Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[URL="http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/articles/washington-redskins/76-mocks-munched-bradford-clausen-tied-to-redskins.html"][B]http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/articles/washington-redskins/76-mocks-munched-bradford-clausen-tied-to-redskins.html[/B][/URL]

[QUOTE]Since the [URL="http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/MockDraft.htm"][B]NFL Mock Draft Database[/B][/URL] has been doing it's weekly Mock Munch of the week's most updated Mocks, QB [URL="http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/tag/sam-bradford.html"]Sam Bradford[/URL] has always been the leader at #4. Not anymore. Add in [URL="http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/tag/jimmy-clausen.html"]Jimmy Clausen[/URL]. Our Mock Database now consists of 208 mocks draft, 166 of which have been updated in January. Of those, 21 have been updated over the past two days. For the Mock Munch, we munched together the mock drafts updated between 1/21 and 1/28, a total of 76 mocks. This is interesting. Of the 76 most updated mocks, 58 project the Redskins to take a Quarterback while only 18 project Offensive tackle.
[/QUOTE]

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

id rather have clausen imo. everything ive seen from bradford is from the shotgun, ok ran a spread offense, when he was under center it was to run or play action pass.

im just worried about bradford's game transitioning to the nfl since he very rarely throws from being under the center and his shoulder injury.

my personal choice of clausen over bradford is pretty much based off walter footballs analysis, which was so glowing it had me questioning it b/c there is no way clausen can be everything they said he was.

either way, im just so happy to have competent people like allen and shanny doing the evaluation.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

this has already been posted as a thread hasn't it?

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

I would love us to look at Russell Okung, Anthony Davis, or Trent Williams. Neither of these QBs to me are worthy of the 4th pick.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

I would like for us to take the qb that is least similar to Heath Shuler.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=PennSkinsFan;658842]I would love us to look at Russell Okung, Anthony Davis, or Trent Williams. Neither of these QBs to me are worthy of the 4th pick.[/quote]

I'm with you. If Okung is there at #4 I think they'd have to have a very good reason to pass him up. I don't think either of these guys are a good enough reason. If we take a QB, I would have to think Shanny is completely sold on him.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=diehardskin2982;658840]this has already been posted as a thread hasn't it?[/quote]

There has been three different threads since January 1st dealing with Mock Drafts and how they relate to the Redskins and Sam Bradford. I thought there was a draft forum.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

Clausen might not have the intangibles that Bradford has but from what I've seen there are two key differences in Clausens favor. One he has played through injury (Bradford tried but it came back to haunt him) and two he's played under center in a pro style offense. Also from the TD passes I saw from Clausen they were placed very well. In other words either the reciever was going to catch it or no one was getting it.

Heres a video. Another thing I liked about Clausens TD passes were they were thrown to multiple receivers, where when I first loaded the video I expected a bunch of TD passes to Golden Tate but that wasn't the case.
[YT]hHuwPPRC6H4[/YT]

Personally I feel like this is a very deep QB class and right now we have the chance to grab one of the top tier prospects to possibly be our franchise QB for the next 10 years. I mean even the second tier guys like Tebow and McCoy are probably going to be solid for someone.

I personally think Tebow is going to prove a lot of people wrong about his ability to QB in the NFL but he'll probably fit best in a place like Jacksonville with their strong running game and his ability to throw the deep ball.

Then you have the third tier guys like Pike and LeFevour one of which will probably emerge as a starter down the line.

I'd also like to add that in terms of personallity Bradford reminds me a lot of Matt Schuab in that he's relatively quiet and laid back which in that case you could bring up Campbell. Clausen on the other hand reminds me of Phillip Rivers in terms of personality. For example if we ever played the Bears I could easily see Clausen yelling at Cutler from the sidelines talking trash
[YT]LsSpYLU7Ig0[/YT]

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

I'm higher on Clausen than Todd McShay is, certainly I feel he's a first-round type at least, and I'd rank him above Sam Bradford in a generic rankings list of the draft prospects, but (and I'll probably repeat this no less than fifteen times between now and draft day) my most generous projections for him see him as a Campbell clone.

If he can't get the ball out any better than Campbell, he doesn't complete any more of his passes than Campbell, and his YPA is ultimately just as dependent on his teammates as Campbell's is, it simply wouldn't be a significant upgrade.

Sam Bradford is a different breed of quarterback, something we haven't tried already. But the fact that I have Clausen ranked behind our incumbent (based on total career peak value), but ahead of Bradford suggests that Bradford would also be tough to justify at No. 4.

With that said, it's not hard to see Sam Bradford as wildly successful in the NFL. It's just really hard to see him (or Clausen) as a savior. I just don't think Peyton Manning or Philip Rivers is walking through that door anytime soon.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GTripp0012;658871]
Sam Bradford is a different breed of quarterback, something we haven't tried already. But the fact that I have Clausen ranked behind our incumbent [B](based on total career peak value)[/B], but ahead of Bradford suggests that Bradford would also be tough to justify at No. 4.

[/quote]

Where can you find these numbers? I thought KC Joyner from ESPN did something like that. If I remember right it was a combination of career starts and completion percentage that served as the best indicators of success in the NFL.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

Two words...........Colt McCoy (2nd Round).

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658873]Where can you find these numbers? I thought KC Joyner from ESPN did something like that. If I remember right it was a combination of career starts and completion percentage that served as the best indicators of success in the NFL.[/quote]My projections are different from Joyner's and slightly deviant from the Lewin Career Forecast (see link), but [URL="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3350135"]this[/URL] article is a nice one about the 2008 draft, with the FO peak projection value system, including the neccessary tepidations about Matt Ryan that I shared at the time.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

What type of QB is Bradford? who do you feel his game compares most to?

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=diehardskin2982;658879]What type of QB is Bradford? who do you feel his game compares most to?[/quote]Anecdotally, I think he some mix of Eli Manning or Steve McNair on the high end, or Jon Kitna/JP Losman on the low end. All of those guys were primarily pocket passers with quick releases and relative athleticism, but the guys who made it were good decision makers under pressure. The guys who ended up being backups or out of the league were poor decision makers under pressure.

I think we (I?) know a lot more about Clausen's mediocre ability to adjust to adverse conditions, compared to Bradford, who is an unknown from that one aspect.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=PennSkinsFan;658842]I would love us to look at Russell Okung, [B]Anthony Davis[/B], or Trent Williams. Neither of these QBs to me are worthy of the 4th pick.[/quote]

Davis was repeatedly suspended in college for discipline issues. I'm not sure that he is our boy.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

please get off the colt mccoy fling...todd mcshay has him as a 5th or 5th rounder at best

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Lotus;658889]Davis was repeatedly suspended in college for discipline issues. I'm not sure that he is our boy.[/quote]

Davis has a very high upside, but I was disappointed to hear that he has "lazy" issues.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=tootergray34;658891]please get off the colt mccoy fling...todd mcshay has him as a 5th or 5th rounder at best[/quote]Except that he has him in the second. And he's probably the best quarterback in the draft, with regards to Shanahan's scheme.

It's why I have a tough time believing we will actually go QB with the 4th pick. Shanahan might pass on McCoy, but only if he actually thinks that we're fine at QB. Otherwise, he makes a whole bunch of sense for us in the second round, especially if we can trade down to the middle of the round, and pick up a third round pick.

I think we're way more likely to trade down in the second than in the first anyway.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=diehardskin2982;658879]What type of QB is Bradford? who do you feel his game compares most to?[/quote]

I'm still trying to figure that out. Though I think if Kurt Warner had played at a highly touted program and was projected to be a top 10 pick he would have been Sam Bradford.

I actually have been saying that he could be like Phillip Rivers but I think that was more a reference to the caliber of QB I believed he could become. The fact of the matter is Clausen actually seems pretty similar to Rivers coming out of college. For starters people couldn't really agree where Rivers was going to be selected in the first. SI had him as a mid first round pick going into the draft. Rivers also started his first year.

Both of them also had an odd throwing motion coming out of college, high completion percentages in their final year, and defenses that couldn't support the offense (NC State was 8-5 in Rivers final year).

It'll probably take more time but I'll find a comparison for Bradford, though there might not really be one. Still I have heard people refer to him as a non-fiery version of Peyton Manning.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=diehardskin2982;658879]What type of QB is Bradford? who do you feel his game compares most to?[/quote]

Rick Mirer.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GTripp0012;658877]My projections are different from Joyner's and slightly deviant from the Lewin Career Forecast (see link), but [URL="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3350135"]this[/URL] article is a nice one about the 2008 draft, with the FO peak projection value system, including the neccessary tepidations about Matt Ryan that I shared at the time.[/quote]

Thanks. Though this part kind of ticked me off:
[quote]"If Flacco is as good as scouts believe he is, why didn't Wannstedt see that he was better than Palko? Wannstedt may not be the best coach in college football, but it is hard to believe he was that wrong."[/quote]

This empty circular logic is being used by journalist way to much. It assumes that a guy like Dave Wannstedt couldn't possibly make a mistake. All we seem to hear these days is "for a reason" "happened for a reason" especially when journalist become desperate for a scoop. We don't even look at possibilities like politics or human error. This isn't an exact science. Mistakes happen.

Nevertheless good article, shady journalism.

[quote=Buster;658901]Rick Mirer.[/quote]

Lol, I think Bradford is capable of throwing to both sides of the field. I forget though, which one was Mirer's good side?

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658902]Thanks. Though this part kind of ticked me off.

"If Flacco is as good as scouts believe he is, why didn't Wannstedt see that he was better than Palko? Wannstedt may not be the best coach in college football, but it is hard to believe he was that wrong."

This empty circular logic is being used by journalist way to much. It assumes that a guy like Dave Wannstedt couldn't possibly make a mistake. All we seem to hear these days is "for a reason" "happened for a reason" especially when journalist become desperate for a scoop. We don't even look at possibilities like politics or human error. This isn't an exact science. Mistakes happen.

Nevertheless good article, shady journalism.[/quote]Yeah, it's not good logic. Wannedstedt in particular has never been a great judge of talent.

Still, it's hard even in hindsight to view the Ravens choice of Flacco as either a positive or a negative. In honesty, he seems like the perfect idea of what a team should expect when they take a quarterback in the bottom half of the first round. Without delving into the loaded term "franchise quarterback", Flacco is a very sound prospect who can distribute the ball to a bunch of different receivers, but has to do a lot of improving to ever be a valuable quarterback at the next level.

I've always wondered what the logic is with taking guys like Flacco/Campbell/Freeman/Ramsey is at the back end of round one. If you don't "have" a quarterback, these guys are all really good quarterbacks to have on your team. They're all average to above average players (or in Ramsey's case, potential, pending patience), and all would be very good if they had the same tools that a guy like Aaron Rodgers has around him. But a lot of these teams never planned on putting the tools to succeed around them. It simply wasn't part of the team building plan.

To me, if you're not going to bother building around a quarterback, it's not hard to find general competency at the position for the run first offense. It's in fact, quite easy and cheap to find a competent quarterback. There's two or three free agents every year...in fact, every two or three years a future hall of famer (like Warner or Favre) will hit the open market.

The Lions are clearly making every attempt to build around Stafford. The Jets had a pretty good situation to begin with and decided Braylon Edwards might be able to help them with Sanchez. The Bengals built quickly around Palmer after drafting him, although they've now become far less reliant on the quarterback these days. The Texans certainly tried to put an offense around Carr at the expense of the defense, although, ultimately, there wasn't enough there to work with. Even the Raiders have built hard around JaMarcus Russell, though they tend to suck at it it.

There's something about teams that take quarterbacks later on in the first round (Browns, Bucs, Redskins, Ravens) where they treat the position on a year to year basis that just makes you wonder what they were thinking when they made the draft choice. And consequently, I think players drafted in that 12-14 pick span are collectively underachieving their draft projections, in part because teams are acting oddly post-draft pick.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

I still say trade down and and get one of the OT and Iupati, then a QB.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

The whole Bradford Clausen debate isn't worth a hill of beans. There are so many decent QBs in this years draft it isn't even funny. I will keep saying this til draft day, and that is Bradford is just the latest guy in a great system under Stoops. Sure he has NFL talent, and had crazy stats at Oklahoma, but look at the talent surrounding him also. I am talking about his line, receivers, and backs. Not to mention that the Big 12 isn't known for defense either. As for his shoulder, why take a chance on that? I mean he injured it twice the same season and didn't even participate in his bowl game. Sorry Bradford boosters, but this guy is going to pop his shoulder with one hit from Ware. Our line, no matter what we do won't be completely turned around within a year. The guys to go for are the guys that made things happen when they weren't surrounded by gobs of talent. Guys like Lefevour, Stull, Kafka, Sheehan, etc. My fav guy thus far is Kafka since I have seen the most of him being from Big 10 country. With Kafka, Northwestern went 8-4, but if they didn't have him that was a 2-10 or 3-9 team at best. Lefevour is the same way, with better stats.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GTripp0012;658893]Except that he has him in the second. [B]And he's probably the best quarterback in the draft, with regards to Shanahan's scheme.[/B]
It's why I have a tough time believing we will actually go QB with the 4th pick. Shanahan might pass on McCoy, but only if he actually thinks that we're fine at QB. Otherwise, he makes a whole bunch of sense for us in the second round, especially if we can trade down to the middle of the round, and pick up a third round pick.

I think we're way more likely to trade down in the second than in the first anyway.[/quote]

Mel Kiper has said this several times. Likening McCoy to Drew Brees and Jake Plummer (while in Shanahan's system).

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GusFrerotte;658911]The whole Bradford Clausen debate isn't worth a hill of beans. There are so many decent QBs in this years draft it isn't even funny. I will keep saying this til draft day, and that is Bradford is just the latest guy in a great system under Stoops.

Sure he has NFL talent, and had crazy stats at Oklahoma, but look at the talent surrounding him also. I am talking about his line, receivers, and backs. [B]Not to mention that the Big 12 isn't known for defense either.[/B] As for his shoulder, why take a chance on that? I mean he injured it twice the same season and didn't even participate in his bowl game.

[/quote]

Classic SEC propoganda, though not on your part. I mean who could blame you, it gets hammered into your head on virtually every college football show looking to sprout off nonsense.

For some reason SEC supporters feel they have to downplay the quality of all the other conferences at the sake of talking up their own. A few years ago the SEC really was a deep conference but it now resembles the PAC-10 before this year, with one or two dominant teams and everyone else. Outside of Florida and Alabama you basically have a bunch of teams that refuse to play quality out of conference teams, not to mention the fact that Florida and Bama aren't really looking for quality out of conference opponents themselves. Say what you want about Ohio State but at least they put USC and Texas on their schedules. By the way Bama lucked out with McCoy going out of the game on the fifth play of the game.

So how does this relate to the Big XII? Well to be honest they have something that the SEC usually doesn't posses. Good QB play. Seriously most SEC offenses are run the ball 40 times a game, throw 20 passes and hope you complete 11 (believe me I'm constantly lulled to sleep by SEC games on Saturdays during the Fall). Which is fine, but it tends to make the defenses look better then they really are. In fact the only true test SEC defenses get on a yearly basis is Florida and they usually fail that test miserably. That is why the only defense I'm even prepared to acknowledge in the SEC is Alabama's.

I'm tired of Big XII QB's getting downplayed because "Oh no dey didn't dun pleh against them SEC defences no sir ree." This is top class FBS talent they're going against. It just so happens that the Big 12 has competent offensive coordinators and better QB's, so it ends up in the defenses getting downplayed.

So in short the perceived dominance of SEC defenses are a joke while many Big XII defenses are underrated. Most of the offenses SEC teams go against use gameplans that would insult an NFL preseason gameplan. All the while Big 12 defenses go against some of the most well coached offenses in college football, and get punished for it.

Anyway sorry for the rant but this had to be said.

In the meantime here's some Anti-SEC propoganda. I know it's from bleacher report but this one is backed up with facts.
[url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/287216-face-it-in-2009-the-sec-is-overrated]Let's Face It, the SEC Is Overrated This Season | Bleacher Report[/url]

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

McCoy's arm is awful, he can barely throw! He got knocked out of the biggest college game of his life on a hit that wasn't bad at all. NO! Don't get mccoy. Stick with a tackle or get Bradford who can make all the NFL throws. Sure he had a shoulder injury as well, but that was because a 270 lb slamed him shoulder first into the ground.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=CultBrennan59;658917]McCoy's arm is awful, he can barely throw! He got knocked out of the biggest college game of his life on a hit that wasn't bad at all. NO! Don't get mccoy. Stick with a tackle or get Bradford who can make all the NFL throws. Sure he had a shoulder injury as well, but that was because a 270 lb slamed him shoulder first into the ground.[/quote]

He tried to come back, his coaches and father wouldn't let him on account of making sure he was healthy for the NFL. Also before you discount McCoy's father remember the fact that Texas now has the other McCoy attending school, Case. Ironically Shipleys little brother is attending Texas as well, though McCoy could easily end up transferring with Texas getting Connor Wood in the same class.

[url=http://www.statesman.com/sports/content/sports/stories/longhorns/2009/10/28/1028shipcoy.html]Austin sports news and Longhorns | Statesman.com[/url]

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658918]He tried to come back, his coaches and father wouldn't let him on account of making sure he was healthy for the NFL.[/quote]Univ of TX says he was hurt and couldn't complete a 7 yd pass in the locker room.

[url=http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/01/clarifying-colt-mccoys-injury----again.html]College Sports Blog | Sports News | News from Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News[/url]

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Slingin Sammy 33;658941]Univ of TX says he was hurt and couldn't complete a 7 yd pass in the locker room.

[url=http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/01/clarifying-colt-mccoys-injury----again.html]College Sports Blog | Sports News | News from Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News[/url][/quote]

Dude stop lying. He threw that ball at least 8 yards :D

Still didn't know that part. All I remember is McCoy saying he wanted to go back but the coaches, doctors, and his Dad wouldn't let him. Of course I'd say the doctors were probably hired by the SEC to establish their dominance. I mean it's no coincidence that the Southeastern Conference is college footballs richest conference all while sharing the initials of the securities and exchange commission. They'll stop at nothing to brag about how their worst teams would win the WAC, ACC, Big East, Pac 10, Big 10 and 12, and any other conference in the country.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658916]Classic SEC propoganda, though not on your part. I mean who could blame you, it gets hammered into your head on virtually every college football show looking to sprout off nonsense.

For some reason SEC supporters feel they have to downplay the quality of all the other conferences at the sake of talking up their own. A few years ago the SEC really was a deep conference but it now resembles the PAC-10 before this year, with one or two dominant teams and everyone else. Outside of Florida and Alabama you basically have a bunch of teams that refuse to play quality out of conference teams, not to mention the fact that Florida and Bama aren't really looking for quality out of conference opponents themselves. Say what you want about Ohio State but at least they put USC and Texas on their schedules. By the way Bama lucked out with McCoy going out of the game on the fifth play of the game.

So how does this relate to the Big XII? Well to be honest they have something that the SEC usually doesn't posses. Good QB play. Seriously most SEC offenses are run the ball 40 times a game, throw 20 passes and hope you complete 11 (believe me I'm constantly lulled to sleep by SEC games on Saturdays during the Fall). Which is fine, but it tends to make the defenses look better then they really are. In fact the only true test SEC defenses get on a yearly basis is Florida and they usually fail that test miserably. That is why the only defense I'm even prepared to acknowledge in the SEC is Alabama's.

I'm tired of Big XII QB's getting downplayed because "Oh no dey didn't dun pleh against them SEC defences no sir ree." This is top class FBS talent they're going against. It just so happens that the Big 12 has competent offensive coordinators and better QB's, so it ends up in the defenses getting downplayed.

So in short the perceived dominance of SEC defenses are a joke while many Big XII defenses are underrated. Most of the offenses SEC teams go against use gameplans that would insult an NFL preseason gameplan. All the while Big 12 defenses go against some of the most well coached offenses in college football, and get punished for it.

Anyway sorry for the rant but this had to be said.

In the meantime here's some Anti-SEC propoganda. I know it's from bleacher report but this one is backed up with facts.
[url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/287216-face-it-in-2009-the-sec-is-overrated]Let's Face It, the SEC Is Overrated This Season | Bleacher Report[/url][/quote]


And in review, the last four BCS Champions were from the SEC, and 6 of the last 10 years, yep, you guessed it, SEC!

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GTripp0012;658893]Except that he has him in the second. And he's probably the best quarterback in the draft, with regards to Shanahan's scheme.

[/quote]How is McCoy a fit for a West Coast scheme? He ran a spread in college. M & K Shanahan's scheme is actually a perfect fit for Clausen

Also, did you see the Big 12 championship game, not a good performance by McCoy.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=GTripp0012;658880]I think we (I?) know a lot more about Clausen's mediocre ability to adjust to adverse conditions, compared to Bradford, who is an unknown from that one aspect.[/quote]Please explain Clausen's mediocre ability to adjust to adverse conditions? I know you're up in MI, but I watch ND quite a bit too, and I don't see what you're talking about.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658942]Dude stop lying. He threw that ball at least 8 yards :D
[/quote]
End-over-end. LOL

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Slingin Sammy 33;658944]How is McCoy a fit for a West Coast scheme? He ran a spread in college. M & K Shanahan's scheme is actually a perfect fit for Clausen

Also, did you see the Big 12 championship game, not a good performance by McCoy.[/quote]

McCoy didn't fare well in any of the tough games he had this year(Oklahoma, Nebraska,and the little he played in the Alabama game).

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=backrow;658943]And in review, the last four BCS Champions were from the SEC, and 6 of the last 10 years, yep, you guessed it, SEC![/quote]

It also helps when the SEC champ usually has an automatic entry into the MNC game. Do we really want to get into a discussion about the B(S)CS?

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

If Colt McCoy is still available in the 5th round I say we still pass on that bum.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=backrow;658943]And in review, the last four BCS Champions were from the SEC, and 6 of the last 10 years, yep, you guessed it, SEC![/quote]

Ah yes, the BCS. Easily the most accurate and storied championship system in all of sports. The BCS is perfect for the SEC because for their "year long playoff" they can select powerhouses like the Chattanoga Choo Choo's as well as the Northwest Cupids. Still so kind of them to pay schools with a lot less money to play their amazing football teams.

Also, assuming I look the other way concerning the utter stupidity of the BCS it still doesn't change the fact that one team does not make a conference. Just like USC being dominant all of these years didn't mean that up until now the PAC 10 was the best conference. Or better yet Miami when it played in the Big East. Of course those two school actually booked quality out of conference opponents.

Alabama gets cudos for booking Virginia Tech, but if you look at Florida's out of conference schedule, well quite frankly it was pathetic. FIU, Chattanoga, Charlston Southern, Troy. If they hadn't been practically forced by tradition to play FSU they would have probably played Will and Mary. By comparison USC's out of conference schedule was as follows San Jose State, Boston College, Notre Dame, and Ohio State. All FBS schools.

Keep in mind I'm not saying the SEC is a bad conference. What I am saying is that the SEC isn't nearly the Super Conference it thinks it is. It walks around calling itself an 11 when in reality it's more like a 9 on the verge of dropping towards an 8.5. Also because of the SEC's perceived dominance every other prospect seems to get downgraded because they play in an "inferior" conference and now I've finally snapped :D

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Dirtbag359;658916]Classic SEC propoganda, though not on your part. I mean who could blame you, it gets hammered into your head on virtually every college football show looking to sprout off nonsense.

For some reason SEC supporters feel they have to downplay the quality of all the other conferences at the sake of talking up their own. A few years ago the SEC really was a deep conference but it now resembles the PAC-10 before this year, with one or two dominant teams and everyone else. Outside of Florida and Alabama you basically have a bunch of teams that refuse to play quality out of conference teams, not to mention the fact that Florida and Bama aren't really looking for quality out of conference opponents themselves. Say what you want about Ohio State but at least they put USC and Texas on their schedules. By the way Bama lucked out with McCoy going out of the game on the fifth play of the game.

So how does this relate to the Big XII? Well to be honest they have something that the SEC usually doesn't posses. Good QB play. Seriously most SEC offenses are run the ball 40 times a game, throw 20 passes and hope you complete 11 (believe me I'm constantly lulled to sleep by SEC games on Saturdays during the Fall). Which is fine, but it tends to make the defenses look better then they really are. In fact the only true test SEC defenses get on a yearly basis is Florida and they usually fail that test miserably. That is why the only defense I'm even prepared to acknowledge in the SEC is Alabama's.

I'm tired of Big XII QB's getting downplayed because "Oh no dey didn't dun pleh against them SEC defences no sir ree." This is top class FBS talent they're going against. It just so happens that the Big 12 has competent offensive coordinators and better QB's, so it ends up in the defenses getting downplayed.

So in short the perceived dominance of SEC defenses are a joke while many Big XII defenses are underrated. Most of the offenses SEC teams go against use gameplans that would insult an NFL preseason gameplan. All the while Big 12 defenses go against some of the most well coached offenses in college football, and get punished for it.

Anyway sorry for the rant but this had to be said.

In the meantime here's some Anti-SEC propoganda. I know it's from bleacher report but this one is backed up with facts.
[URL="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/287216-face-it-in-2009-the-sec-is-overrated"]Let's Face It, the SEC Is Overrated This Season | Bleacher Report[/URL][/quote]


Dude I am a Big 10 guy, but I watch more Big 12 football than SEC for sure( more points=more fun). When you have even lesser powers like A&M putting up almost 60 on some Saturdays in conference play, you have to wonder about that conference in terms of defensive philosophy or the overall quality of the competition. SEC outside of Bama and Florida is just like the Big Ten if not worse in quality, but you rarely ever see a 60 point game in a SEC contest and in the Big 10 you are lucky to see 60 points scored combined. Look at Jones, Bradford's backup in the bowl game. He dominated and threw for over 300 yards. I am sure the guy is good, but damn, it obviously is just as much of the overall high level of talent at Oklahoma as it is Bradford. I want a guy who can get things done when the odds are even and his supporting cast isn't a bunch of All Americans or Pro Bowlers.

Re: Bradford/Clausen now split among Mock Drafts
 

[quote=Slingin Sammy 33;658947]Please explain Clausen's mediocre ability to adjust to adverse conditions? I know you're up in MI, but I watch ND quite a bit too, and I don't see what you're talking about.[/quote]adverse conditions = when his team is not the decisive advantage. So, you'd throw out the Washington State game, throw out the Purdue game, the Nevada game, the 200(9) Hawaii Bowl. Specifically, I'm looking at those Boston College games and Navy games when Clausen struggles to adjust to teams that take away the deep ball and make him throw underneath. His inability to sustain drives.

Not to say that can't be adapted over time, as Peyton Manning came into the NFL with the same problem.

Freely admitting that this is something he got better with over time, Clausen has a tendency to have second half struggles against teams who can adjust to whatever Weis wanted to attack them with in the first half. I think it was a big part of ND's end-of-year swoon, personally. Not as big as the defensive woes, obviously, but Clausens efficiency certainly declined in the second half of the season.

If you want my in depth thought on Clausen/Bradford/the like, I wrote this article today:

[url=http://liveballsports.com/2010/01/28/bradford-vs-clausen-and-why-mccoy-is-still-tops-in-this-draft-class/]Bradford vs. Clausen, and why McCoy is still tops in this draft class « LiveBall Sports[/url]

But basically, my concerns with him are that his 62% completion percentage doesn't really off-set the negatives you have to take when you draft him. I think if he completed 67% of his passes at ND, then yeah, he'd be franchise QB material despite a high sack rate and mediocre win percentage. At 62% and 34 college starts, that's first round quality, but not anything we haven't seen in the past.