What’s up with Tim Tebow and buxom young women?? Every time you turn around there’s something new. It is what it is. He’ll probably have a good day tomorrow and he’s not even eligible for the draft. Tim Tebow, we continue to salute you.
Anyway, happy Friday. Hopefully tomorrow is happy for Husain Abdullah and Jed Collins, our two best hopes for playing on Sundays.
As Brinhater “opined” yesterday (much to the chagrin of few of you), Alex is looking at 7th round/undrafted free agency. Brink has been getting some good vibes from various teams, and is hopeful for the call this weekend. But no, I’m not going to pile on. Too much has been said about Brink over the years, some of it completely not his fault. Enough. And I will always counter the anti-Brink rhetoric with “yeah, but those Apple Cups…” and in Forrest Gump style, that’s all I have to say about that. 
UW has struggled, to be kind, over the last 3-4 years. But still, those games were pretty important at the time. In other words, I’ll TAKE IT. And so will Brink.
Now for some WSU draft history. Our last ten drafts are actually OK. Not great, but not the end of the world (although you can see it from here). Check it out:
2007
WR Jason Hill, 3rd round, #76 overall – San Francisco
SS Eric Frampton, 5th round, #165 overall – Oakland
2006
RB Jerome Harrison, 5th round, #145 overall – Cleveland
2005
CB Karl Paymah, 3rd round, #76 overall – Denver
OT Calvin Armstrong, 6th round, #211 overall – Philly
DB Hamza Abdullah, 7th round, #231 overall – Tampa Bay
2004
WR Devard Darling, 3rd round, #82 overall – Baltimore
CB Jason David, 4th round, #125 overall – Indy
SS Erik Coleman, 5th round, #143 overall – NY Jets
2003
CB Marcus Trufant, 1st round, #11 overall – Seattle
DT Rien Long, 4th round, #126 overall – Tennessee
2002
LB Raonall Smith, 2nd round, #38 overall – Minnesota
FS Lamont Thompson, 2nd round, #41 overall – Cincinnati
2001
WR Milton Wynn, 4th round, #116 overall – St. Louis
2000
DT Rob Meier, 7th round, #241 overall – Jacksonville
1999
CB Dee Moronkola, 7th round, #242 overall – Jacksonville
1998
QB Ryan Leaf, 1st round, #2 overall – San Diego
DT Leon Bender, 2nd round, #31 overall – Oakland
DE Dorian Boose, 2nd round, #56 overall – NY Jets
C Jason McEndoo, 7th round, #197 overall – Seattle
Some WSU draft tidbits: For the last thirteen drafts overall, we’ve had at least one player selected. Even the King of Poop Island years produced at least one guy the NFL wanted bad enough to spend a draft choice on. Nothing wrong with that! That said, in the last 10 drafts, we’ve had a total of 20 players selected. That’s “good” for MRS. LAST in the Pac-10. 10 out of 10. OUCH. However, maybe our recent draft history bodes well for Husain Abdullah. 7 of the last 13 WSU draft picks have been DB’s. And since 1998, 13 out of our 20 total draft picks have been defensive players.
Anyway, here’s the SI.com takes on our top two kids, Abdullah and Collins. Note – Abdullah and Collins are the two best prospects we have. Bumpus, Ropati and Brink are all projected as undrafted free-agents, at best, so we won’t go into detail there. Click on their names if you want the NFL poop on them :
Husain Abdullah: 6-0, 204, 4.67-40 time. Grades out at 3.28 in SI’s grading system. That basically means a late-rounder/practice squad/special teams fence-sitter.
BIOGRAPHY: Three-year starter who posted career-high totals of 84/4/5 as a senior after 66/3/4 the previous year.
POSITIVES: Athletic defensive back with marginal ball skills. Diagnoses the action, flashes the ability to play sideline-to-sideline, and has a nice first move to the ball. Aggressively defends the run and puts his shoulders into ball-carriers. Displays a sense of timing, quickly closes to the action, and displays good hands for the pick.
NEGATIVES: Wastes a lot of motion, not efficient, and must learn to play within himself. Average footwork and skill moving in reverse.
ANALYSIS: Abdullah is a competitive safety who’s best suited for a zone system where the action is in front of him.
PROJECTION: Early Seventh Round
WSU Football Blog Says: Interesting how much ink Abdullah has picked up this week. Vince at SR.com mentioned it early, how there was very little out there, then suddenly there were a few different stories in different NFL markets that popped up. Could it be teams are suddenly interested in him more than the experts thought? Maybe his agent is pumping their guy this week? Whatever the case, he’s on the radar. I think we’ll see him go on Sunday, but I think he is definitely going to be drafted. Could be a decent special teams guy early. He needs to get stronger though. Anyone remember that TD against Idaho, where the Idaho WR literally ripped the ball right out of Abdullah’s hands in the end zone? An average WR from Idaho shouldn’t be able to rip the ball out of Abdullah’s hands for a TD. He had a heck of a year though and with our recent track record of putting DB’s in the NFL, he’s got a shot.
Jed Collins: 6-1 1/2, 255, 4.85-40 time. SI grade of 3.25. Late rounder/practice squad/special teams guy.
BIOGRAPHY: All-Conference selection as a senior when he became a full-time starter and posted career-high numbers of 52/512/3.
POSITIVES: Sure-handed pass-catching tight end with an improving game. Quickly gets into routes, nicely adjusts to the errant throw, and uses his frame to shield away opponents. Gives effort blocking, stays with assignments, and works hard to produce.
NEGATIVES: Mostly a short-yardage pass-catcher and lacks the speed to break free downfield. Lacks footwork in pass protection, bends at the waist, and possesses marginal playing strength.
ANALYSIS: Collins did a terrific job in his first season as a starter and he could find a spot in the NFL as a backup.
PROJECTION: Late Seventh Round
WSU Football Blog Says: Moxie, moxie, and more moxie. Jed is full of it. He’s not a top-shelf NFL talent in terms of measurables, but there are teams out there that value character, intelligence, and team-first guys in a big way. Collins can catch the ball, he can block, and he’s played well in a pass-happy offense. I will always remember him from the Oregon game and UCLA game in ’06, and also the UCLA game in ’07. The ’06 games for his receiving, but the ’07 game for his blocking. We had an outstanding game running the ball on UCLA’s D in ’07, and Collins was basically an H-back for the entire game, motioning across the line and becoming the lead blocker on counters or sweeps. Then he would motion across and then at the snap reverse his direction and block on inside dive plays. I could see a team like New England or Seattle, organizations that value character, taking a shot with Collins. Go get ’em Jedzilla!
Hey, what do you know, VIDEO of Collins!
Finally, what would a day be without an update on the best soap opera going? Another day, more damaging e-mails. Even the national media is in on it now, with ESPN’s latest headline “Newly revealed e-mails could cause headaches for Sonics owner”. And now, Clay’s favorite human being, David Stern, might be deposed, under oath??
Momentum is on the Seattle side of the ledger and you have to wonder how much longer Bennett and the rest will want to deal with this hornet’s nest. Because, uh, it’s only going to get worse from here on out. The city and Howard’s attorney are going to keep piling on. Ultimately you have to wonder when enough is enough and Bennett’s group pulls the plug.
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