I just wanted to do a quick post about the upcoming NFL draft tomorrow.
First off, thank god there will be some football related talk going on in this sea of early season baseball (boring) and NBA Playoffs (I couldn’t care less). Football is a year round gig now, and I love it.
Second, everyone around here is talking about which former Boise State Broncos might get drafted, to which teams, in what round, etc. I don’t worry to much about things like that, as my ultimate love is BSU. What they do after is great, but not the end-all for me.
But, I do just have to get down a huge “WHAT THE HELL??” when I read about which players the scouts and pundits are saying have their stock rising. Particularly in the case of Nevada quarterback Jeff Rowe.
Now, I watched him play against Boise State multiple times. In person. The scouts are saying that he has pro size (6’5″) and a good arm and comes from a passing offense. That may be. But to anyone who has watched him will know this.
First, for some reason, his coach had him playing in that bastardized “pistol” formation for 2 years. Basically, he never lined up under center. Uh, not exactly how the NFL is played there, chief. I can only assume that they used such an unusual offense to hide some major flaw that was in his game. Maybe he has a problem taking the snap. Maybe his footwork is bad dropping back. Maybe he’s slow and needs that extra time. Who knows? One thing is certain… he has not played a “pro style” offense at all.
Second, and more egregious in my opinion is this. In his team’s home finale, in front of his own fans, on senior day, and on national TV, his team could have knocked off the 4 time WAC champion, sealed a nice bowl game and spoiled everything for the Broncos. I was there to see the game and was legitimatley frightened that we might lose. And you know what he did in that game? He crapped the bed. It was one of the worst performances I have ever seen. They were riding a 5 game winning streak (including back to back 42 point games) and could have secured a share of the WAC title. He ended that game an absolutely atrocious 6-15 for 35 total yards. He did not make a single play all game. Not one.
How you can be concidered a pro prospect when you can tank the biggest game of the season, and possibly your college career, like that is beyond me.
Maybe it’s because he’s still got Nevadatude.