The depth chart isn't a big deal right now, it's just to let the players (and the fans I guess) have a sense of where things stand at the moment. There will be a ton of competition in August, but here are some thoughts on the depth chart as it stands right now. (You can see the depth chart here.)
*Bujari was being groomed to take over at center last year, so it's not too surprising to see him there, but the timing of it is very strange. He was playing guard this spring before getting hurt, and I'm not sure why he wasn't playing center right out of the gate this spring. The move just happening now may be a vote of no confidence towards Dallas Hendrickson after a poor spring, but that's just speculation from me, I don't know how he performed. Hopefully at some point one of the beat writers ask why this move was just made now.
*Taj Alexander is listed as the starer at right guard, after moving there from the defensive line this spring. The coaching staff seemed very happy with his progress at his new position, but I'm guessing that J.J. Denman and Chris Muller will be given a chance to win a job right away. Offensive lineman have the most difficult transition to make going from high school to college, so I wouldn't count on them winning a job right out of the gate.
*It's also possible that one of the players engaged in the left guard battle could start on the right side, as both David Osei and Antwan Lowry have started games at right guard in the past. If Dallas Hendrickson's demotion was more reflective of what they think of Bujari than what they think of him, he may have a chance at earning this spot. Hopefully they just take the 5 best lineman no matter what.
*Miles Shuler is not on the two deep at receiver. Why didn't he redshirt last year, again? Were the fake jet sweeps to him that important? Hopefully they'll rectify that error this season.
*It appears that Scott Vallone is moving back to his old role as the three technique tackle. This should free him up to make more plays himself, rather than holding blockers to let others make the plays as he did last year at nose tackle. It's not a huge move on the field, but it could help him come award/draft season.
*Isaac Holmes is listed as the starter at nose tackle, and backing him up are redshirt freshman Al Page and Marquis Wright. Wright (4 stars) and Page (3 stars) were big time recruits in the 2011 class, so this might be the best position battle in training camp.
*Michael Larrow and Marcus Thompson are fighting it out for one defensive end spot and Ka'Lail Glaud and Marvin Booker will duke it out for the other. Interestingly enough, Larrow and Thompson are listed as the back ups at defensive tackle, so I'm guessing the plan is to have Darius Hamilton come in and play behind/spell Vallone.
*Kevin Snyder took over the WLB role with Khaseem Greene on the shelf this spring, and he might have earned a starting spot at SLB. He will compete with the incumbent, Jamal Merrell.
*The RB battle isn't a big deal to me, both backs should be splitting the carries, unless one of the two really separate themselves
*The QB battle is still undecided as well, just like it should be. This is the most important roster decision Kyle Flood will have to make, and he should let it play out well into training camp. QB play very well could be the difference between yet another 8-4 year and something special.
There should be plenty of competition this August, with, in my estimation, 10 starting spots up for grabs. Competition will hopefully bring out the best in everyone. The Knights have a very deep roster.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Five Scarlet Knights Sign With NFL Teams as Undrafted Free Agents
Mohamed Sanu was the only Scarlet Knight drafted this year, but five of his teammates will have the opportunity to play in the NFL after signing as undrafted free agents. Defensive lineman Justin Francis signed with the New England Patriots, offensive lineman Desmond Wynn will join his former coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, running back Joe Martinek will play for his home town New York Giants, and offensive lineman Desmond Stapleton will follow in his brother Darnell's foot steps, and join the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Additionally, in an extremely classy move, Greg Schiano and the Buccaneers have allowed defensive lineman Eric LeGrand to realize his dream of making it to the NFL after his tragic injury. He will receive a jersey and a symbolic contract. Defensive back David Rowe would have likely signed on with a team, but he has chosen to pursue a career in coaching.
 |
| You have failed me for the last time, Admiral* |
Chances of making the 53 man roster: 35%
The Patriots are pretty set at defensive end, having used two of their first four picks on the position (Chandler Jones at 21 and Jake Bequette at 90) in addition to already having Jermaine Cunningham, Alex Silvestro, and free agent pick up Jonathan Faene on their roster. It's unlikely that they would carry 6 defensive ends. If he plays DT in the 4-3 scheme, there is less competition for a roster spot. New England has been moving more and more towards running a 4-3 defense, but if they still plan on using a 3-4, Jones and Bequette will be linebackers, and Francis's odds of making the team will go up.
Wynn will continue playing for coach Greg Schiano in the pros, and he is capable of backing up at every spot on the offensive line. After being a solid contributer at guard, Wynn slid over to left tackle in the Knight's Pinstripe Bowl victory over Iowa State, and he left the coaching staff wondering why they didn't make the move sooner. He is a very strong blocker and shows some decent athleticism.
Chances of making the 53 man roster: 60%
Wynn will likely compete in training camp to be the Buccaneers' back up at both guard spots, and his familiarity with the coaching staff certainly won't hurt.
Martinek has played both tailback and fullback at Rutgers, and he will likely get a look from the Giants at both spots. He is a good receiver out of the back field and can help in pass protection, but he's a bit of a tweeer since he's not an an overly elusive runner or powerful run blocker.
Chances of making the 53 man roster: 5%
All three of the Giants running backs, Ahmed Brdshaw, David Wilson, and DJ Ware can contribute in the passing game, and they already have a pretty good fullback in Henry Hynoski. His best bet is getting noticed as a special teams stand out.
Stapleton was benched in favor of Kaleb Johnson last year, but he was Rutgers best offensive lineman in 2010.
Chances of making the team: 0.1%
Never say never, but the Steelers have invested a lot of draft pick in offensive lineman the last three years. Their roster is pretty set at all 5 positions and 3 or 4 back ups.
Of course if these guys don't make the 53 man roster they will have the chance to latch on to the practice squad in hopes of being put on the active roster later in the season. Practice squad players earn $5200 a week, so if they stay on the whole season, they could make $88,400. Not too shabby for half a year of work for a recent college graduate.
*those all black uniforms definitely had a Sith Lord feel to them. Maybe it was just me though.Francis totally looks like he just forced chocked Ray Graham and is just hovering over him.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Mohamed Sanu Drafted by the Bengals
In the third round of the 2012 draft, the Cincinnati Bengals selected record breaking Rutgers wide receiver Mohamed Sanu with the 83rd overall pick. It was a little latter than where he was expected to go, but he landed in a pretty good situation.
The Bengals were a playoff team last year, and should only get better, with quarterback Andy Dalton entering his second year, and a plethora of weapons including second year WR AJ Green, third year TE Jermaine Gresham, former Scarlet Knight RB Brian Leonard and Sanu. They have a solid defense as well, and it should be fun seeing Sanu and Leonard's Bengals square off against Ray Rice's Ravens twice a year.
Sanu will likely go into training camp competing competing to be the Bengals Z receiver (second WR, lined up outside, slightly off the line) with guys he should beat out like Brandon Tate (a burner who was waived by the Patriots last year and has 24 career receptions in three years), Jordan Shipley (who is a better fit in the role of a slot receiver and is coming off a knee injury that cost him all of last season), and a bunch of other guys like Vidal Hazelton and Armon Binns. The Z in the Bengals offense should get plenty of opportunities to catch the ball, as most defenses will be focused on stopping super star number one receiver A.J. Green, opening up the other side of the field.
Sanu broke Larry Fitzgerald's single season Big East receptions record with 115 catches, and is Rutgers all time leader in career receptions. Despite the accolades, scouts had doubts about his lack of top-end speed and ability to separate, and that's what dropped him into the middle of the third round. But these doubts aside, Mo is a very safe pick. He is a hard working kid with no character issues, and he will be a very good possession receiver at the next level. He has great hands to go along with his solid 6'2'' 211 frame. He is very strong and will out muscle defenders for the ball while making spectacular catches in the process (like this and this). He is very tough and not afraid to go across the middle, and although he is not going to outrun most defensive backs, he is dangerous after the catch because of his ability to break tackles. The scouts are right in the regard that he will not stretch the field vertically, but I think the "separation issues" is more of a product of him being double teamed all of the time. He will contribute as a blocker, and he's a nice, reliable guy, who will move the chains of third down and be an asset in the redzone.
Sanu could have landed in a better situation and he certainly should have gone higher, especially since boom or bust WR prospects like Stepehn Hill, DeVier Posey, Brian Quick, AJ Jenkins and TJ Graham went ahead of him, but he is in an environment were he can be successful. It's up to him now to prove the 31 teams who passed on him wrong. The entire Rutgers community is behind him.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Scarlet Links 3/2/12
-Running back coach Ben Sirmans, Special Teams Coordinator Phil Galiano and Offensive Grad Assistant Andrew Janocko are all leaving for the NFL. Galiano and Janocko will join Greg Schiano's staff in Tampa as a special teams assistant and Quality Control coach respectively, while Sirmans joins the St. Louis Rams staff as running backs coach. These are pretty big losses. Sirmans is a New Jersey native and was one of the best running back coaches in the country. Galinao was retained to keep up the success the Knights had on special teams under Greg Schiano and he also recruited South Jersey. There's a lot of talent in South Jersey in the 2013 recruiting class, and losing him might hurt.
-Temple is on the verge of re-joining the Big East as an all sports member. They will be able to join the conference in time for the 2012-13 season, giving the Big East 8 teams. Temple was one of the most obvious candidates for Big East expansion, but it's mildly surprising that the basketball schools allowed this to happen, as they run the conference and Villanova was vehemently against adding Temple for obvious reasons.The only remaining obstacle is the exit fee the Owls would have to pay for leaving the MAC and Atlantic 10.
Schedule wise, Temple could just take over for West Virginia, but is it fair that they would get 4 conference home games while others get 3? If they make Temple play 4 road games, the Big East would have to decide whether they'll give Rutgers, Syracuse or Louisville a 4th home game. Rutgers needs the home game more than the others (in order to pay off the stadium renovations) but knowing the Big East, they'll give it to Syracuse even though they're leaving the conference. An extra home game could improve Louisville or Rutgers stock should conference realignment strike again.
The addition of Temple effects Rutgers in two other ways as well. Recruiting wise, moving to the Big East could improve Temple's recruiting in New Jersey. I don't think it will help in north and central Jersey (CJ is very pro Rutgers and there was a lot of backlash amongst NJ HS coaches when Steve Addazio was a candidate to take oer for Greg Schiano) but Rutgers could go to battle with the Owls for South Jersey prospects. Temple has built ties there taking lesser prospects who didn't receive a lot of interest elsewhere. Rutgers would also have a void in their non conference schedule form 2015-2018, since they had a scheduled series with Temple. This won't be a big deal if the Big East goes to a 9 game conference slate or if RU joins another conference playing a 9 game slate.
-Former Scarlet Knights Mohamed Sanu, Justin Francis and Desmond Wynn participated in the NFL Combine earlier this week. Sanu is projected to go in the late first or early second round, and ran a sub par 40 yard dash, clocking in at 4.67 seconds. In reality, this isn't a big deal. Sanu is a possession receiver and isn't a track star like some other guys. This years' wide out class is pretty deep, so he will likely fall into the second round. Potential landing spots for Sanu are the Colts at 33 (they might lose Pierre Garcon and Reggie Wayne) , Patriots, 49ers, Texans, and Jets. Francis and Wynn are projected to go in the late rounds.
-Last week in his mailbag, Bruce Feldman fielded a question about Rutgers' future.
*Recruiting isn't over until the prospect signs the dotted line. There's still 11 months for Woodard to change his mind.
-Temple is on the verge of re-joining the Big East as an all sports member. They will be able to join the conference in time for the 2012-13 season, giving the Big East 8 teams. Temple was one of the most obvious candidates for Big East expansion, but it's mildly surprising that the basketball schools allowed this to happen, as they run the conference and Villanova was vehemently against adding Temple for obvious reasons.The only remaining obstacle is the exit fee the Owls would have to pay for leaving the MAC and Atlantic 10.
Schedule wise, Temple could just take over for West Virginia, but is it fair that they would get 4 conference home games while others get 3? If they make Temple play 4 road games, the Big East would have to decide whether they'll give Rutgers, Syracuse or Louisville a 4th home game. Rutgers needs the home game more than the others (in order to pay off the stadium renovations) but knowing the Big East, they'll give it to Syracuse even though they're leaving the conference. An extra home game could improve Louisville or Rutgers stock should conference realignment strike again.
The addition of Temple effects Rutgers in two other ways as well. Recruiting wise, moving to the Big East could improve Temple's recruiting in New Jersey. I don't think it will help in north and central Jersey (CJ is very pro Rutgers and there was a lot of backlash amongst NJ HS coaches when Steve Addazio was a candidate to take oer for Greg Schiano) but Rutgers could go to battle with the Owls for South Jersey prospects. Temple has built ties there taking lesser prospects who didn't receive a lot of interest elsewhere. Rutgers would also have a void in their non conference schedule form 2015-2018, since they had a scheduled series with Temple. This won't be a big deal if the Big East goes to a 9 game conference slate or if RU joins another conference playing a 9 game slate.
-Former Scarlet Knights Mohamed Sanu, Justin Francis and Desmond Wynn participated in the NFL Combine earlier this week. Sanu is projected to go in the late first or early second round, and ran a sub par 40 yard dash, clocking in at 4.67 seconds. In reality, this isn't a big deal. Sanu is a possession receiver and isn't a track star like some other guys. This years' wide out class is pretty deep, so he will likely fall into the second round. Potential landing spots for Sanu are the Colts at 33 (they might lose Pierre Garcon and Reggie Wayne) , Patriots, 49ers, Texans, and Jets. Francis and Wynn are projected to go in the late rounds.
-Last week in his mailbag, Bruce Feldman fielded a question about Rutgers' future.
From @ChrisMonti Rutgers '12 outlook, one step back, then forward?There is a grain of truth to what he is saying, but I don't necessarily agree. Rutgers has already "lost"* the top prospect in New Jersey for 2013's recruiting class, Eli Woodard of Voorhees to Ohio State, but the last two recruiting classes have proved one thing to me: Jersey kids want to stay home and win together, no matter what the conference landscape is or who the coach is. High School coaches in New Jersey still feel comfortable sending their players to Rutgers, and they approved of Kyle Flood's promotion to head coach. The kids being recruited now remember the Ray Rice and Kenny Britt glory days of Rutgers football and don't remember the sinkhole of a program it was before Greg Schiano.
I'm not overly optimistic about that because the Big East is going to be so watered down, the perception is the conference is gonna be even less relevant. My hunch is it'll be that much harder for RU to compete with schools from the Big Ten and others when they go head-to-head on top talent around the Northeast. Can Kyle Flood do much more than Greg Schiano did? We'll see. It has become a tougher spot because of the conference's situation
*Recruiting isn't over until the prospect signs the dotted line. There's still 11 months for Woodard to change his mind.
The Offensive Assistants
Dave Brock Offensive Coordinator/ WR Coach
Brock is a Moorestown, New Jersey native and he has eight years of coordinating experience under his belt. After stating his coaching career at a Division 3 school, he got his first Division 1 job at Hofstra, where he coached along with Kyle Flood. While at Hofstra, he held a number of positions including RB coach, WR coach, recruiting coordinator and eventually offensive coordinator. His greatest accomplishment with the Pride was recruiting and coaching future New Orelans Saints star Marques Colston. As a coordinator, his offenses were amongst the best in the nation at the FCS level. In '02, he moved on to Temple, where he led some pretty terrible offenses during the Owls' pre-Golden, Hadean Ages. In 2005-06 he was the wide receiver coach at North Carolina where he coached a young Hakeem Nicks, and in 2007 he coached Jordy Nelson into an All American at Kansas State. He ran the Wildcats' offense the following season, and the Josh Freeman led unit finished 18th in scoring offense and 34th in total offense. KSU brought in a new coaching staff the following season, and Brock moved on to Boston College as a tightends coach from 2009-11. He was pressed into OC duties when the Eagles' OC resigned in the middle of last season.
Brock is a very good recruiter, and has ties in the North East, North Carolina, Illinois, and California. He says he is going to run a pro style offense (though that can be a very vague term), so there won't be a big change personnel or scheme wise. This is a very solid hire by Flood. Brock is from NJ, knows the north east and has a great record as a WR and coordinating experience.
Rob Spence Quarterbacks Coach
Spence, a Pullman, NY native, has certainly made his way around the country (mostly the NE) through out his coaching career, which includes 16 seasons as a coordinator. His first job was at Iona, where he recruited Kyle Flood, before moving on to Holy Cross, Hofstra, Maryland, all as a quarterback coach. He later returned to Hofstra for his first gig as an offensive coordinator. In 2000 he moved on to coordinate a high flying passing attack at Lousiana Tech with Luke McCown at the helm, and moved on to Toledo the following season. At Toledo, his offenses were in the top 25 in scoring every year, and he coached future pros Bruce Gradkowski, Chester Taylor, Nick Kaczur, and Lance Moore.
He received his first chance to coach at a big time school when he became Clemson's offensive coordinator in 2005 and he had a mostly disastrous tenure there. His QBs performed very poorly, the offense underachieved and he was let go along with head coach Tommy Bowden in the middle of the 2008 season. In 2009 he made his way to Syracuse, where he was fired after 1 season (This was the Greg Palus year). He's coached at Temple and Bethune Cookman the last 2 seasons. I don't know much about his recruiting record. This is a peculiar hire by Flood and I'm not sure how I feel about it. He has a lot of experience and some success as a QB coach and he know the NE, but his last few stops haven't ended too well.
Damian Wroblewski Offensive Line Coach
Wroblewski, a Rhode Island native, has very strong ties to the northeast, having played at Lafayette and coached at Bryant (RI), Penn, Stony Brook (NY), Hofstra and Delaware. (Interestingly enough, Kyle Flood also coached at the latter two.) According to his bio on Delaware's website, he has done a lot of recruiting in the state of Maryland, which is a key battleground in the northeast recruiting landscape. Wroblewski's offenses have consistently been amongst the best in the Atlantic 10, utilizing a zone blocking scheme like Flood has used over the years, and he even produced a starting NFL offensive lineman while at Hofstra, Willie Colon of the Pittsburgh Steelers. His past experience and ties to the northeast make him a very good first addition to Flood's staff.
Darnell Dinkins Tight Ends Coach
Dinkins, a Pittsburgh, PA native and Pitt grad, joins the Scarlet Knight's staff after spending the last 10 seasons in the NFL. He was the assistant TE coach for the Buccaneers last season, following his 9 year playing career that included time with the Steelers, Giants, Browns and Saints. Dinkins is pretty young for a coach, and that's a good thing. Younger coaches can connect better with recruits and bring energy to the coaching staff on the practice field and recruiting trail. He doesn't have a lot of coaching experience, but he knows what it takes to be a TE at the NFL level, and that could go a long way.
*Ben Sirmans was hired to be the running back coach, but he just accepted the same position with the St. Louis Rams. I thought that he was one of the best RB coaches in the country, previously coaching at Boston College, Michigan State, Kent State and Maine, so that's unfortunate. He's from New Jersey too, this would have been a great addition.
Brock is a Moorestown, New Jersey native and he has eight years of coordinating experience under his belt. After stating his coaching career at a Division 3 school, he got his first Division 1 job at Hofstra, where he coached along with Kyle Flood. While at Hofstra, he held a number of positions including RB coach, WR coach, recruiting coordinator and eventually offensive coordinator. His greatest accomplishment with the Pride was recruiting and coaching future New Orelans Saints star Marques Colston. As a coordinator, his offenses were amongst the best in the nation at the FCS level. In '02, he moved on to Temple, where he led some pretty terrible offenses during the Owls' pre-Golden, Hadean Ages. In 2005-06 he was the wide receiver coach at North Carolina where he coached a young Hakeem Nicks, and in 2007 he coached Jordy Nelson into an All American at Kansas State. He ran the Wildcats' offense the following season, and the Josh Freeman led unit finished 18th in scoring offense and 34th in total offense. KSU brought in a new coaching staff the following season, and Brock moved on to Boston College as a tightends coach from 2009-11. He was pressed into OC duties when the Eagles' OC resigned in the middle of last season.
Brock is a very good recruiter, and has ties in the North East, North Carolina, Illinois, and California. He says he is going to run a pro style offense (though that can be a very vague term), so there won't be a big change personnel or scheme wise. This is a very solid hire by Flood. Brock is from NJ, knows the north east and has a great record as a WR and coordinating experience.
Rob Spence Quarterbacks Coach
Spence, a Pullman, NY native, has certainly made his way around the country (mostly the NE) through out his coaching career, which includes 16 seasons as a coordinator. His first job was at Iona, where he recruited Kyle Flood, before moving on to Holy Cross, Hofstra, Maryland, all as a quarterback coach. He later returned to Hofstra for his first gig as an offensive coordinator. In 2000 he moved on to coordinate a high flying passing attack at Lousiana Tech with Luke McCown at the helm, and moved on to Toledo the following season. At Toledo, his offenses were in the top 25 in scoring every year, and he coached future pros Bruce Gradkowski, Chester Taylor, Nick Kaczur, and Lance Moore.
He received his first chance to coach at a big time school when he became Clemson's offensive coordinator in 2005 and he had a mostly disastrous tenure there. His QBs performed very poorly, the offense underachieved and he was let go along with head coach Tommy Bowden in the middle of the 2008 season. In 2009 he made his way to Syracuse, where he was fired after 1 season (This was the Greg Palus year). He's coached at Temple and Bethune Cookman the last 2 seasons. I don't know much about his recruiting record. This is a peculiar hire by Flood and I'm not sure how I feel about it. He has a lot of experience and some success as a QB coach and he know the NE, but his last few stops haven't ended too well.
Damian Wroblewski Offensive Line Coach
Wroblewski, a Rhode Island native, has very strong ties to the northeast, having played at Lafayette and coached at Bryant (RI), Penn, Stony Brook (NY), Hofstra and Delaware. (Interestingly enough, Kyle Flood also coached at the latter two.) According to his bio on Delaware's website, he has done a lot of recruiting in the state of Maryland, which is a key battleground in the northeast recruiting landscape. Wroblewski's offenses have consistently been amongst the best in the Atlantic 10, utilizing a zone blocking scheme like Flood has used over the years, and he even produced a starting NFL offensive lineman while at Hofstra, Willie Colon of the Pittsburgh Steelers. His past experience and ties to the northeast make him a very good first addition to Flood's staff.
Darnell Dinkins Tight Ends Coach
Dinkins, a Pittsburgh, PA native and Pitt grad, joins the Scarlet Knight's staff after spending the last 10 seasons in the NFL. He was the assistant TE coach for the Buccaneers last season, following his 9 year playing career that included time with the Steelers, Giants, Browns and Saints. Dinkins is pretty young for a coach, and that's a good thing. Younger coaches can connect better with recruits and bring energy to the coaching staff on the practice field and recruiting trail. He doesn't have a lot of coaching experience, but he knows what it takes to be a TE at the NFL level, and that could go a long way.
*Ben Sirmans was hired to be the running back coach, but he just accepted the same position with the St. Louis Rams. I thought that he was one of the best RB coaches in the country, previously coaching at Boston College, Michigan State, Kent State and Maine, so that's unfortunate. He's from New Jersey too, this would have been a great addition.
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Let the Flood Gates Open: Anthony Cioffi Commits to Rutgers
Kyle Flood and co. hosted some of the top junior prospects in the state last Sunday, on Junior Day, and they received their first verbal commitment for the class of 2013 in Anthony Cioffi. Coffi stars as a running quarter back and safety at Jonathan Dayton High, a group 1 school in Springfield, NJ.
Measurables- 6'0 175 4.4 (Height, weight 40 yard dash time)
Stars-
I wouldn't be too concerned about his lack of stars, in all likelihood, the scouting services haven't even evaluated him yet, since he's from such a small school and an under the radar prospect. When they finally get around to ranking him, I will guess that he'll be a 3 star recruit.
Offer sheet: Rutgers was the first school to offer Cioffi, and according to the afore-linked Lucci article, he was receiving interest from Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Penn State, Ohio State and Temple as well. If he goes to their camps this summer he will probably pick up additional offers.
Scouting Report: Cioffi is a running quarterback in a multiple offense, that uses pistol, wishbone, and single wing concepts. He has break away speed and makes defenders look silly with his ability to stop on a dime and make cuts. He doesn't have much of an arm and will end up either as a running back, wide receiver, or defensive back. I wasn't able to find a whole lot of video of him playing defense, but based on his speed, size, and Rutgers' depth at other positions, I think he ends up as a corner back who will contribute on special teams and as a kick returner.
Video:
My Take: Cioffi is an interesting athlete, who is versatile and a possible contributor in all three phases of the game. He is probably a bit under the radar since he's from such a small school, but he is a solid early pick up.
Measurables- 6'0 175 4.4 (Height, weight 40 yard dash time)
Stars-
Rivals
|
Scout
|
ESPN
|
247
|
N/A Athlete
|
N/A Safety
|
N/A Athlete
|
2 stars, 78 rating, #19 All Purpose Back, #28 in NJ
|
Offer sheet: Rutgers was the first school to offer Cioffi, and according to the afore-linked Lucci article, he was receiving interest from Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Penn State, Ohio State and Temple as well. If he goes to their camps this summer he will probably pick up additional offers.
Scouting Report: Cioffi is a running quarterback in a multiple offense, that uses pistol, wishbone, and single wing concepts. He has break away speed and makes defenders look silly with his ability to stop on a dime and make cuts. He doesn't have much of an arm and will end up either as a running back, wide receiver, or defensive back. I wasn't able to find a whole lot of video of him playing defense, but based on his speed, size, and Rutgers' depth at other positions, I think he ends up as a corner back who will contribute on special teams and as a kick returner.
Video:
My Take: Cioffi is an interesting athlete, who is versatile and a possible contributor in all three phases of the game. He is probably a bit under the radar since he's from such a small school, but he is a solid early pick up.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Scarlet Links 2/17/12
There's quite a bit of news coming out of the Hale Center today, here's the latest:
-Tim Pernetti has finalized a home and home series for this season and 2013 with Arkansas. The Knights will play in Fayetteville on September 22nd and the Razorbacks will make the return trip to Piscataway on September 21st next year.
This is obviously great news for the program, as these games against a premiere opponent will likely be televised nationally. Arkansas finished ranked 5th last season after beating Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl, with their only two losses coming against the two national finalists, LSU and Alabama. They will likely begin the season ranked in the #10-15 range.
Bruce Feldman wrote about the Hogs in his mail bag today, saying:
If Rutgers is at least competitive in these games, it would do wonders for Rutgers' reputation and brand nationally.
-Defensive Back Jordan Thomas has left the program to run track at Binghampton, according to Jason Baum. Thomas was the Scarlet Knights' leading rusher in 2010, before moving to defensive back last season because he did not fit Frank Cignetti's pro-style offense. He was a big special teams contributor, returning and covering kicks, but he was unable to see the field on offense or defense, as Rutgers was loaded at wide receiver and defensive back.
Speculation is that he's ending his football career because of concussions. He suffered a pretty serious one during spring practice this year. This is a big loss, but it's probably for the best. What a shame, good luck to Jordan.
-Baum also tweeted that Nike will unveil a new Rutgers uniform in May. Hopefully this isn't a drastic change and is just a minor alteration or a new alternate uniform. I'm one of the few people under 30 who is a uniform purist, and this news is very concerning to me. Hopefully the changes are nothing crazy, like what Arizona State and Maryland did.
Bonus: Here's new Rutgers offensive tackle, Maryland transfer RJ Dill modeling one of the Terps' new uniforms last summer.
-Tim Pernetti has finalized a home and home series for this season and 2013 with Arkansas. The Knights will play in Fayetteville on September 22nd and the Razorbacks will make the return trip to Piscataway on September 21st next year.
This is obviously great news for the program, as these games against a premiere opponent will likely be televised nationally. Arkansas finished ranked 5th last season after beating Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl, with their only two losses coming against the two national finalists, LSU and Alabama. They will likely begin the season ranked in the #10-15 range.
Bruce Feldman wrote about the Hogs in his mail bag today, saying:
" I like the Hogs chances to be a top 10 team, but I don't like their chances to win the SEC West and compete for a BCS title. Reasons for a top 10 run: Tyler Wilson is back, along with Knile Davis and they do get LSU and Bama at home this year. Reasons why I don't think they can win the SEC: I'm not sold on the defense. It wasn't good enough in 2011 and they're losing most of the best players they had on that D to the NFL. "Wilson is one of the best quarter backs in the nation, as he passed for 3638 yards (8.31 yards per attempt) with 24 TDs and only 6 interceptionslast season. He would have likely been a first round pick this April, had the rising senior declared for the draft. Davis missed all of last season with a leg injury he suffered during training camp. In 2010 he ran for 1322 yards (6.5 yards per attempt) with 13 TDs. In addition to the losses on defense, the Hogs also lost three members of their very talented receiving corp to graduation.
If Rutgers is at least competitive in these games, it would do wonders for Rutgers' reputation and brand nationally.
-Defensive Back Jordan Thomas has left the program to run track at Binghampton, according to Jason Baum. Thomas was the Scarlet Knights' leading rusher in 2010, before moving to defensive back last season because he did not fit Frank Cignetti's pro-style offense. He was a big special teams contributor, returning and covering kicks, but he was unable to see the field on offense or defense, as Rutgers was loaded at wide receiver and defensive back.
Speculation is that he's ending his football career because of concussions. He suffered a pretty serious one during spring practice this year. This is a big loss, but it's probably for the best. What a shame, good luck to Jordan.
-Baum also tweeted that Nike will unveil a new Rutgers uniform in May. Hopefully this isn't a drastic change and is just a minor alteration or a new alternate uniform. I'm one of the few people under 30 who is a uniform purist, and this news is very concerning to me. Hopefully the changes are nothing crazy, like what Arizona State and Maryland did.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)