Both Senior Bowl practices today were pushed back due to the weather and it was a chilly practice session that was closed for interviews afterwards. The North team’s practice was peppered with special teams drills and stretching but eventually there was some football taking place at Ladd Peebles stadium.

IMPRESSIVE

OT Jason Spriggs, Indiana – The Hoosiers’ four year starter has been dominant at times with a number of wins in one on one action and showing out well in scrimmage action with a pancake on Jihad Ward as well as a knockdown on Jason Fanaika. He’s getting a ton of reps at left tackle and will likely start the game. While some may look at the Indiana product as a guy from a spread attack that excels in pass protection, the fact that IU had Tevin Coleman rush for 2,036 yards and then had two 1,000 yard rushers in Devine Redding and Jordan Howard. I believe Spriggs has all the talent, size, power and speed needed to play at left tackle in the NFL but regardless where he ends up, he’s going to play for a long time at the next level.

WR Jordan Payton, UCLA – I honestly did not get to see a lot of Payton yesterday after the long drive from Fairhope stadium but heard many reports of praise from day one. Day two he appeared to pick up right where he left off. Outside of an early drop in warm up drills, he caught everything thrown his way and was able to haul in a few jaw droppers today. Namely, a sideline pass that he went airborne to reel in the pass, he spun around and got two feet inbound as well as keeping his balance. He has the body control, the size and the ball skills to not only get drafted but by all appearances looks to be a player that will stick in the league.

Tavon Young, Temple – For the record, I think all of these Temple Owls in attendance (Tyler Matakevich, Matt Ioannidis & Tavon Young) have put out quality practices and are great defenders but Tavon Young has put together a solid week thus far. He anticipates so well and plays a physical brand of ball. Young blanketed Braxton Miller on an overthrow by Driskell and he got to Chris Moore so fast on an out route it could have been a blow up situation, had he not let up on the hit in the seven on seven drills. Young has brought intensity, energy and extra effort to each practice and his tempo as well as his presence has to have turned on the lights for scouts this thus far. It is safe to say that Young is moving up a lot of boards this week.

BUZZ PLAYER

Braxton Miller, Ohio State – This kid not only oozes confidence but he’s also handling his position transition extremely well. He’s taken to the coaching of Derek Dooley and even in workouts and foot drills, he has flashed his tremendous footwork as well as the change of direction ability that made him the Big-Ten Offensive MVP in 2013. Truth be told, he pulled up a little at the end of practice today with what he explained as “Cramping” after a very busy day of practice with his one on ones, scrimmages, special teams drills and return duties that the Cowboys’ coaching staff ran him through. He did also struggle to field punts today with two botched returns and while he has limited experience in this area, the wind was nasty today and could have contributed to misreading the kicks.

SHOW ME MORE

Carson Wentz, North Dakota State – In all fairness, this kid is riding a hype train that is completely off the rails and the perceptions has completely escaped any fragment of reality. Wentz is a VERY intriguing prospect but right now we’re talking about a guy that has limited experience (only one year of QB as a prep prospect) and an injury history in his background. He made most of his plays in the title game against Jacksonville State with his legs and out of the pocket savvy and while he has arm strength, there’s an accuracy and consistency issue with him. There have been quality passes in practice and he shows decent velocity but there have also been a fair share of worm burners and overthrows. Wentz has flashed a legit arm but I think the folks that are trying to put him on a Top-10 pedestal need to take breath and give it a second here. It’s as if there was no where to go but down with the build up of hype that is surrounding the North Dakota State star but I feel the verdict is still out on Wentz and look forward to more tomorrow as well as in the game.
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