Thoughts from Day One at the Combine... Lineman, tight ends and kickers, oh my! 9:32:54 PM: Just a coverage update...
click here to listen to the Draftbuster's Falconcast from Day One at the Combine. Goodnight from Indy.
9:18:11 PM: Tulane running back
Matt Forte was a pleasant surprise in this year's
Senior Bowl, rushing for a game-high 59 yards and catching four passes out of the backfield for 38 yards.
He was also one of the surprises in Thursday's round of Combine interviews.
He was the last player to speak and the only running back made available to the media (the rest of the group will be interviewed later in the event).
What reporters got from Forte was sincere, straight-forward answers ranging from his desire to prove Tulane athletes can compete with those from the BCS and how he and his team copped when Hurricane Katrina hit campus more than two years ago.
Forte said the events surrounding the hurricane, which include the displacement of his team and his family from their Slidell, La. home, helped him "mature as a football player."
When it comes to his life on the field, the Senior Bowl opened some eyes.
"It gave me a big boost because some people say Conference USA isn't at the same level as the SEC," he said.
"I'm ready to get started (at the Combine) and get to test day and see how I compare to them."
When it comes to size, Forte is above average.
At 6-foot-2 and 222 pounds, he has the build to pick up linebacker blitzes and, thus, become a three-down back in the NFL.
In four years at Tulane, Forte also rushed for 39 touchdowns and averaged just a shade under 100 yards per game on the ground while ranking second in all-purpose yards (5,261), rushing yards (4,265), rushing attempts (833) and 100-yard rushing games (16).
With numbers -- and a story -- like that, it's hard to imagine he'll be a surprise to anyone come draft day.
4:06:08 PM: Well, it's been a long day and we're packing up the mobile command center over in the media room. We'll have more coverage for you tonight after dinner including some notes on running back Matt Forte and our nightly Falconcast.
3:36:33 PM: It's not to late to get your questions in for Matt, Al and I's nightly podcast from the AF.com headquarters (hotel room). Click here to submit a question.
2:31:59 PM: Not every player that comes into the media room gets a spot on stage. Some are placed at banquet-style tables for a more informal Q & A.
As the content of Texas A&M tight end Martellus Bennett's conversation with the media came to light, more and more reporters and cameras started gathering around.
Bennett developed a relationship with Bills tight end Kevin Everett when he went on a recruiting visit the Miami. Everett suffered a severe neck injury in the first week of the 2007 season and -- for a moment -- doctors weren't sure if he'd be able to walk again.
Bennett wore Everett's number for a game last season.
"He had a little tear in his eye," Bennett said. "You could tell he was touched by it. A lot of people thought I did it for publicity, but it was more for a friend."
Bennett will leave Texas A&M early to have his own shot at the NFL.
He had more than 500 yards receiving last season and averaged five knockdown blocks per game.
He thought long and hard before leaving the school, where he also played basketball.
"I felt like I could do much more as far as progressing as a player so I decided to come out," he said.
Now he could continue his career with any number of NFL teams... perhaps the Bills.
2:03:31 PM: We got to meet Jake Long a little earlier.
Much has been heard about his NFL-ready body and NFL-caliber stats (two penalties and one sack-allowed during his Michigan career).
With that, it's easy to see why the 6-foot-7, 317-pound tackle is expected to go high in the NFL Draft.
His entrance into the media room here drew the largest crowd of the day among offensive lineman, but once he made it to the podium, he was just "OL 26."
At least he was until his eye-popping stats came up in conversation.
"I actually got (a penalty) this season," he said with a smile. "I had a false start against Northwestern. The other was a holding penalty during my redshirt freshman year."
How do you do that?
"I think it's a skill," he said. "I make sure to get my hands inside so, if I hold, the referee won't see it."
I guess that proves Falcons defensive line coach "Sugar Bear" Hamilton's theory:
"Offensive lineman are big, fat hogs that hold you," he said.
And the games continue...
12:29:38 PM: Most players who switch sports allegiances from soccer to football fall under the kicking or punting category.
Not the case for for UTEP's Oneil Cousins, who was a soccer player before switching to football in 2000.
I must admit, it was hard to picture Cousins, who tips the scales at 304 pounds running around on a soccer field. Yet, he played goalie and sweeper during his time on the pitch.
Then he found a new love.
"I gave it a shot and I fell in love with it," he said of football. "I don't play (soccer) that much any more."
Cousins, who said he allowed one sack last season, also played defense early in his career for the miners.
11:13:44 AM: Maybe it was the
lunar eclipse last night, but I've seen more and more stories this morning that practically write themselves.
Take the kicker the NFL just brought in for an interview:
- First player in Combine history to come from St. Xavier (that's an NAIA school).
- He's also a closer on the school's baseball team (kicker... closer... great connection there).
- He got his invite to the Combine the day after Christmas (OK, this is getting ridiculous).
Longest
said he chose St. Xavier over schools like Northwestern, mostly because
his family couldn't afford the walk-on year other schools were asking
of him.
He was happy to get the chance to play baseball in college, which revealed a little bit about his passion.
"I
like having the limited opportunities," he said when talking about his
role as a game-winning kicker and relief pitcher. Pressure situations
have always been my thing."
Longest said he's hit a 55-yard field
goal in a game and has made 75-yarders in practice. He was also the
school's only "kicker," handling punts, kickoffs and field goals.
He'll try to make a name for himself as a kicker at the Combine, however.
"It's been the time of a lifetime so far," he said.
10:43:56 AM: I've made it in on two player interviews so far and I feel like the questions and answers could be put on auto pilot... at least for the first three minutes.
Who's your agent?
Do you plan on working out?
What's your measurements?
What teams have you met with?
(pause)
Then the interview really starts.
These questions, of course, are vital for sports writers looking to build early relationships with this next crop of NFL talent and build good sources for future stories.
But man, are they boring.
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