College To Pro- Success or Flops?

[gr8icefishinmind]

Isn't that what we are all doing, is speculating?? OHHHHHH wait, i forgot that you are the NFL MIND!! and you know it all! what was i thinkin???

[gr8icefishinmind]

You still haven't said what would make him good in the nfl???

[Dave S]

His decision making skills against NFL caliber players will make him look bad! Tebow relies on his scrambling skills to allow him to pass the ball, in the nfl those scramblings skills will not be as good as the defenses are 100 times better and more aggresive! Just speculation but I just don't see how people could think that he will be a good qb in the pro's!!

You make this sound as though the NFL is so much more advanced than a college level game. I've been to Jr College games that would make some of these NFL teams look pathetic.

[gr8icefishinmind]

And what would be your reason for decker not being a good possession wr???

[gr8icefishinmind]

Originally Posted By: gr8icefishinmind

His decision making skills against NFL caliber players will make him look bad! Tebow relies on his scrambling skills to allow him to pass the ball, in the nfl those scramblings skills will not be as good as the defenses are 100 times better and more aggresive! Just speculation but I just don't see how people could think that he will be a good qb in the pro's!!

You make this sound as though the NFL is so much more advanced than a college level game. I've been to Jr College games that would make some of these NFL teams look pathetic.

I sure think that the defenses in the nfl are better than the defenses in college ball!!

[Dave S]

that arguement would actually hold some meaning if some of the games were of teams that are equally matched. The blowout games that seem to have no defense are often times like pitting Eden Prairie up against a 9-man team from Nicollet.

[toughguy]

Wow. Somebody's been drinking the Brewster lemonade.

mmmmm I love Brewster Lemonade.

Seriously I think Decker has a future in the NFL. He catches everything they throw at him. I'm not saying he'll have an all pro 14 year carrer, but I think he'll be on someone's roster.

[LMITOUT]

It's pretty sour!!!

[toughguy]

It's sooo good once it hit's your lips

[LMITOUT]

Are we talking lemonade or the other "stuff" Brewster shovels?

The guy is a fraud.

[toughguy]

He can recruit. Now if he could just coach.

[zamboni]

WOW, this thread had 3 total posts when I went to bed last night, looks like I opened a can of worms here.

[CodyDawg]

Lmit,

You kinda have a point and you kinda dont. yes, we do lack in talent, but there are notable exceptions (Maroney, Barber). Decker is an exception I believe. He has been on some national pre-season All America teams so he is nationally recognized as an elite talent. Nationally, he is #2 in receptions and #3 in Rec Yards. This kid has a solid game and there is no reason to dish him because he is one of ours. I think we should celebrate when one of "ours" has this type of talent cuz we aint exactly Texas when it comes to homegrown talent.

As to Brewster, he is doing better at closing the door than anyone since Lou Holtz. He will never be 100%, but he certainly is going a pretty solid job recruiting. I have no complaints there at all.

[AWH]

People need to realize Gopher players are typically a scale or two below the national talent level.

Not true at all. In the history of University of MN football, they have sent 230 players (give or take a couple) to the NFL including Hall of Famers Bobby Bell, Carl Eller, Bronko Nagurski, Leo Normellini and Charlie Sanders.

Despite their not so stellar history in terms of wins and losses, MN has an excellent track record of producing NFL talent, even in recent history when they have consistently finished near the bottom of the standings. They stack up favorably with the best in the conference in that regard.

Aaron

[SneakAttack]

Tebow IMO would be a great TE in the NFL

The great Nebraska QB Eric Crouch is a prime example of this thread, the most exciting player in College Football over the last 15 years IMO that never played a snap in the NFL

Decker indeed has a future in Pro Football after the Goofers

[LMITOUT]

Originally Posted By: LMITOUT

People need to realize Gopher players are typically a scale or two below the national talent level.

Not true at all. In the history of University of MN football, they have sent 230 players (give or take a couple) to the NFL including Hall of Famers Bobby Bell, Carl Eller, Bronko Nagurski, Leo Normellini and Charlie Sanders.

Despite their not so stellar history in terms of wins and losses, MN has an excellent track record of producing NFL talent, even in recent history when they have consistently finished near the bottom of the standings. They stack up favorably with the best in the conference in that regard.

Aaron

That...is....hilarious.

You dig up some players from decades ago in an attempt to "prove" (I know you love that word) that the Gophers are on par with other top teams in the country? Ohhhh, I see you're trying to narrow it down to just the conference now. How about we just cut to the chase and look at the Division I teams in Minnesota? That might be a fair converstation then.

I'm fully aware that there have been players from Minnesota that have gone on to the professional level, but lets be realistic here and come to an understanding that they aren't churning out players left and right.

The overlying concept that needs to be realized here is that my point was that Brewster is supposedly "closing the borders" and recruiting more in-state players, and that was the real item here, not how many Gopher players are going to the NFL. What it boils down to is "closing the borders" is the last thing MN should do if they want to have a successful football program. The talent level, let me rephrase that before you take it out of context again, the high school talent level in-state is no where near what can be found out of state.

[AWH]

Top teams in the country? Conference is the word I used, not country. When you say they are "typically below the national talent level", how far back are we going? Are we talking the last year? The last 20 years? Their history?

Even if you are only looking at the last 15 years when their teams have clearly been among the bottom tier of teams in college football, the talent that they have sent to the NFL is far better than that.

When you say that they are "typically below the national talent level", one can only assume that you are talking about their history. My comment is in regards to the other schools in the conference, as noted. So let's take a look at the facts. Here's the number of NFL draft picks that each school has had. Other than Ohio State who is clearly above everyone else (and only behind Notre Dame and USC), they compare favorably to the rest of the conference. Not sure why that's hilarious.

390 - Ohio State

332 - Michigan

317 - Penn State

286 - Michigan State

269 - Purdue

254 - Minnesota

245 - Wisconsin

225 - Illinois

220 - Iowa

168 - Northwestern

154 - Indiana

I'm sure you will argue that this shows that their talent level is typically inferior since they're in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten. Take into consideration that Minnesota actually ranks 22nd on the all time list in the entire country. Not bad for a school that's "typically below the national talent level". THAT'S the comment that is hilarious and shows who has the blinders.

Back to the original point of this thread. You are discrediting Decker's chances of being a solid NFL WR, essentially because he doesn't play for Notre Dame, USC or Ohio State. No, not your words. But that's how it comes across.

Aaron

[LMITOUT]

The overlying concept that needs to be realized here is that my point was that Brewster is supposedly "closing the borders" and recruiting more in-state players, and that was the real item here, not how many Gopher players are going to the NFL. What it boils down to is "closing the borders" is the last thing MN should do if they want to have a successful football program. The talent level, let me rephrase that before you take it out of context again, the high school talent level in-state is no where near what can be found out of state.

[AWH]

You made the edit to your post about conference versus country after I wrote my response. So no need to go back on that one.

As far as talent level at the high school level in MN? Agreed, it's not what you have in the big football states like Texas and Florida. But the talent level IN STATE is more than respectable. If he doesn't close the borders and get the top talent in the state, how is he going to get some of the top talent elsewhere? Getting the top talent in the state should absolutely be a priority. It's not as if he's going the way of the MN hockey program under Woog where he ONLY recruited MN guys.

What would keeping a talent like Larry Fitzgerald at home (as one example) do for the program? Michael Floyd (currently at Notre Dame) is another one that got away that would have been huge to land. These are the high profile names at the glamour positions. But MN high schools put out plenty of big time players at the more obscure positions that you don't hear about as well.

Aaron

[LMITOUT]

I guess the whole point is just because "our own" Decker is a good player on a mediocre team, doesn't mean he'll be a great or even good NFL player. He stands out on the team because there really isn't anybody else to compare too, which is also part of the reason why his stats are so inflated.

MN's "ol ball coach" needs to take his fake southern accent down south and utilize his used car salesmen skills to bring some players north. He managed to buffalo the administration and fans here, so why he can't put that snake oil charm to use somewhere else.

[AWH]

I would agree that Decker stands out more because of that. But the guy is more than just the best WR on a mediocre team. He would be the best WR on most college teams. If he chooses to pursue his football career over his baseball career (which it sounds like he will), he will have a solid career in the NFL. I don't think he'll be a great pro. But I believe he'll be better than average. He doesn't have blazing speed. But you need more than speed to be a good pro (Troy Williamson) and you don't necessarily need speed to succeed either (Cris Carter). I would think you'll see Decker go in about the 3rd round of the draft. He'll need to step up his play quite a bit more to go higher.

The jury is definitely still out on Brewster's head coaching ability. But he's a far better recruiter than we've had here in a long time. That's half the battle in college ball.

Aaron

[zamboni]

I only brought Decker into the conversation because there is alot of talk of him being one of the best WRs in the entire country, regardless of who he plays for or where he went to HS.

[gr8icefishinmind]

Watching the miami game right now........how about jacory harris??? Watched the canes game against FSU as well and he was AWESOME!!~ The kid has some great skill and natural confidence and swagger about him and also has shown great skill in scanning the field for open receivers......may be a stud in the NFL!?!?!?! The kid is fun to watch thats for sure!!!

[gr8icefishinmind]

I hope u all are watchin this kid play ball tonight cause he somethin else!!! Reminds of vince yound when he played at texas........hopefully he will be a better pro though!

[gr8icefishinmind]

Decker looked awesome once again today!! The kid has great game and sure hands!!