DraftNasty Magazine Vol II

DRAFTNASTY Quarterly Magazine

Year 1 Volume 1 December 2011

©

A day in the life of DraftNasty

Kaiser’s 2012 MLB Big Board: Prospects 81-100 Ragin' Cajuns hitting the gas pedal

It's not a big game without the DraftNasty RV on the scene‌

Texas RF Nelson Cruz made a valiant attempt at this third inning home run by St. Louis Cardinals’ LF Allen Craig in Game 7 of the 2011 World Series.

Anticipation

Leverage

Extend and Read

Brute Strength

Vision Concentration

Chop Block

Backside Pursuit

Draftnasty.com gives an inside look at goal line football during an opening week matchup between the St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles in early September. The Eagles outlasted the Rams 31-16 in a hard-fought battle.

12 Remembering a Legend

by Lou Sahadi

17 Ragin' Cajuns hitting the gas pedal

By Corey Chavous

18 Kaiser's 2012 MLB Preseason Big Board: Prospects 81-100

20 A day in the life of DraftNasty

By Tim Martin

22 DraftNasty Playmakers Vol. I Who’s Nasty?

By Corey Chavous

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Editor’sLetter DraftNasty lives by the slogan, ‘We are the Fan!’ Our magazine’s sole purpose is to entertain and educate the core ingredient of sports…the fan. As a child, I developed a thirst for knowledge through books, magazines and recording sports content from television.

Without my mom’s (TeVerra) commitment to my passion, I would never have been able to share this dream with the sports world.

This magazine brings me more satisfaction than any play I ever made during my 11-year NFL career.

What more could I ask for? Big thanks to our Editorin-Chief Tim Martin for putting this all together.

Cutters Gloves, we thank you for believing in DraftNasty. None of this would be possible without the open arms of all the universities over the years.

Thanks, Corey Chavous

MAGAZINEstaff Corey Chavous Publisher corey@draftnasty.com

De’Angelo Bryant National Scouting Director Deangelo18@gmail.com

Tim Martin Editor in Chief tim@draftnasty.com

Al Bradley Lead Photographer Al@draftnasty.com

OURCOVER #19 Casey Hayward CB Vanderbilt 5’11 188-Senior - 4.55 (E)

Kevin Chavous Lead Videographer bochevy@gmail.com

Lou Sahadi Contributing Writer

DraftNasty Magazine is a publication of DraftNasty.com ® All Rights Reserved

80 South 80th Street, Minneapolis Minn. 55402 (612) 336 - 9300 Graphic Design by Young Morris Group, Fort Lauderdale, FL

The recent death of Raiders owner Al Davis was a somber, monumental event. If any one person shaped the landscape of the National Football League it was the visionary Davis, who was looked upon as a maverick, yet a lovable one, by those who knew him well.

The irascible Davis, whose feuding with the NFL over the last half-century was welldocumented, was a man on a mission. Like his hero General George Patton, Davis pushed on with pent up energy in reshaping the league as the central figure in creating the merger with the then underdog American Football League.

This created the bonanza that we now know as the Super Bowl, which his beloved Raiders won three times during a stormy era that earned Davis the respect of league peers.

"I don't want to be the most respected team in the league," exclaimed Davis in the Raiders’ hey days of the l980s. "I want to be the most feared."

But it was more than winning championships that defined Davis. Throughout a life of football that consumed him, Davis became a history maker.

When Davis named Art Shell as his head coach in l989, Shell became the first black coach in the history of the league. The bold move opened doors for the many others that followed, going back to Ray Rhodes, Tony Dungy, Marvin Lewis, Lovie Smith and more recently, Mike Tomlin, Raheem Morris, Jim Caldwell and Leslie Frazier. "We can all speculate about if he hadn't hired Art Shell, who would have done it,” remarked Dungy. "But, nobody had ever done it before."

And nobody had ever drafted an African-American quarterback in the first round. Long before hiring Art Shell, Davis selected former Tennessee State QB Eldridge Dickey in the first round of the 1968 NFL draft ahead of former Alabama star Ken Stabler (2nd Rd). Way back then, Davis set the tone for change. Along with Kansas City Chiefs’ head coach Hank Stram, Davis became one of the AFL’s early pioneers when it came to mining the historically black colleges for talent. I was a magazine editor in New York when I first met Davis. I admired his vision so much that I was the first national magazine to feature an AFL player on the cover of my magazine.

Davis never forgot that. When he became commissioner of the AFL, he invited me to come and work for him. I thought about it overnight, but decided to remain in the literary field.

Davis understood. "I'll see you down the road kid," he said with a wink.

The road is a lot lonelier now...

During Michigan's heartthrobbing 35-31 victory over Notre Dame on September 12th, sophomore Mustapha Badaovi (pictured far left with straw hat-holding flag) displayed the exuberance of a true Wolverine. Badaovi, who is studying to become a pharmacist, became DraftNasty's first 'Fan of the Week' for 2011

Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd caught a career-high 13 passes for 159 yards vs. Michigan on 9/10/11.

Head coach Joe Paterno’s illustrious career ended abruptly one week before his 81 Nittany Lions were set to take on Nebraska in Happy Valley. Before his departure, the legendary coach notched his 409th victory, which broke former Grambling State coach Eddie Robinson’s record for all-time victories by a Division I coach.

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Ragin' Cajuns hitting the gas pedal

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By Corey Chavous

he Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin‘ Cajuns have stormed quietly to a 6-1 start in the Sun Belt Conference behind a new coach and tremendous depth at the quarterback position.

The Ragin’ Cajuns are led by first-year head coach Mark Hudspeth, who compiled a very respectable seven-year run as North Alabama’s coach at the beginning of the 21st century. His experience in the passing game has helped open up the team’s offensive playbook.

Perhaps the most encouraging sign is that both of the team’s quarterbacks-junior Blaine Gautier and senior Chris Masson-have been honored as the SBC Offensive Player of the Week in the season’s first seven weeks. Hudspeth acknowledges that while Gautier is the clear-cut starter, each brings value to the position. “(Blaine) Gautier is a true dual-threat kid that can really throw, but Chris is a little more of a pocket quarterback that can spread the ball around,” Hudspeth explained. The first name that normally comes to mind when you mention the Ragin’ Cajun on the other end of either quarterback’s passes is 6-foot-6, 230-pound tight end Ladarius Green. While he has still been effective, it has been the play of junior wide receiver Javone Lawson which has caught the attention of Sun Belt conference opponents. He has used his 4.35 speed to attack defenses horizontally (see N. Texas-10-16-11) or vertically. Lawson changed his number from 82 to 4 before the season, but he’s still been hard to keep up with. Through seven games, he’s already bettered his 2010 receiving totals (427 yards receiving through seven games in ‘11).

Defensively, senior cornerback Dwight Bentley is the team’s top playmaker. Bentley picked off Oklahoma State’s Brandon Weeden twice in Week One (1 INT-TD return) and has three pass thefts on the season. He’s been aided in the secondary by the development of 6-foot-3 senior CB Melvin White. White has gotten his hands on balls, tackled with aggressiveness and he has also made a house call.

With so many hidden gems, is it any surprise that the first-year head coach headed south from Mississippi State (passing game coordinator in 09-10) to Lafayette, La.? “I saw this community of about a quarter of a million people just within the city limits. It’s a big community. Then you see our facilities and our campus of about 19,000 students,” Hudspeth contemplated. “The state of Louisiana, the I-10 corridor-from east Texas all the way to the Florida panhandle-Mississippi; there’s great high school football talent. I think you can do something here.”

The Cajuns stand bowl eligible at 6-1 entering this weekend’s homecoming contest vs. North Texas. The team could have 10 wins when they travel to Arizona on November 26th. But Hudspeth isn’t taking anything for granted. “What we’re trying to emphasize is we’re trying to put the foot on the gas,” Hudspeth said. “We’re not coming up for air to look around. We’re trying to work harder, prepare harder. We’re not at the point where we can take any game lightly.”

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Kaiser's 2012 MLB Preseason

Chris Taylor SS Virginia Rank Name

Position School

Class

Height Weight Bats/ Other Notes Throws

81 Hayden Hurst RHP/OF Bolles HS (FL) /1B 82 Jayce Boyd 3B/1B/ Florida State OF

SR

6’5”

235 R/R

JR

6’3”

200 R/R

83 Richie Shaffer 1B

Clemson

JR

6’3”

205 R/R

84 David Thompson

Westminster SR Christian HS (FL)

6’1”

195 R/R

85 Michael Morin RHP

North Carolina

JR

6’4”

180 R/R

86 Sam Selman

LHP

Vanderbilt

JR

6’3”

185 R/L

87 LJ Mazzilli

2B

Connecticut

JR

6’1”

190 R/R

88 Avery Romero SS/2B

Pedro Menendez SR HS (FL

6’0”

195 R/R

89 Chris Taylor

Virginia

JR

6’0”

170 R/R

Edmond Memorial HS (OK)

SR

6’2”

195 R/R

3B

SS

90 Wes Tranckino 3B

Hurst is a 2-way prospect with a low 90s fastball and good power at the plate.

Boyd has both the bat and glove to play at the next level, with good power and speed.

Shaffer is a hitting prospect due to his power, approach, and patience at the plate.

Thompson is predominantly a contact hitter with projection for some power and he has an accurate arm from third base.

Morin is a polished pitcher with great run on both his fastball and slider and is able to command them both effectively.

Selman is a hard-throwing lefty with a slider and changeup to compliment his mid-90s fastball.

Mazzilli is a very polished player with good athleticism and excellent ability at the plate.

Romero has soft hands and a strong arm to compliment his power to all fields and ability to make solid contact consistently.

Taylor hits for average and his strong arm and good speed make him versatile defensively.

Tranckino has power to all fields and is a good contact hitter. He is also a solid defensive third baseman.

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Big Board: Prospects 81-100

Austin Maddox 1B/3B Florida 91 Daniel Garner

C

Sparkman HS (AL)

SR

6’1”

195 R/R

92 Jameis Winston

OF

Hueytown HS (AL)

SR

6’4”

208 S/R

93 Steven Golden

OF

6’3”

185 R/R

94 Skye Bolt

OF

6’2”

175 S/R

95 Matt Fultz

C

6’2”

215 L/R

96 Austin Maddox

1B/3B

St. Francis SR HS (CA) Holy SR Innocents HS (GA) Lee Summit SR West HS (MO) Florida JR

6’3”

225 R/R

97 Stephen Sauter

C

Troy HS (CA) SR

6’2”

190 S/R

98 Connor Harrell

OF

Vanderbilt

JR

6’3”

215 R/R

99 Justin Jones

LHP

California

JR

6’2”

188 L/L

100 Colby Holmes

RHP

South Carolina

JR

5’11”

200 R/R

Garner has soft hands, a strong arm, 1.85 pop time behind the plate and power to all fields.

Winston has the potential to be a 5-tool centerfielder, if his power develops. Winston is a quarterback and he has been recruited to play in college.

Golden is a contact hitter with good range defensively and a strong arm.

Bolt is a switch-hitting contact hitter with good speed and a decent arm.

Fultz has a compact swing with good power and a strong arm. He has a sub-2 pop time behind the plate.

Maddox is primarily a hitting prospect, with good power primarily on the inner half, but he is also decent defensively.

Sauter has good power from both sides of the plate, an accurate arm, and a 1.81 pop time.

Harrell has good speed and power with the potential to be a 5-tool player. Harrell does need to improve his strikeouts.

Jones’s best pitch is a big breaking, slow curve. He also has a sinking fastball and a changeup with some dive.

Holmes has a low 90s fastball, a slider with swing-and-miss potential and a good changeup. His size could hurt his draft stock.

A day in the life of DraftNasty

By Tim Martin

I had a chance to spend a day with DraftNasty founder, Corey Chavous, on the road scouting talent. The Oklahoma St. SID department had just turned him down for a media credential, as I was meeting him for lunch. Corey was explaining to the gentleman on the other line how DraftNasty had received credentials in 2011 for Boise St. vs.

Georgia, Michigan vs. Notre Dame, Duke vs. Stanford, LSU vs. WVU, but the conversation ended with the gentleman saying the sidelines are too tight, request denied. Corey hung up the phone with a big smile and says, “A day in the life of DraftNasty, Tim.” The rejection couldn’t steal Corey’s joy, he was excited about the great response DraftNasty was receiving from the online 2011 draft magazine. The magazine is detailed with breakdowns on every position, with featured articles on Ryan Fitzpatrick and Aeneas Williams and a breakdown of DraftNasty’s grading scale. Cam Newton graced the cover with fellow NFL rookie Blaine Gabbert. I wanted to talk football with one of the great minds in the sports world.

Tim: “How do you feel about Michael Floyd’s senior season at Notre Dame?”

Corey: “He’s playing well, but there are question marks with off the field concerns. Let’s take a look at Mr. Floyd. I have him going against USC.” Corey plugs in an external hard drive into his Mac. He clicked on Michael Floyd’s player file and labeled clips of Michael Floyd appear on the screen.

Corey: “Take a look at the out route. BANG! Look at that boy come out of that break!”

Next clip: Floyd works over a USC corner that is playing inside leverage on a slant route.

Third clip: Floyd is playing in the slot with nobody playing over him. He runs a corner route and moves the chains for a first down.

Corey: “Did you see him raise up at the top of his break, he does that a lot. I call Floyd a Randy Moss generation receiver, good with the jump ball, but far from a polished product.”

Tim: “Man this video is clear, who shoots and edits your film?”

Corey: “I shoot and edit my own material. I’ve been collecting and editing video for years. I wear a lot of hats in a start up company.”

Tim: “You are kind of like a baseball player with five tools. You can video, edit, scout, write, and run the back end of a website.”

Corey cracks a smile, “You could say that.”

Corey pulls out a Canon 5D Mark II camera with a huge two-foot long lens. We were on the sixteenth floor of the Diplomat Hotel on Ocean Drive in Fort Lauderdale. He zooms in on a car stopped at a red light, snaps a picture of a lady putting her lipstick on in the car, that was clear as a whistle.

Sun Life Stadium 8:00 pm Section 149 Row 28 Seat 23 Notebook and pencil in hand, ready to take notes on an ACC battle Miami Hurricanes vs. Virginia. Frank Minnifield, who played for the Cleveland Browns, was one of Corey’s favorite players growing up. His son, Chase Minnifield, was on Corey’s radar and he wanted to cross check his regional scout. I’ve never seen someone takes notes so fast after each play. His former professors at Vanderbilt would be proud.

Corey: “Minnifield will bring a team a lot of value come draft time. He can cover the slot receiver, and play outside. He’s jamming the hell out of Travis Benjamin and knocking him off his routes.”

Tim: “What do you see as his weakness?”

Corey: “He sits at about seven yards and tries to get his hands on the wide receiver. Studying film of the USC game last year, Robert Woods ran by him a couple times. I’m concerned a little about his long speed.”

Miami was honoring the 2001 National Championship team at the half but the small crowd made the celebration seem mute.

After the game standing outside of Sun Life Stadium: Tim: “Where is your next stop?”

Corey: “My true passion, game 7 of the World Series, if the Cardinals can pull it out tonight. I have to run, Tim, I want to try and catch the end of the baseball game.”

I watch a next generation, five tools journalist, enter the taxi, and ride off chasing his passion.

Corey Chavous zooms in on 2012 NFL Draft

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DraftNasty’s Playmakers, Vol. I: ‘Who’s Nasty?’ #23 Isaiah Pead RB Cincinnati 5’11 200-Senior - 4.4 speed Pead’s (#23 pictured with ball) home run speed offsets his lack of elite size.

For the second year in a row, the former Ohio 400-meter state champion has averaged over 6 yards per carry. He does a fine job of pressing holes and cuts well to find lanes on zone stretch running schemes. NFL teams will find value in the senior running back’s soft hands as an extra receiver (he sometimes aligns in the #2 slot position).

•155 rushes 934 yards 6.03 ypc 10 TDs (rush) •24 receptions 193 yards 2 TDs (rec)

#3 Bobby Rainey RB Western Kentucky 5’8 205-Senior - 4.58 (E) It would be easy to dismiss Rainey as an afterthought when it comes to ranking this year’s crop of top running backs. However, a closer look reveals that he steps up versus top competition (see Nebraska-155 yards, 2010). He already holds the school record for rushing touchdowns and is the definition of a workhorse back. In fact, he holds a career-high of 48 carries in one game (MTSU ’10). Rainey will drop an occasional pass, but he’s very adept as a receiving option (30 receptions through nine games) out of the backfield.

The question? How much mileage is left on the tires of a corvette asked to run at top speeds for an undermanned team much of his career?

•Finished 3rd in the nation in 2010 with 1,649 yards rushing •Through ten games in 2011, ranks 4th in the nation with 125.4 yds/gm •Eight 100-yard rushing games through 11-12-11

#2 Chris Givens WR Wake Forest 6’1 195-Junior - 4.35 (E) Wake Forest wide receiver Chris Givens is beginning to top the list of who’s-who in college football. His explosive start to his junior season has many doing a double take. Don’t blink long, or you’ll miss him. Speed is perhaps his biggest strong suit. He was a track standout in the state of Texas (Wylie HS) and was running in the 10.6-100 meter range just a couple of months removed from an ACL injury that prematurely ended his senior year in football.

He has been electronically timed as fast as 10.44. Givens ranks third in the ACC in receptions (58), first in yards receiving (985) and is tied for second in receiving TDs (8) through nine games. “He’s consistently practicing well and

playing well,” Wake Forest HC Jim Grobe explained. “We tell our guys all the time that the most important ability is dependability, and that is what he’s doing for us right now.”

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DraftNasty’s Playmakers, Vol. I: ‘Who’s Nasty?’ #7 Aaron Corp QB Richmond 6’3 200-Senior - 4.85 (E) Corp actually beat out current USC starting QB Matt Barkley for the Trojans’ job in 2009, but a broken fibula caused him to miss most of the year.

He subsequently transferred and has established himself as at least an above average FCS division signal-caller. He lacks the bulk needed to get looks early in the draft process, but his underrated mobility and skill at throwing on the run make him a factor inside or outside the pocket. Corp is effective on bootlegs and he carries out his play action fakes with efficiency.

•64% comp pct 2,236 yards 15 TDs/10 INTs

#55 Jonathan Martin OT Stanford 6’6 304-RS Junior - 5.12 (E) The two-time All-Pac 10 left tackle (#55 pictured left) has been the general of a Stanford offensive line that has allowed just four sacks this season (through nine games). He has the natural footwork and flexibility to be a solid left tackle at the next level. The fact that he plays in a pro-style offense will have NFL teams drooling for this 6’6 specimen on the edge.

#47 Zach Brown LB North Carolina 6’2 230-Senior - 4.48 (E) He’s been a gunner on special teams due to his outstanding straight-line speed and explosiveness. The school-record holder in the indoor 60-meters is a factor as a blitzer from a variety of positions in DC Everett Withers’ multiple packages. While he’s still uneven in terms of play strength, his burst and explosiveness make him one of the ACC’s most dangerous linebackers.

•Through ten games in 2011, Brown has notched 71 tackles, 5.5 sack, 9.5 TFLs and 3 FFs •Currently ranked 11th on DraftNasty’s 2012 Big Board

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DraftNasty’s Playmakers, Vol. I: ‘Who’s Nasty?’ #40 Matt Daniels S Duke 6’1 210-Senior - 4.45 (E)

Daniels is one of the most instinctive safeties in the country. When you combine that with his explosiveness (35.5" vertical leap, 10'1” broad jump, and 4.43 forty-yard dash), you will likely find one of the most complete safety prospects in the entire land. The Academic All-ACC safety is currently second in the conference with 15 passes defended and 13 pass breakups on the season. He has been more than productive throughout his career for the Blue Devils.

#71 Cordy Glenn OT-OG Georgia 6’5 348-Senior - 5.35 (E) The former prep level All-American (#71 pictured) from Riverdale, Ga. made quite a freshman impact at offensive guard for the ‘Dawgs. He’s since developed into one of the nation's top interior line prospects. With everything on the line going into his senior year, he made the ultimate sacrifice. He swung over to the left tackle position (started there in 2009 as well) due to injuries and a relative lack of depth. Although he was uneven in the season’s first five games, he’s since settled down with good results. The roadgrader earned SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors for his performance against Florida on 10/31/11.

•Currently ranked 21st on DraftNasty’s 2012 Big Board

#85 Ryan Broyles WR-Ret Oklahoma 5'10 187-Senior - 4.52 (E) After a school-record 131 receptions in 2010, Broyles (#85 pictured) had one more chance to leave his mark on the Big 12. The senior wide receiver finished his career as the NCAA's all-time leading pass catcher with 349 receptions. He also snagged 45 touchdowns to go along with 2 punt return TDs. Broyles is a strong between the hashmarks horizontal route runner with an above average football IQ. He is electric after the catch, but he does not dominate when aligned outside the numbers. His change of direction ability allows him to get leaky yardage after the catch and his stop-n-start quickness is evident as a punt returner.

His final season came to an abrupt end with he suffered an untimely ACL tear vs. Texas A&M on November 5th. Before the injury, Broyles carried legitimate 2nd round value in this year's draft.

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DraftNasty’s Playmakers, Vol. I: ‘Who’s Nasty?’ #7 Case Keenum QB Houston 6’1 210-Senior - 4.9 (E) Keenum (#7 pictured) was granted a sixth year of eligibility after suffering a torn ACL versus UCLA early in 2010. Prior to the injury, Keenum-who completed 68% of his passes over a four-year period-was one of the smoothest quarterbacks in the nation. That silky nature has returned in 2011. The rare sixth-year senior has Houston locked and loaded for an undefeated run. He currently leads all FBS quarterbacks in pass efficiency and was named the National Player of the Week after his nine touchdown pass performance against Rice on October 27th in a rain-drenched downpour.

•Became the FBS’ all-time passing yardage leader against UAB on 11/5/11 •Holds the FBS record for most 300-yard passing games •NCAA’s all-time total offense yardage leader

#34 Jerry Franklin LB Arkansas 6’0 241-Senior - 4.70 (E) After ranking 10th in the SEC as a junior with 7.31 tackles per game in 2010, the sky was the limit for Razorback veteran Jerry Franklin (#34 pictured) heading into his senior year. He certainly has not disappointed. He was named SEC co-Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Vanderbilt on October 29th. Franklin led the Razorbacks with 10 tackles, including seven solos, and notched a career-high 2.5 tackles for loss. His 94yard fumble return for a touchdown setup a successful two-point conversion, which tied the game at 28-28 with 13:25 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks are currently ranked 8th nationally as of press time.

•2008 Stats: 81 tackles, 2 INTs, 2 FRs, 3 TFLs, 5 PBUs •2009 Stats: 94 tackles, 3 INTs, 1.5 sacks, 1 INT (85-yd INT return vs.

Texas A&M) •2010 stats: 95 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 13 TFLs

#71 Devon Still DT-DE Penn State 6’5 305-Senior - 5.25 (E) Still’s down-to-down aggression was questioned by many going into the season. Even though he’s ranked 11th on DraftNasty’s Big Board, there were many who didn’t appreciate the less than non-stop motor that he often displayed a year ago. In last year’s Outback Bowl against Florida, he (#71 pictured) finally began to display the ‘Nasty’ that NFL scouts look for in any defensive lineman. While he’s tough to move off the ball due to his overall length and mass, it’s his unique first step quickness to get skinny through gaps that has propelled him amongst the nation’s leaders in tackles for loss (15.5 thru nine games in '11). We feel he may get looks at the five-technique position if he runs well in next year’s pre-draft process.

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DraftNasty’s Playmakers, Vol. I: ‘Who’s Nasty?’ #19 Casey Hayward CB Vanderbilt 5’11 188-Senior - 4.55 (E)

Hayward has been more than advertised in his final year on campus. After receiving 2nd team All-SEC honors as a junior, he has only enhanced his reputation throughout the conference. Despite leaving four potential interception opportunities on the ground versus Arkansas on October 29th, he still ranks third in the nation with five interceptions. This comes a season after he tied for fourth in the nation with six pass thefts. He may lack tremendous timed speed, but his multi-faceted skill set has translated to eye-popping numbers across the board. In 2009, while playing primarily as a slot defender, he registered 8.5 TFLs. This season, he’s returned one interception for a touchdown and averaged 14.25 yds/carry on four rushing attempts.

#99 Vinny Curry DE Marshall 6’3 260-Senior - 4.7 (E) Curry's (#99 pictured) unique skill at getting to the QB has not gone unnoticed from NFL scouts. The big question at this point is whether he projects with his hand on the ground or as a stand-up OLB? One thing that doesn’t need to be questioned is his productivity or effort. Although he lacks elite length, Curry does a fine job of slanting on line games and plays with pretty good hand usage. He currently ranks 2nd in C-USA with 18 TFLs and 2nd in the nation with 10.5 sacks. This comes one season after he finished sixth in the country with 12 sacks.

#22 Harrison Smith S Notre Dame 6’2 214-Senior - 4.48 (E) After notching an impressive seven interceptions in 2010, Harrison Smith (#22 pictured) shot onto the radar for many NFL teams. The former LB has enjoyed a smooth transition back and forth between that position and safety. His ability to tackle in the open field is very impressive for a taller safety.

Perhaps even more noteworthy is that many within the Irish program feel the 6-foot-2, 214-pound Smith is the fastest player on the team with times believed to be in the mid-4.4 range. It’s easy to see why he’s on the radar of NFL teams as at least a viable late round special teams candidate. We feel he’s got a chance to become a starter at the next level with increased concentration on his pad level for sixty minutes.

•Smith was the Class 2A American General Tennessee Mr. Football Back of the Year (Knoxville Catholic HS-Tenn.)

•He rushed for 1,340 yards and 19 TDs, while also snagging 23 passes for six more scores

Detroit WR Calvin Johnson (#81 pictured) goes up high to dunk on Dallas' Terrance Newman on this fourth-quarter touchdown to help complete another comeback for the Lions. A week after rallying from a 20- point deficit against the Minnesota Vikings, the Motown bunch overcame a 27-3 deficit in the 2nd half to defeat the Cowboys and go 4-0 for the first time since 1980.

Jason Kokrak shot a 5-under-par 66 Sunday for a four-round total of 20-under 264 and a seven-shot victory over Mark Anderson in the rain-soaked Nationwide Tour’s Miccosukee Championship at the Miccosukee Golf & Country Club in Miami. Kokrak is now headed to the PGA Tour. His second Nationwide victory in a span of a month guarantees him his PGA Tour card for 2012 as one of the top 25 money winners on the Nationwide Tour. At the awards presentation, Kokrak was presented with a trophy and a Miccosukee tribal shirt.

Of the victory, Kokrak said, “I don’t know what to say. In a month’s span I’ve gotten two wins (the other was the Boise Albertson’s Open in Idaho). I wouldn’t have ever dreamed that I would have been in this position.

You set goals for yourself, ones that you want to meet and ones that are sort of out of reach. I’ve exceeded my goals for this”.

Vivek Jayaram celebrates the St. Louis Cardinals’ 2011 World Series title