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Shrine Game Review - Those Who Impressed
The East-West Shrine Game in St. Petersburg, Florida last night, had its share of big plays, sloppy play, stars, and duds. Guys like B.J. Coleman from Tennessee-Chattanooga and Lennon Creer from Louisiana Tech made big plays throughout the night while most certainly getting themselves noticed by the dozens of NFL scouts in attendance. On the other side, quarterbacks John Brantley of Florida and Dan Persa of Northwestern had games to forget. Part 1 of my analysis will be of players who played well last night and who did themselves some favors.
B.J. Coleman (Tennessee Chattanooga) - Coleman was
10-15 on the night for 169 yards, one touchdown, and zero turnovers. More impressively, however, was that he was 6-6 for over 100 when he was pulled in the second quarter. Coleman showed the arm strength that he’d displayed all week but what was most noticable was his accuracy and ball placement. Coleman had struggled throughout the week hitting receivers in stride and on target, but he looked fantastic early on. In his second stint, after an extended stay on the bench, Coleman started cold but put it together a little in the 40 second drill at the end of the game. With his team down by seven, Coleman lead a drive to the West’s 40 before time ran out. He made more NFL throws than any of the other quarterbacks who played and should make an interesting project for an NFL team with an established starter.
Lennon Creer (Louisiana Tech)
- The bruising runner had double the yards and double the carries of anyone else in the game. He finished the game with 15 carries for 80 yards and the go-ahead score. Creer showed good burst on many of his stretch runs getting to the edge and being able to turn the corner and pick up productive yardage even when there weren’t large lanes to run through. He did have a drop in the game and tripped over his own man early, but as the game went on Creer seemed to get stronger. His finishing ability teamed up with Western Kentucky’s Bobby Rainey was impressive.
Chase Ford (Miami)
- The Hurricane tight end did not produce great numbers of the course of his two seasons in Coral Gables but he provided probably the best offensive highlight of the night. Late in the first quarter, Ford ran a seam route on the right hash. Coleman threw it up and Ford was able to leap up, make the catch over the trailing linebacker and take a hit from the safety coming over the top. Not only did he hold on, but he stayed on his feet and ran another 30 or so yards before he was brought down after a gain of 64. Coleman showed the athleticism and play making ability that had been evident all week at practice. At 6’6 and 250, he has the makings of a very good red zone threat at the next level. His blocking was better than expected as well.
Tyler Hansen (Colorado)
- I’m going to call right now that if Tyler Hansen makes an NFL roster, he will be a fan favorite and one of those guys like Bruce Gradkowski who will be in the league a long time because of his toughness and athleticism. To be honest, looking at this game like a “college” all-star game, Hansen was the most impressive of the quarterbacks. He finished the game 12-17 for 144 yards; also adding 18 yards and a score on the ground. Hansen showed good accuracy on his throws and although he’s only 6’1 (if that), he was able to make plays over the middle and made a nice touch pass to North Carolina State tight end, George Bryan where he was able to look over a rusher and drop it in for a nice gain. He also hit Kevin Koger on a crossing route that turned into a nice play after the Michigan tight end made the first guy missed and withstood a huge hit from Coastal Carolina corner, Josh Norman, to get an extra yard or so. Hansen’s mobility was very evident and his toughness and grit had to have made a positive impression.
Kyle Wilber (Wake Forest)
- The Demon Deacon defensive end was a demon on the field. Wilber was everywhere tackling running backs in the backfield, pulling down receivers down field, and chasing quarterbacks all night long. The consensus in the press box was that had the East won, Wilber was the game’s MVP (despite a great game from Coleman). Wilber only finished the game with one sack but was very close to two as he pulled Dan Persa down a hair passed the line of scrimmage. Wilber’s speed and explosiveness were his most impressive attributes as he was not only able to chase running backs down but bring them down dead in their tracks. He has the frame to be a scary 3-4 rushing linebacker but has the strength and rushing ability to play end if he can put on some weight. He may just be the steal of the draft come April.
Jarius Wright (Arkansas)
- Wright was as advertised; FAST. Wright was the only true vertical threat during the game and made one big play down the field. On a play-action pass, Wright ran a double move and was able to get behind Norman for a gain of 41 catching the ball with the safety closing in. Wright’s stop and start ability on this play was very impressive as Norman bit on the fake pretty badly. However (although this may be a testament more to Norman than against Wright), Norman seemed to close back in on him but undercut the route looking for the pick assuming he had safety help; he didn’t. Wright also beat his man deep again late in the game but Chandler Harnish’s pass got caught up in the air and was intercepted by Penn State safety, Nick Sukay. Wright helped his draft stock by proving he could be a vertical threat as well as a quick hit guy from the slot.
Honorable Mention:
Kevin Koger (Michigan) - 1 rec, 8 yards, but threw some nice blocks from FB position.
Bobby Rainey (WKU) - 10 touches, 56 yards, probably most versatile back, longest run of day on nice cutback.
Blair Walsh (UGA) - all of his kicks went at least 5 yards in end zone, 1/1 on FGs and 2/2 on PATs
Tank Carder (TCU) - A less impactful game than Wilber but similar. He was impressive in coverage and actually had good position on Ford’s 64 yard play.
B.J. Cunningham (MSU) / Laron Byrd (Miami) - Put these two together because they were both physical specimens that made NFL like scores in Red Zone. Cunningham broke a tackle on a screen and Byrd used body to score on a slant in the end zone.
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