Enough said,
http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=7764665
Showed off an impressive first step speed rush, and had some nice hands to fight inside when they set up outside... Was also impressed by a bull-rush.
Taco is approaching my level of excitement of Tacos in general.
Edit: Followup video has some highlights of Joe Mathis... he's an animal.
Wow. He's like Brandon
I don't think he has BG's
I don't think he has BG's size yet but damn is he fast.....
I don't think you get the
I don't think you get the joke...
HEY! You there!
Yes.
Please.
On the fifth night—possibly the sixth—a breeze arose.
It was cool and dewy.
Untitled
Greatest.Hit.Ever.
Hail To the Victors...In Ohio
I'm digging
the hat tip at the end.
On a side note, it seems a
On a side note, it seems a bit unfair to the O-lineman that the DE essentially wins that exercise just by getting a finger on the pylon. In a game situation, getting a finger on the QB doesn't always lead to a sack. The lineman still does his job if he prevents the DE from interfering with the QB's throwing motion or keeps him from getting hurried.
That said, Taco looks incredibly quick.
Every time an MGoBoard poster complains about a thread topic, God kills a baby panda.
By all accounts Taco was top 2 at the camp
Which is what really matters. But as you said, this drill is incredibly unfair to the O-line.
First, the target is completely stationary. Second, the D-line knows there isn't any help or protection slides, or chips. Third, it is essentially a pass play everytime. Forth, no pads, and therefore nothing for the O-line to establish position with (the chest plate being what most offensive linemen are taught to grab). Lastly, at this stage D-linemen are just way more fundamentally sound in their technique than O-linemen. These drills heavily favor the D-line.
Still nice to see a good showing by Taco and Mathis looks really good as well.
I agree with all of your
I agree with all of your points but Taco's ability to essentially run right by them is impressive to say the least.
Omnia mutantur nos et mutamur in illis.
As I said to start
All that really matters is how he performed relative to the other D-linemen at the camp, in which by almost all accounts he finished in the top 2. So I am taking nothing away from his performance relative to others at the camp, I do believe he was most likely one of the best along with Mathis. Mathis looked more to me like a SDE. Both have things to work on (they are juniors in high school, so obviously), but having both of them on both sides of the lines would be very good.
Again, I wasn't trying to take away from his performance, just saying why you so frequently see DEs dominate the 1 v 1 drills. Some just dominate more (Mathis and Taco).
Basic Drill
Uh, yeah, it does favor the DL. But it's also a basic drill that everyone does to help with technique and learning to win one-on-one battles, and it does show a players strengths and weaknesses (on both sides).
For example, Taco demonstrated amazing fast-twitch quickness (best of the group) and showed a couple of decent moves (rip and arm-over) with an ability to change direction mid-rush. We also saw that he has decent strength once he gets locked-up, but is not strong enough to bull rush. He definitely needs more strenght and needs to get better with his hands, and he appears to be a WDE only. You can see all that from this drill.
Does this mean we should expect him to get a sack 5 out of 6 times he rushes the passer? Of course not. But it does show what a player is capable of, and I can't believe Taco isn't a 4-star on every service...his size/speed combination gives him a ceiling that I believe is higher than Mathis.
Speaking of Mathis, he looks very strong and reasonably quick. I see him as an eventual SDE or 3-tech DT. What a beast. He's not as quick as Taco, but still has great burst, amazing strength, and better technique.
Thank you, Coach Hoke, for bringing Michigan back.
That kid is going
to F%&* up some QB's with that speed.
Excitement.
Excitement.
Michigan: 903–315–36 (Best in NCAA)
vs Ohio State: 58-44-6
vs Notre Dame: 23-16-1
vs MSU: 68-32-5
vs B1G: 522-197-24
vs SEC: 20-8-1
vs PAC 12: 48-24-1
vs Big 12: 10-5-1<
I kind of looked at Charlton
I kind of looked at Charlton as more of a project type player where he had the physique to excel but would need a few years of coaching before he became any good, but he certainly seems way ahead of that and coule be very, very good. Playing basketball is probably very good for his quickness.
I just thought about the idea
I just thought about the idea of going up against him in these kinds of drills, and a little bit of pee came out.
It's been a lot. Its been a roller coaster that for some reason seemed like it would never get good. But you know what? We kept fighting. It's like that old saying goes, "Those Who Stay Will Be Champions." -David Molk
Looks small
He will need to gain alot of weight, hopefully he keeps his speeed when he does gain ...
Not according to ESPN Recruiting
Keep in mind that he's a year
Keep in mind that he's a year away from showing up to campus, so almost every prospect his age needs to gain weight, and most active 17 years olds are able to do that pretty easily. He's listed at 240 though, so it's not like he needs to add 40 pounds or something.
That said, he'll be behind Beyer and Clark at the WDE spot when he shows up, and likely Ojemudia too. As good as he is, it will take a lot for him to get into the rotation, so he might be a redshirt candidate and he could just bring it full speed as a RS frosh a la Jake Ryan.
Small? Are you serious???
This kid looks gigantic for a 17 yr old. Since when did 6'6"/240 become small for a junior in highschool?
Reporter: “Did you visit the Parthenon while in Greece?”
Shaquille O’Neill: “I can’t really remember the names of all the clubs we went to.”
What is his listed height and weight?
He looks tall and I hope he can fill out his frame . . . certainly got quicks!
You have gotta' love this . . .
Rivals has him at 6'6" 240.
Rivals has him at 6'6" 240.
"Taco is approaching my level
"Taco is approaching my level of excitement of Tacos in general."
Hahahaha
Intensity is a lot of guys that run fast.
"Taco is approaching my level
"Taco is approaching my level of excitement of Tacos in general."
This may be the greatest sentence ever written on the internet. Well played sir.
So would Mathis be a SDE?
Simply judging off those videos, he seems like more of a bulldozer than a Frank Clark. Tacos got weakside/3-4 LB written all over him. Id love to see Mathis taking double teams on the opposite side.
Bo' Money Bo' Problems
Yes, Mathis would be a 5-tech
Yes, Mathis would be a 5-tech and Taco would be a WDE, or in other words, Mathis would be 2012 Craig Roh and Taco would be 2011 Craig Roh.
Well spoken kid. He's
Well spoken kid. He's already representing Michigan very well. Hope he has a great senior season.
his frame
his frame and build remind me of Jason Pierre-Paul of the giants.
uh....whatever
Wow
Dude is a beast.
I really hate these
I really hate these combines. It's gotten to the point that kids are getting scholarship based on these summer performances. I prefer to watch a kid IN PADS. There are a lot of "Monday All-Americans" but for my money, give me the kid that performs on Friday night.
The instruction they get at
The instruction they get at these camps/combines is minimal. These camps/combines are about competing with other top prospects and showing off for coaches to see. Don't get me wrong - there's a little bit of technique work that goes on. But by and large, if you're trying to improve your technique, you're better off working with a private coach or attending a camp at a small school.
Here's the thing. When it
Here's the thing. When it comes to evaluating high school football players, you really have two options - evaluating them at camps against other top talent from across the country, but usually not in pads (at least not full pads) or evaluating them in full pads in their HS games playing against a bunch of future accountants.
There is value in both methods, and obivous faults in both as well. So many of these guys are the top talent on their team, so the opposing team simply scheme against them, which doesn't give you a lot to go one sometimes. Additionally, if Taco doesn't play against a top D1 OT prospect all season (likely, since there are only a few in his whole state), then you won't be able to tell much. If you evaluated Shane Morris in his HS games only, he wouldn't be near the prospect he is.
Lastly, the level of competition in high school varies so much. Look at the competition Kalis played against, compared to who Jeremy Clark played against. It's night and day.
Pick Central was runner up in Ohio D1 last year.
They don't get much competition in their own league but they played four games against elite Ohio catholic schools (St. Ignatius, Moeller, twice against St. X). Much closer to Kalis than Clark, competition-wise.
Michigan would lose a lot of recruits if they did this
"...give me a kid that performs on Friday night."
Don't tell this to the Cass Tech kids and all the other recruits that play on Saturday mornings.
The quickness he has it. The
The quickness he has it. The excitement I has it.
WOW! If we can have Taco, Ondre and possibly Mathis on the same line in a few years I will sound like this:
lol bucknuts instate rankings
lol bucknuts instate rankings
"There was a time I could have been mistaken for Burt Reynolds. I had a moustache and so did he. But he was the number one star in the world, so there wasn't really much confusion."
We have some great well
We have some great well spoken kids coming in representing the block M. Love the way he points to his hat at the end of the interview.
If I say a duck can pull a truck, shut up and hook the sucka up!
Wow. He's like Brandon Graham, but with quickness.
Every time an MGoBoard poster complains about a thread topic, God kills a baby panda.