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South, Gameday
To many NFL scouts and decision makers the highlight of the Senior Bowl is the week of practices and the game is an afterthought. There is no doubt that performances in the actual game don't carry nearly as much weight as what happens the rest of the week but personally I think it would be a mistake to totally discount what happens on gameday. I want to see who rises to the occasion and stands out amongst his peers, who just happen to be 100 of the finest prospects in the nation. I watched the entire game from the South sideline and while these are only preliminary and I'll obviously have to evaluate the tape further here are my initial thoughts:
• Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge got to air it out almost twice as many times as Colt Brennan and Andre Woodson combined and looked much better tonight than he did all week long. Ainge completed 13 of 21 passes for 159 yards, led his team on a game-winning drive and was named the South Offensive MVP.
• Tulane running back Matt Forte was named the 2008 Under Armour Senior Bowl Overall MVP after compiling 97 all-purpose yards (59 rushing and 38 receiving). Forte displayed good feet and some speed to get outside and late in the contest he had a very tough run down to the two yard line that set up the game-winning score.
• Television viewers got a glimpse of what we've been seeing from Tennessee St. cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie all week down here in Mobile when he made an athletic interception of a Joe Flacco pass. "D.R.C.", as I like to call him in my notes, was given the Under Armour Prototype Award along with Dan Connor.
• Arkansas fullback Peyton Hillis runs hard and is tough to bring down. He had a couple of nice runs in this game, highlighted by a 18 yarder right up the middle.
• Tennessee tight end Brad Cottam caught a touchdown. He has helped himself this week.
• Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan looked okay but he didn't have the big game that I anticipated. In his defense Brennan did seem to be facing a lot of pass rush pressure.
• L.S.U. fullback Jacob Hester does not seem to have much wiggle although he did adjust to the ball and make a nice catch in the passing game.
• Kentucky outside linebacker Wesley Woodyard looked as good as I've seen him all week and was seemingly in on every other play. He really flashed a lot today.
• Georgia Tech running back Tashard Choice looked awfully good, running hard and finishing his runs by delivering a blow rather than absorbing one.
• South Florida inside linebacker Ben Moffitt is obviously better in game action than he is in drills and practice. Today he laid a nice hit on Justin Forsett.
• The struggle continues for Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson. His accuracy remains an issue and he also made some very questionable decisions that led to big plays for his opponent. He may have had an impressive TD/INT ratio in college but I think that is very misleading and his decision making is sketchy at best.
• Louisiana St. outside linebacker Ali Highsmith recorded four tackles and was named the South's Defensive MVP but he didn't really stand out to me during the game.
• Georgia kicker Brandon Coutu went 1 for 2 on his field goal attempts, hitting a 20 yarder but missing from 33. Honestly, I'm not sure what to make of this guy.
• Alabama wideout D.J. Hall showed good feet on a sideline catch.
• Newberry offensive tackle Heath Benedict was beaten badly by Jason Jones on one play.
• Louisville wide receiver Harry Douglas had his best play of the week on a nice catch and run in the 4th quarter. Where was that in the practices?
• Florida wide receiver Andre Caldwell had a pretty good game, showing some elusiveness and scoring the game-winning touchdown on a two yard run.
It wasn't always pretty but the South pulled out the win and credit Erik Ainge for leading an impressive game-winning drive. There were a number of impressive performances for the South and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie is right at the top of the list but I really liked what I saw from Wesley Woodyard as well. The 2008 Under Armour Senior Bowl might be officially over but NFL Draft Countdown's coverage will continue. Be sure to stop back in the coming days for a Stock Watch with a look at who helped and hurt themselves the most in Mobile as well as an in-depth, position-by-position review of the entire week.
To many NFL scouts and decision makers the highlight of the Senior Bowl is the week of practices and the game is an afterthought. There is no doubt that performances in the actual game don't carry nearly as much weight as what happens the rest of the week but personally I think it would be a mistake to totally discount what happens on gameday. I want to see who rises to the occasion and stands out amongst his peers, who just happen to be 100 of the finest prospects in the nation. I watched the entire game from the South sideline and while these are only preliminary and I'll obviously have to evaluate the tape further here are my initial thoughts:
• Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge got to air it out almost twice as many times as Colt Brennan and Andre Woodson combined and looked much better tonight than he did all week long. Ainge completed 13 of 21 passes for 159 yards, led his team on a game-winning drive and was named the South Offensive MVP.
• Tulane running back Matt Forte was named the 2008 Under Armour Senior Bowl Overall MVP after compiling 97 all-purpose yards (59 rushing and 38 receiving). Forte displayed good feet and some speed to get outside and late in the contest he had a very tough run down to the two yard line that set up the game-winning score.
• Television viewers got a glimpse of what we've been seeing from Tennessee St. cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie all week down here in Mobile when he made an athletic interception of a Joe Flacco pass. "D.R.C.", as I like to call him in my notes, was given the Under Armour Prototype Award along with Dan Connor.
• Arkansas fullback Peyton Hillis runs hard and is tough to bring down. He had a couple of nice runs in this game, highlighted by a 18 yarder right up the middle.
• Tennessee tight end Brad Cottam caught a touchdown. He has helped himself this week.
• Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan looked okay but he didn't have the big game that I anticipated. In his defense Brennan did seem to be facing a lot of pass rush pressure.
• L.S.U. fullback Jacob Hester does not seem to have much wiggle although he did adjust to the ball and make a nice catch in the passing game.
• Kentucky outside linebacker Wesley Woodyard looked as good as I've seen him all week and was seemingly in on every other play. He really flashed a lot today.
• Georgia Tech running back Tashard Choice looked awfully good, running hard and finishing his runs by delivering a blow rather than absorbing one.
• South Florida inside linebacker Ben Moffitt is obviously better in game action than he is in drills and practice. Today he laid a nice hit on Justin Forsett.
• The struggle continues for Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson. His accuracy remains an issue and he also made some very questionable decisions that led to big plays for his opponent. He may have had an impressive TD/INT ratio in college but I think that is very misleading and his decision making is sketchy at best.
• Louisiana St. outside linebacker Ali Highsmith recorded four tackles and was named the South's Defensive MVP but he didn't really stand out to me during the game.
• Georgia kicker Brandon Coutu went 1 for 2 on his field goal attempts, hitting a 20 yarder but missing from 33. Honestly, I'm not sure what to make of this guy.
• Alabama wideout D.J. Hall showed good feet on a sideline catch.
• Newberry offensive tackle Heath Benedict was beaten badly by Jason Jones on one play.
• Louisville wide receiver Harry Douglas had his best play of the week on a nice catch and run in the 4th quarter. Where was that in the practices?
• Florida wide receiver Andre Caldwell had a pretty good game, showing some elusiveness and scoring the game-winning touchdown on a two yard run.
It wasn't always pretty but the South pulled out the win and credit Erik Ainge for leading an impressive game-winning drive. There were a number of impressive performances for the South and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie is right at the top of the list but I really liked what I saw from Wesley Woodyard as well. The 2008 Under Armour Senior Bowl might be officially over but NFL Draft Countdown's coverage will continue. Be sure to stop back in the coming days for a Stock Watch with a look at who helped and hurt themselves the most in Mobile as well as an in-depth, position-by-position review of the entire week.
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