Day 2 of the Senior Bowl started out early, and there was plenty of action to report on!  Let’s see who stood out for the North on Day 2.

QB

Tony Pike (Cincinnati) was rather inconsistent today.  He made some good plays - like the time he fired a pass over the outstretched arms of a defender and hit Ed Dickson in stride.  He made some bad plays too - like fumbling the snap because he left the center too early, and holding on to the ball too long when reading the defense.  Pike’s passes didn’t have the same zip to them today, and some just fluttered out of his hands.   

Dan LeFevour (Central Michigan) continued to have a strong showing in Mobile, but there are several things he still needs to work on.  His mechanics need to be tightened up, but I like the way he will change his throwing motion to fit the passing window.  He showed plenty of zip on his passes, but I didn’t notice a poker “tell” for LeFevour when he’s throwing deep.  If the pass is short, he will simply zip it into the window.  However, if he’s mentally “winding up” for a deep throw he will gently pat the ball before the release.  This is something that can be easily changed, but if I’m noticing it you had better believe defensive backs would notice it too.  I like the way LeFevour will put the passes where the defenders aren’t.  He will often throw low and away from coverage, and isn’t afraid to take his shots downfield.  Once again LeFevour was not on the same page as some of his receivers, and he corrected LeGarrette Blount after the big back looked to the wrong shoulder on an outlet pass.  That showed me LeFevour demands a lot from his teammates, but has the charisma to be a strong leader. 

Sean Canfield (Oregon State) struggled once again today in practice.  When his passes weren’t off the mark, they were fluttering like a badly wounded duck.  He fumbled a ball on a dropback, and it seemed to go all downhill after that.  I did like the way he would move when rolling out to his right, but then he’d release the ball and it would miss the intended target.  He clearly doesn’t belong in this game, and I believe the quarterbacks I’ll see next week in El Paso at Texas vs The Nation will be much better.   

RB

LeGarrette Blount (Oregon) is a swift player that generates a lot of power.  I’ve compared him to Brandon Jacobs in the past, and that comparison is an accurate one - for both good and bad reasons.  Like Jacobs, Blount will lose all his momentum if he’s forced to change direction behind the line of scrimmage.  Once he stops moving he becomes an easy target to tackle.  He’s a good cutback runner, and once hurdled over a linebacker’s outstretched arms in the second level.  You have to go low to tackle this guy, but he’s athletic enough to leap over if given the chance.  I liked what he showed as a receiver out of the backfield, but that’s not where he stood out the most today.  Blount was head and shoulders above all the other backs here in pass protection drills.  Outside of the pit, backs vs backers is my favorite drill at an All-Star game.  Blount is great when facing up a blitzer, and can handle speed or moves.  He handled Koa Misi (LB - Utah) with ease twice during this drill.  Blount kept his base when facing a rusher and didn’t over extend trying to reach them after a move.  He locked horns with Donald Butler (LB - Washington) for an epic battle.  Initially stoning Butler on the first go round, he was knocked backwards as Butler popped him with a bull rush.  Blount didn’t lose his feet, maintained his balance, and recovered quite well to stop Butler.     

Lonyae Miller (Fresno State) is a great runner.  He’s instinctive, and I love his jump cuts before he’ll bounce a run outside.  That move buys him some space and allows him to gain positive yardage.  Miller is a decent receiver out of the backfield, but was absolutely burned in pass protection.  He basically held the linebackers on every play after getting beat with power or speed.  He showed a little pop at the point of attack when facing Koa Misi, but would reach too much and lose his balance against almost every rusher. 

Joique Bell (Wayne State) is generating a lot of positive buzz here in Mobile.  He is very explosvie, and does a good job of picking and sliding to the proper hole.  He showed big play ability today with a couple of big runs where he would juke someone in the hole and go.  In backs v backers A.J. Edds (LB - Iowa) completely owned him on a power rush.  However, Bell bounced back the next two times against Edds and stoned the oncoming defender.  He was knocked on his backside by Sean Witherspoon (LB - Missouri) but showed the determination to mix it up against these bigger players every time.

Chris Brown (Oklahoma) was curiously absent from my practice notes today.
   
Rashawn Jackson (FB - Virginia) was handed the ball as an upback on a fake toss to LeGarrette Blount on a short yardage drill and the big fullback kept his pads low and his legs churning.  He had a few nice receptions today as an outlet receiver, but is by no means a natural hands catcher.  Pass blocking was a big problem for Jackson today, and will have a huge impact on his draft status.  When facing Donald Butler he completely whiffed on hitting him - twice!  He was very frustrated after both of those plays, but didn’t look much better as the drill went on.  He was able to stay with Koa Misi, but all the North backs handled him with ease.

WR/TE

Mardy Gilyard (Cincinnati) had a day of redemption on Tuesday.  He started this week of practice off with a rough Monday, and today he came back with a vengeance.  He was still fighting some passes as they came in, but he looked hungry and did not want to disappoint.  They used him on end arounds during practice where he showed off his tremendous quickness.  He caught high passes, low passes, and even had to spin away from a defender to haul in a crossing route.  He absolutely blew by Syd’Quan Thompson (DB - California) on an out and up route.  The best play of the day for Gilyard came when he caught a sideline pass as he was going out of bounds backwards, and still had the body control to get both feet down inbounds—backpedaling.   

Jacoby Ford (Clemson) didn’t have quite the standout performance like he did yesterday, but he still looked great catching the football.  He does a good job of looking in passes, and is a wide receiver that can become a trusted target because of his solid hands.  He was high pointing passes once again today, and only body caught a couple of Canfield passes.   

Taylor Price (Ohio) once again showed great chemistry with Dan LeFevour.  He turns upfield quickly after securing the pass, and has good initial burst once the ball is in his hands.  Price is a smooth runner that can glide past defenders.  I did see him jump to catch a pass when there was no need because the ball ended up near his waist.  Other than that, it was another consistent day for Price.

Danario Alexander(Missouri) showed good hands today, and was catching the ball with arms extended away from his body.  I like his body control and ability to adjust to poorly thrown passes.  He did struggle in the “mini gauntlet” drill they ran, and dropped two passes in a row. 

Dorin Dickerson (PITT) didn’t make it into my notes today, so I made sure to catch him on a couple of plays today.  The plays that I saw were not good for Dickerson.  He body caught every pass I saw him haul in, and he generally seemed disconnected out on the field.  He dropped a low pass that could have been caught if he would have sold out to make the play.

Mike Hoomanawanui (TE - Illinois) is a little stiff when he moves, but he’ll catch most any pass thrown his way.  He is not explosive in and out of his breaks, and has to fight to gain separation from a linebacker.     

Ed Dickson (TE - Oregon) is one heckuva tight end, who has the playmaking ability and confidence to be a difference maker at the next level.  He’s not much of a blocker, but wow - what an athlete.  He moves his arms well when changing direction and his coaches like the way he can “play the drums” when breaking to the ball.  He uses basketball moves on the football field, and knows how to “box out” defenders on underneath passes.   

Garrett Graham(TE - Wisconsin) looked very explosive today, and can outfight a linebacker for position over the middle.   

DEF

Cam Thomas (DL - North Caroliina) once again showed good power to push offensive linemen out of his way.  Thomas is a fierce player that is getting coached up by Michael Dean Perry and the crew at Performance Gaines. 

Alex Carrington (DL - Arkansas State) shows good punch when attacking the line.

Brandon Graham (DL - Michigan) had a sick spin move to get around Zane Beadles (OL - Utah).  He also used speed to get around the edge.