Well, this was an ugly game to watch. Turnovers, penalties, redshirt freshmen at quarterback... ugh. On top of that, many of each school's top prospects came away as unimpressive or neutral, at best. Marshall came out hyped up at first and looked like they were going to keep things close, but eventually the experience and superior athleticism of the Bearcats won out.

Marshall

85 Cody Slate TE (jr.) 6' 4" 224lbs 4.70 - finished with 7 receptions for 96yds and a score (which covered 57yds). Played with a sprained MCL and wore a knee brace. Showed pretty good speed considering the injury. Clearly the most talented offensive player for the Thundering Herd and the obvious safety valve for the QB. Gave effort when blocking, but that's clearly not his strong suit. Very lanky build. Don't know that he could add much more weight than he's already carrying. Good hands, though he did have one drop that led to a Bearcat interception. The ball was thrown behind him a bit, but he still should have caught it. Lined up in the slot on occassion. Build reminds me of Tony Gonzalez, though I wouldn't call him that talented. I could see him being very productive in an Indianapolis-style "O." Grade - positive

88 Darius Passmore WR 6' 1" 190lbs 4.50 - a fairly close second to Slate as Marshall's top offensive weapon. Unfortunately, they didn't figure that out in this game until it was too late. Good size. Good enough speed, but not a blazer. Good hands, though he did drop a pass. Now wearing #1. Lined up at QB on one play and displayed a pretty decent arm! Nice body control. Generally kept in check by the veteran Cincinnati secondary. Worth a mid- to late round pick. Grade - slightly positive

96 Albert McClellan DE (jr.) 6' 2" 254lbs 4.75 - I came away very unimpressed with this guy, particularly given his hype. I realize he's coming back from a serious injury, but I saw next to nothing here, certainly not enough to convince me that he should declare early. Showed some versatility, lining up both with his hand on the ground and standing up, and both rushing the passer and dropping into coverage. His coching staff likens him to Terrell Suggs, but, based on this game, that's a hell of a reach. Seemed alert and instinctive. Showed some handwork and varied moves. Almost got a FF and FR on the same play, but it was reviewed and overturned and called an incomplete shovel pass. Disappeared at times, and when he did show up, he was around the play, not in on it. Should stay in school, completely recover from his injury and hope in 2009 he returns to his 2006 form. Grade - negative

4 C. J. Spillman S 6' 0" 193lbs 4.50 - as little as I liked McClellan, I liked this guy even less! He showed me nothing. At least I saw McClellan around the ball at times. I almost never saw #4, and when I did, he was doing something wrong. Taking a bad angle. Getting beat in coverage. Missing a tackle. Going for the hit instead of the wrap-up and whiffing badly. Based on this game, I wouldn't even sign him as a UDFA. Grade - VERY negative!

Cincinnati

4 Dustin Grutza QB 6' 1.6" 215lbs 4.90 - DNP (broken right leg). Grade - n/a

16 Dominick Goodman WR 6' 1" 218lbs 4.53 - caught six balls for two scores, but averaged less than 9yds per catch. Having an inexperienced redshirt freshman at QB certainly didn't help, but Goodman came away as little more than an average possession receiver in this game. Grade - slightly positive

1 Mardy Gilyard WR (jr.) 6' 0" 180lbs 4.45 - slim build is going to be a hindrance at the next level. Speed to burn. Only caught two balls for 30yds and returned 3 kicks for 58yds (but one return was on a very short kick. Take that away and his KR average was over 20yds). Has the raw tools but should stay in school another year and develop the nuances of the WR position. If he can do so without losing his speed, he should bulk up a bit, too. I don't think he'll be drafted as high as either, but perhaps a bit of poor man's Eddie Royal or DeSean Jackson in him? Grade - slightly positive

76 Trevor Canfield OG 6' 4.3" 295lbs 5.25 - I'll be honest, I'm more of a fan of the big widebody types of O-lineman (oh, to see Phil Loadholt or Duke Robinson in a Falcons' uniform next year! ), but Canfield impressed me. Lined up at RG, though LG might be a better position for him in the pros. Best suited for a zone-blocking scheme at the next level. Never saw him off his feet. Seemed alert. Got to the next level. Got pushed back sometimes, but held up in pass protection. Got a good push in the running game. Never got flagged. Definitely draftable. Grade - positive

5 Connor Barwin DE 6' 3.5" 255lbs 4.80 - the man in this game. Almost blocked one punt. Blocked another for a safety. Had a sack, a TFL, a hurry, and a pass breakup. Usually lined up at RDE and was constantly around the ball. I've used this analogy in the past for other prospects, but I'll use it here, too - very Kroy Biermann-ish. A hand-in-the-dirt pass rusher. The few times he had to play in space he did seem a bit lost. Great effort. High intensity. Contributed on special teams. Made the biggest impact of any Bearcat in this game. Grade - very positive

95 Terrill Byrd DT 6' 0.4" 290lbs 4.86 - did little to impress. Finished the game with an assist - that's it. Undersized, but active. Gives effort. Stayed on his feet. Rarely came out of the game. Perhaps a UDFA. Grade - slightly negative

42 Corey Smith LB 6' 0" 225lbs 4.70 - very good coverage 'backer. Cover Two specimen. Two PBU's and a TFL in this game. Six total tackles. Draftable in the late rounds. Plays faster than he times. Could be a nickel LB and ST ace at the next level. Alert. Instinctive. Plays faster than he times. Tackles well. Grade - positive

45 Ryan Manalac LB 5' 11.5" 235lbs 4.80 - not as impressive as Smith. Noticeably slower. Bulkier, but shorter. Not as active. Definitely not as good in coverage. UDFA, at best. Grade - neutral

21 Mike Mickens CB 5' 11.2" 170lbs 4.45 - had nine total tackles, though most of those were assists, includea half of a TFL. Also had a pick and two PBU's. Lived up to the hype. Could run with anybody the Herd threw at him. Willing in run support, though his size is a detriment there. Good hands and body control. Good cover man. Nickel back at the next level - at least. Grade - positive

6 DeAngelo Smith CB 6' 1" 191lbs 4.49 - Got beat once or twice, and didn't come up with the stats Mickens did, but came away - to me, anyway - as impressive as his counterpart. Better size, same speed, same skills. Seemed like Mickens got picked on a bit more and drew Passmore more in coverage, which would account for the difference in stats. Grade - positive

47 Kevin Huber P 6' 1" 220lbs 5.00 - six kicks for a 43.6 average with a long of 47 and two inside the twenty. Consistently gave Marshall bad field position. Left-footed. Good leg. Good hang-time. Good accuracy. Didn't kick off. Didn't impress me as much as UConn's Desi Cullen last week, but looked a hell of a lot better than SMU's Thomas Morstead did at the beginning of the season. Grade - positive

Other notes - two other players stood out to me in this game, both from Marshall: DeQuan Bembry # 17 CB 5' 10" 173lbs 4.49. A redshirt freshman, Bembry cooled off as the game wore on, but started off red hot! Wasn't just willing in run supprt - he came up and laid some wood! Very physical, expecially considering his size. Displayed some decent coverage skills, too. Keep an eye on him. Also, Craig Ratanamorn, # 92 K 6' 3" 187lbs est5.00. A former soccer goalie, this junior BOOMED a 50-yarder for Marshall's first score. I kid you not - the ball was halfway up the goalposts as it passed though. What's that translate into? Still good from 65yds? 70?! He wasn't their KO specialist, though. Hmmm...

I am disappointed Byrd had such a poor game to show you. He looked like a Top 100 guy versus Oklahoma earlier this season. I have him in the 90s, I think. Maybe he plays to the level of the competition?

Goodman is indeed a hard eval right now given Cincy's QB woes. Totally agree.

You're seeing the exact same things with Canfield I've been seeing.

Gilyard was absolute dynamite versus Oklahoma. And, he was pretty decent versus Akron. Those are the two Cincy games I've caught so far.

I really am concerned about Mickens holding up against NFL receivers. If he doesn't bat the ball away, I think they destroy him after the catch. What do you think, Erik? I think he is going to be over-drafted, and I would take Smith over him any day, myself.

There's no question Mickens size could hurt him at the next level, especially in run support or against bigger, more physical receivers. However, against smaller or more finesse-type wideouts, I can see him holding his own. Smith has much better size and size / speed ratio, and I see him as equal in skills to Mickens, so I would draft Smith first.

Erik,

Does Connor Barwin look thick/strong enough to be a true DE, or is he a 3/4 OLB? I see his measurables, but that doesn't always tell the story (see Brian Orakpo). I'm interested as you know my affinity for the position. Loadholt and Robinson would fit very well for you guys.

I've wondered the same thing. It sure will be interesting to see whether he has "TE," "DE" or "LB" on his shirt at the Combine.

Thanks NHFalcon! I saw in the Pitt. Post-Gazette that they thought that Spillman was a 3rd guy. They though Passmore was a late round pick.

Hey Bendo,

The first thing to remember is that with Barwin we are not talking about a starter at the next level. We're talking about a backup / situational player / special teams coverage demon. As such, he's a down DE in my eyes. If he's only on the field in spurts and / or certain situations, then his size is not a detriment. I didn't see very good lateral or reverse movement skills from him in this game, and, as I mentioned in my writeup, his instincts seemed off when he was in space. He's not incredibly gifted from a physical / athletic standpoint, but he's a very high-motor guy who will do damage in a limited role through sheer effort.

Hope that helps,
NHFalcon

I have some Qs about some players that aren't listed, IDK if you've been watching, but I would like to know what you think of these guys:


Marcus Bennett WR
Kalil El-Amin LT
Andre Revels OLB
Lemonte Nelms DE

And Where's Demetrius Jones? He was the number 2 dual threat QB out of HS only behind Tebow that year.. He started that 1 game at ND in his 1st game as a freshman. When he was like 3 of 12 with like 2 fumbles and a pick. You know why he hasn't gotten a chance?