Tuesday February 17, 2009

Maryland Preview; NFL Combine

Maryland Preview
Who can figure out this Clemson basketball team? With six games remaining in the regular season, the Tigers must win tonight in order to keep up with the rest of the teams attempting to get a bye in the first round of the ACC tournament.

Maryland enters tonight game with a 16-8 overall record and a 5-5 mark in the conference. The Terps have a three out of conference losses but the one to Morgan State at home really hurts the RPI. The Gonzaga loss was not a big deal but the loss to Georgetown does not look quite as impressive since the Hoyas have struggled.

The Terps beat Georgia Tech at home for their first conference win of the year but then lost four of their next five ACC games. Since that poor stretch Maryland has rebounded to take three of their last four in the ACC including the conference’s second longest winning streak which is only two games.

Maryland is 1-4 on the road in the ACC with their lone victory coming at Georgia Tech when they won 57-56 in Atlanta. The Terps are coming off of their best win of the year, a ten-point win at home against Virginia Tech.

The Terps’ flex offense is led by point guard Greivis Vasquez, a 6-6 junior. His size makes for a difficult match up and is part of the reason Vasquez averages 16 points and five rebounds per game.

Maryland’s main post threat is Landon Milbourne, a 6-7 junior who puts up 13 points a game. However the Terps are not a very big team. In fact, Maryland looks like a good matchup for the Tigers because they are not like FSU, Wake Forest and UNC. Those teams are long and athletic in the post but Maryland does not have those types of athletes.

One key stat to look for tonight is rebounding. When Clemson rebounds well they usually win the game. Maryland is last in the ACC in rebounding margin.

Clemson’s Offensive Players at the Combine
The NFL Combine starts tomorrow in Indianapolis and Clemson has six players on the initial official invitee list. There are changes to the list sometimes but of the 360 players invited James Davis, Cullen Harper, Aaron Kelly, Dorell Scott, Michael Hamlin and Chris Clemens were on the list.

Today I will preview the offensive players representing Clemson at the combine and tomorrow I will look at the defensive players.

James Davis is listed around 5-10 and 210 heading into the combine. He did not have a great senior season and some of his weaknesses showed up in the Senior Bowl week. The concerns over his blocking and catching football are legitimate. Also, he does not have great top end speed. However, Davis is a productive player that will impress the NFL guys in his individual interviews. He is a high character guy that should rank among the top ten running backs in this draft. Outside of Chris Wells and Knowshon Moreno, there is not another back at the combine that Davis does not have a chance to pass even though he comes in ranked by many closer to number ten. At this time he is between number five and number 12 but he has a chance to improve starting this week. I think the scouting services that have Davis as a third or fourth rounder are about right. I do think he will play in the league several seasons.

Cullen Harper is about 6-4 and 220. He was ranked very high heading into his senior season based upon a strong junior campaign. His senior season was a disaster from the scouts stand point though. Not only did his productivity decrease (27 touchdowns and six picks as a junior compared to 12 touchdowns and 13 picks as a senior) but his mechanics looked worse too. Some NFL people will question his intangibles like leadership. Harper did not impress many teams in the Senior Bowl week but gets another chance to make up for lost ground in the combine and individual workout. Scouting services have him around the 8-12 range in terms of quarterbacks in the draft and some think he will go between the fourth and sixth rounds.

Aaron Kelly is listed at 6-5 and 190 pounds. Scouts like his height but would like to see a little more size and strength. Kelly will impress scouts in his individual workouts because of the way he controls his body and adjusts to the football. He will not impress too much with his top end speed and blocking. It is a deep draft at wide receiver but I could see Kelly going from the fourth to sixth round depending on his work in the next two months.

Tyler Grisham is about 5-11 and 190 pounds. He is a player that was not invited to the combine but will have a chance to work with scouts in individual workouts. Grisham is not as talented as many in this terrific group of receivers and may not get drafted. However, he will get a chance to impress an NFL team in camp and I think if he stays with it, he may eventually stick with a team. The NFL is full of undersized tough receivers that catch the ball well. Grisham runs well enough to play in the league and I think at some point he will get a chance to stick with a team.

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Prayer List
We have started a prayer list on the blog. Here are the guidelines:
*If you are offended by prayer or prayer lists then I apologize in advance. The blog is free and the prayer list will be on the bottom of the page so you don’t have to read it.
*If you would like to add someone to the list please e-mail me at mickeyplyler@hotmail.com
*If you want the reason for the prayer to be added to the name please specify in your e-mails.
*Please let me know when it is appropriate to take the person off of the prayer list

Those who need our prayers include:
Finn Brookover, Mrs. Kathleen Bowers, Larry in Naples, FL, RTG-Pawsitive Tiger, Kaitlyn L, Mary-Louise Pawlowski (John's daughter), Sandy Wright, Jo Ann Bachman, Frank Taylor, Kenneth Bryant, Pruitt Martin, Got igers and his family, David Rowland, Leonard Gillespie and his family, Jim S, Christine Hepfer, Daniel Rosborough, Amy Murphey, Jack Huffman, Nancy Winkler, Dr. Nancy Strom Morgan, Ronnie Queen, Edward Putman, John Reeve, Eileen Woodrum, Ethel Southard, Anna Rawl, Vinnie Brock.