Random notes from the game:
1. WR Brandon
Marshall:
It was pretty
much the Brandon Marshall show in Hawaii.
That was his second game in Aloha Stadium in
less that a month, and including both games
he has recorded 16 catches for 311 yards and
4 TDs in the post season. East Carolina's
Skip Holtz, an assistant coach for the East,
said the 6-foot-6, 230-pound Marshall
impressed him all week and improved his
stock heading up to the NFL draft. "He has a
big body and is very physical. He's very
hard to press and he's so tall, he can go up
and get a jump ball," Holtz said. I wouldn’t
be surprised to see Marshall receive a late
invitation to the NFL Combine. He looks to
have all the skills to be a star at the next
level.
2. OLB/DE
Brent Hawkins:
I have been
ranting about Hawkins all year and he didn’t
disappoint in this game. He was the
defensive MVP. Hawkins, the 2005 Gateway
Football Conference Defensive Player of the
Year, sacked QB Brad Smith and forced a
fumble with 9:06 left in the fourth quarter,
which ended the West's offensive drive and
preserved a 10-7 win for the East team. The
sack and forced fumble combination was
nothing new for Hawkins, who led the
Redbirds with 17 quarterback sacks and a
school record seven forced fumbles in 2005.
He played approximately 25 snaps and
finished with four quarterback hurries to go
along with his tackle, tackle for loss and
sack. "It is a great feeling (to be named
the defensive MVP)," Hawkins said. "I worked
really hard to get to this point and it
doesn't matter what level you play,
football's the same. I brought the Illinois
State mentality of hunting in packs into the
game and this award goes to coach (Chris)
Patton and coach (Bill) Teerlinck." Hawkins
hopes his MVP honor got the attention of NFL
scouts. "It was something that I thought was
attainable and I went out and did my job
today," he said. At 6-3 245 pounds he has
all the skills to play OLB in the NFL, he
will be steal for a team that uses the 34
defense.
3. DE Jeremy
Mincy, Florida:
This
relatively unknown player displayed the
talent to get a long look from NFL scouts.
He was a terror coming around the edge and
gave the offensive tackles fits all game. He
finished with 3 sacks and showed excellent
hustle.
4. RB P.J.
Daniels, Georgia Tech:
What a great
year for running backs in this draft, and
the strong play of Daniels makes it even
stronger. He was the leading rusher and
finished with 54 yards on 12 carries. He
looked fast and explosive and made the most
out of his opportunities. The coaches were a
little pass happy and didn’t feed Daniels
enough in my opinion.
5. QB Brett
Elliot, Linfield:
The best
looking QB on the field in my opinion. He
utilized the three step drop and hooked up
nicely with Brandon Marshall for a TD. He
has a quick release and gets the ball out in
a hurry; he answered his critics with
excellent arm strength and accuracy. He only
threw one bad pass, when he threw an INT
into coverage. It was a big step up from
Division III to the Hula Bowl but Elliot
didn’t look out of place. It was unfortunate
that they brought out Josh Betts in the 4th
quarter because I wanted to see more of
Elliot. I would draft him in the 6th
or 7th and send him to NFL Europe
for a year or two.
6. QB Barrick
Nealy, Texas State:
I am sorry,
but I thought he looked terrible, very
inaccurate and his scramble for minus 15
yards was just idiotic, he could have thrown
it away. He is a nice athlete with good
size, but I don’t see much future for him in
the NFL as a quarterback.
7. QB Brad
Smith, Missouri:
He should not
have won the offensive MVP honors over
Brandon Marshall. He did have a nice
scramble for a TD in the 1st
quarter, but after that he didn’t do much.
This was his chance to show the NFL scouts
that he could play QB in the NFL and he
failed miserably. He did not throw the ball
with any kind of accuracy and seemed to lose
confidence as the game proceeded. His draft
stock is falling like a rock.
8. QB Josh
Betts, Miami (OH):
Nothing
personal against quarterbacks here, I
promise, but these guys (Smith, Nealy and
Betts) looked pathetic. Betts just couldn’t
get anything going and didn’t look to have
the arm strength or accuracy to play the
position in the NFL. The 2006 Hula Bowl was
not a good game for quarterbacks.
9. DE Dave
Tollefson, NW Missouri State:
This small
school end with nice size held up nicely
against the run displayed speedy edge moves
and pressure all evening. He had one sack
and a couple of QB pressures. He is a very
lean, mean 6-5 263 pounds.
10. RB Patrick
Cobbs, North Texas:
I think he
opened up some eyes in the game. He is very
quick, stocky and runs very low to the
ground. At 5-8 200 pounds he reminds me of a
slower version of the Eagle’s Ryan Moats.
11. OT Donald
Penn, Utah State:
I thought I
knew all the small school sleepers, I didn’t
know this guy, but I do now. Wonderful size
at 6-5 315 pounds and looked very fluid in
pass protection. He is definitely a player
on the rise and someone to keep an eye on.
12. CB Jovon
Johnson, Iowa:
A little small
at 5-9 180 but he has quicks and you can see
he was well coached because he plays with
excellent fundamentals. He made a sudden
break on the ball and returned an INT 22
yards. He didn’t have a strong year, but
looked good in this game.
13. NT Gerald
Anderson, Georgia:
A massive nose
tackle at 6-1 330. He has been hyped up for
the last couple years but didn’t develop
into an elite player because he couldn’t
stay in shape or stay healthy. He plugged
the middle in this game and made a couple of
impressive tackles. I think if this guy gets
motivated and committed to an NFL offseason
conditioning program he could be a nice Nose
tackle for a team that uses the 34 defense.
