona cornerback Antoine Cason, who despite winning the Jim Thorpe Award, is widely considered as slow, and subsequently has fallen out of the first round of most expert mock drafts.

One case could be LSU Wide Receiver Early Doucet. Some scouts see him as being slower than advertised, and the combine could reveal that disturbing truth. At only 6 foot tall, he needs to have a respectable forty time to keep himself from slipping further down the Draft Boards. The NFL Scouting Combine lasts from February 20 to February 26. You can catch every minute of the high paced, jaw dropping action on the NFL Network. Also see a list of the Small School Prospects invited to the NFL Scouting Combine.

By Guest Blogger: Kyle Allen

Top Small School Prospects for the 2008 NFL Draft

This is going to be a great year for small school players. I fully expect most of these players to be selected in the Draft or signed to NFL clubs as free agents. Here is NFL Draft Dog's list of my top 50 small school prospects for the 2008 NFL Draft:

1. CB Dominique Rogers-Cromartie, 6' 1" 175 lbs. Tennessee State (Combine Invite)
2. QB Joe Flacco, 6' 6" 235 lbs. Delaware (Combine Invite)
3. OT Heath Benedict, 6' 5" 320 lbs. Newberry (Combine Invite)
4. QB Josh Johnson, 6' 3" 195, San Diego (Combine Invite)
5. DE Brian Johnston, 6' 5" 277 lbs. Gardner Webb
6. OG Chad Rhinehart, 6' 4" 310 lbs. Northern Iowa (Combine Invite)
7. RB Xavier Omon, 5' 11" 218 lbs. NW Missouri State (Combine Invite)
8. WR Jerome Simpson,6' 2"190 lbs. Coastal Carolina (Combine Invite)
9. DE Kendall Langford, 6' 5" 288 lbs. Hampton (Combine Invite)
10. DE Rudy Hardie, 6' 2" 260 lbs. Howard
11. Punter Mike Dragosavich, 6' 4" 215 lbs. North Dakota State (Combine Invite)
12. WR Dexter Jackson, 5' 10" 180 lbs. Appalachian State (Combine Invite)
13. FB Jerome Felton, 5' 11" 248 lbs. Furman (Combine Invite)
14. DE Marcus Dixon, 6' 4" 296 lbs. Hampton (Combine Invite)
15. WR Pierre Garcon, 6' 0" 205 lbs. Mt. Union (Combine Invite)
16. S Antwaun Molden, 6' 2" 192 lbs. Eastern Kentucky (Combine Invite)
17. WR Bruce Hocker, 6' 3" 218 lbs. Duquense University
18. S Corey Lynch, 5' 11" 205 lbs. Appalachian State (Combine Invite)
19. OLB Brian Smith, 6' 3" 225 lbs. McNesse State (Combine Invite)
20. DE Curtis Johnson, 6' 3" 245 lbs. Clark (Atl) (Combine Invite)
21. OT Brandon Keith, 6' 5" 337 lbs. Northern Iowa (Combine Invite)
22. WR Jaymar Johnson, 6' 0" 185 lbs. Jackson State (Combine Invite)
23. OT Demetrius Bell, 6' 6" 285 lbs. NW State (LA) (Combine Invite)
24. OG Kerry Brown, 6' 6" 303 lbs. Appalachian State
25. WR Jason Jones, 6' 0" 177 lbs. Arkansas Pine-Bluff
26. WR Micah Rucker, 6' 5" 219 lbs. Eastern Illinois
27. CB Craig Turner, 5' 10" 193 lbs. Southern Illinois
28. CB Bobbie Williams, 6' 0" 193 lbs. Bethune-Cookman
29. DT Vernon Bryant, 6' 2" 292 lbs. Hampton
30. TE Mike Peterson, 6' 2" 247 lbs. NW Missouri State
31. OLB Maguell Davis, 6' 3" 235 lbs. Norfolk State
32. OLB Michael Eubanks, 6' 0" 215 lbs. Delta State
33. Kicker Rob Zarrilli 6' 0" 202 lbs. Hofstra
34. QB Ricky Santos, 6' 1" 216 lbs. New Hampshire
35. CB Cary Williams, 6' 2" 190 lbs. Washburn
36. QB Brad Roach, 6' 5" 245 lbs. Catawba
37. ILB Daniel Brooks, 6' 3" 242 lbs. Jackson State
38. OT David Hale, 6' 5" 313 lbs. Weber State
39. WR Ben Bailey, 6' 3" 210 lbs. Northwestern State (LA)
40. RB Kevin Richardson, 5' 9" 195 lbs. Appalachian State
41. S Tony LeZotte, 6' 0" 200 lbs. James Madison
42. S Kendall Ricketts, 5' 11" 198 lbs. Central Missouri
43. OG Darren Marquez, 6' 4" 298 lbs. Southern Illinois
44. CB Jon Wilson, 6' 1" 208 lbs. Sacred Heart
45. RB Danny Woodhead, 5' 9" 199 lbs. Chadron State
46. CB DeAudra Dix, 6' 0" 175 lbs. Johnson C. Smith
47. DE Vince Redd, 6' 5" 269 lbs. Liberty
48. DE Derrick Gray, 6' 4" 262 lbs. Texas Southern
49. DE William Hayes, 6' 4" 268 lbs. Winston-Salem St.
50. OT Mike Butterworth, 6' 7" 331 lbs. Slippery Rock
Honorable mention: Center Christian Morton, 6' 4" 296 lbs. South Dakota

Back to NFL Draft Dog

Interview with Josh Buchanan

Josh Buchanan covers pro prospects for D2Football.com and is regarded as one of the leading authorities on small school football talent. He has many contacts within the NFL and all levels of college football. Buchanan has been employed or written for NFLDraftScout.com, I.AA.org (now collegesportingnews.com), southernpigskin.com, and many others.

At the age of 17 he started contributing to the College Scouting Bureau and to various I-AA media. The last two years he has written for Phil Steele's Preseason Magazine, supplying information on the FCS (formerly I-AA).

He was an Assistant Sports Information Director for the Las Vegas All-American Classic for a year where he aided in player selection and served in the press box on game day. He was the game columnist for the Magnolia Gridiron Classic in 2006. In 2007 he wrote the bios for the Texas vs. Nation Game as well and the East-Coast Bowl uses his services as a contact for player information.

His information is used by personnel with the East-West Shrine, Texas vs. Nation, Inta Juice North-South, and East-Coast Bowl to this very date. His duties with all-star games and media have included player ratings, all-conference teams, profiles, scouting reports, compiling bios from school websites, watching game film, writing team previews, and aided in selection of players for the games.

He served as an intern for the Carolina Panthers training camp in 2007 and is a member of the National Football Foundation. Buchanan is a senior in college and currently resides in Lancaster, SC.

Interview:

Q: How did you first get stated evaluating small school football talent? How long have you been doing it?

A: I first started out doing it for the College Scouting Bureau and then went on to doing magazines, websites, and all-star games. This will be my 5th draft class.

Q: Where all do you work now? I know you work for d2.com, but at one point didn't you mention you will be working for the NFL?

A: D2football.com and a few all-star games. I wrote for Phil Steele this year and also cover a conference for southernpigskin.com.

Q: What are some of your methods of evaluating talent?

A: You have to watch tape. Tape never lies. Being thorough is another key thing as well. NFL teams want to know everything about the player.

Q: Do you have personal contact with these small school football prospects?

A: Yes I do.

Q: Do you still stay in contact with them after thy start playing in the NFL? Can you tell us by name any?

A: Yes I stay in contact with a few of them. I have talked to Barbre, Jones, and a few others from last year's draft class.

Q: What is your criteria for evaluating small school football players for NFL potential?

A: Size, speed, production, upside, and mostly importantly their performance on tape.

Q: I was highly impressed with your Top 15 Small School Prospects for the 2008 NFL Draft. Was it hard get it down to just 15 and are there any players that were on the bubble to be on the list?

A: Yes it was. This is a very good draft class. I expect no less than 25 and possibly 30+ to be drafted this year.

Q: It seems like the NFL is fixated with large school prospects, but the small schol guys have done prety good. Why do you think they (NFL Scouts) keep ignoring them year after year?

A: When you look at how many small school players perform well (5-8 on average per class) it really doesn't seem worth putting much more time and money into divisions that have well over 100 teams in them and only produce 30 or less players worthy of going to the combine. There is just not enough talent to warrant more time into them. That is why what we do and the all-star games are so important.

Q: What are your plans for the future? Can we expect updates of your top 15 list at NFL Draft Dog?

A: To keep doing what I am doing. Sure on the top 15.

Spotlight on Safety Corey Lynch

One of the best small school prospect in college football is Appalachian State All American Corey Lynch. He is bar none the best free safety in the D-1 Championship series (1AA), and ranks among the best in all of college football. Lynch has been among the best at every level he has played. In high school, he was named best defensive player in SW Florida (31 career interceptions). He has been a college stand out from the day he turned down a walk-on invitation from University of Florida, for a full ride scholarship to Appalachian State. Lynch is no slouch in the class room either with a double major in Physics and 3.0 GPA.

Major Accolades:

* Started free safety (10 games) as Freshman (2003)
* Only Freshman named to the all Southern Conference team
* Six interceptions as a Freshman (2003)
* Thirteen interceptions by the end his Sophomore year
* One National Championship in 2005
* 2005 all American team
* Eighteen interceptions (18) totaled by Junior year
* 2006 all American team
* Helped Appalachian to their second National championship in
2006
* 2006 broken elbow needing surgery with pins. Played in a cast,
only missed 27 days (tough as nails)
* Begins Senior season among all time ASU leaders in interceptions
#3, fumble recoveries #2, and kick blocks #2
* 2007 pre season all American
* First Appalachian player since Dexter Coakley named Three time
all American?
* Avg. 85 tackles per year, on a team full of all American (how is
that possible)
* Appalachian has not lost a home game with him on the field

No greater complement can be made then when another coach talks about game planning to keep from passing towards Lynch’s side of the field. If you look at the 2003 stats, after his fifth game(4 int’s) as safety, teams quit testing him. In 2005 after his fourth game (5 int’s), teams quit testing him. 2006 Lynch had only one interception in the first nine games against teams that knew better then throwing his way. In contrast, he had four interceptions in the final four games (including playoffs) against teams that didn’t know his history. This summer a coach from the Citadel, said it best, “hours are spent trying to know where Lynch is at on the field”.

After the discussion of Lynch being an excellent cover safety, you need to talk about his ability to make tackles (247) as safety on a team that has more all Americans then any team in America. Two National Championships in a row and the longest current home winning streak (27) in the NCAA, means that the team is full of talent. You have to be a work horse to get those kinds of numbers on a team as good as Appalachian. As a pre-season first team all American, Lynch Knows that people are watching. And if he has a break out season the draft grugrus will have to notice. But, Lynch is not concerned with where they think he will be in the draft, he says “Wherever I go, I pray, great thing happen”.

Small School Running backs for the 2008 NFL Draft

It’s been a while since I posted here in this Small School NFL Draft Blog. I have been busy working on my NFL Draft Web site and my NFL Draft Blog, but the 2007 football season is almost upon us and I will have to step up my game. We can’t ignore the small school prospects now can we? I will be covering a new position each week or two, starting with the running backs. On a side note, Division 1AA is now officially called the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), but I am going to keep referring to it as the 1AA.

Calvin Dawson, 5’ 10” 207 lbs, Louisiana Monroe
Yes the Sun Belt Conference is still Division 1, but Louisiana-Monroe (ULM) is still considered a small school program, at least in my eyes. However running back Calvin Dawson should be considered a big time talent. Last year ULM had a prospect invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, Safety Kevin Payne, and he was subsequently drafted in the 2007 NFL Draft in the 5th round by the Chicago Bears. This year they have Dawson, ast year (2006) led the Sun Belt Conference in rushing with 1,210 yards and a 5.7 yards per carry average. He started seven games and rushed for over 100 yards in each game. He actually rushed better against SEC opponents than Sun Belt opponents; he rushed for an average of 141.7 yards against three SEC opponents. He recorded his first 100-yard game of 2006 at Alabama on a season-best 7.4 per carry, and then dominated Arkansas with a 128 yard performance and a 6.7 yards per carry average. Dawson is very powerful and never retreats; he only has 48 negative yards on 213 carries.

Kevin Richardson, 5’ 9” 190 lbs. Appalachian State (1AA)
Appalachian State is such a football powerhouse loaded with stars, but the biggest star is running back Kevin Richardson. He currently holds six school rushing records, including single-season yards (1,676) and touchdowns (30), both set last year as Appalachian won its second-straight NCAA Division IAA national championship. He only needs 954 more rushing yards to break John Settle's school record of 4,409. Richardson is a little small which will hurt his evaluation from NFL Scouts.

Mike McLeod, 5’ 11” 200 lbs. Yale (1AA)
Niced sized, speedy running back, McLeod had ten games last year (2006) with over 100 rushing yards. He is only the 11th running back from Yale to ever rush for more than 1,000 yards in a single season. Voted First-Team All-Ivy last year and he established new Yale records with 20 TDs in a season. One of the very best running backs in Division 1AA, ranked sixth among I-AA runners and first in the Ivy with a 136.40 yard average.

Herb Donaldson, 5’ 11” 220 lbs. Western Illinois (1AA)
Donaldon gets kudos just playing for a school that has a cool mascot, the “Leathernecks”. But all kidding aside, Donaldson is a solid NFL prospect in his own right. Decent size and good speed, Donaldson was very productive on the football field last year, playing in all 11 games he rushed for 1,417 yards and scoring 18 TDs. He had an impressive 6. 1 yards per carry average and displayed good hands catching 14 passes for 116 yards.

Jerome Felton, 6’ 0” 247 lbs. Furman (1AA)
Powerful running back/fullback that can get the football in the end zone. Felton has decent NFL potential due to his size and strength. Last year (2006) he rushed for 711 yards and an amazing 23 touchdowns. He raely gets tackled for a loss only losing four yards all year. He is also a solid blocker at the point of attack. Unlike a lot of these small school running backs, size will not be an issue with Felton.

Danny Woodhead, 5’ 8” 200 lbs. Chadron State (D2)
I really like Woodhead, I interviewed him a couple years ago after he led Division 2 in rushing as a freshman. Last year (2006) he led all of college football in rushing with the 2,756 yards, while also recording 38 touchdowns and accumulating 3,159 all-purpose yards. Danny is a bright kid; he was a first-team Academic All-American with a cumulative GPA of 3.72. Entering his senior season, he ranks 11th on the all-time career rushing list and has rushed for 6,365 yards during his three years at Chadron. His height, or lack thereof, will limit his placement in the NFL Draft. But talent wise he could be compared to Darren Sproles, who was selected in the 4th round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers.

Justin Beaver, 5’ 8” 196, Wisconsin Whitewater (D3)
This talented very small school (Division 3) running back rushed for an impressive 2,494 yards along with 24 touchdowns last year. Beaver currently has 3,730 rushing yards with his senior season still remaining. He has talent and has dominated at Division 3, but like Woodhead will suffer from only being 5’ 8” tall. Beaver is not the talent that Woodhead is, but he deserves his accolades for dominating his opponents at his level.