Post-Draft Mash-Up

We wanted to gather some of our post-draft thoughts in one place. There were obvious stories, and then there were little nuggets of information too interesting to be left out, and too unimportant to justify their own posts:

1) DARREN MCFADDEN'S MOTHER WAS A CRACK ADDICT? DO YOU UNDERSTAND? CRACK ADDICT! CRACK ADDICTS SMOKE CRACK, WHICH IS WHAT DARREN MCFADDEN'S MOTHER DID, MAKING HER A CRACK ADDICT. Thank you, thank you for that, ESPN. If you hadn't reminded us every three minutes that Darren McFadden's mother was a crack addict, we might have never remembered. Now, we very sure of this fact. Very, very sure! After all, we heard it dozens and dozens of time during your broadcast! We now feel comfortable approaching strangers on the street to have discussions about the all-important fact that Darren McFadden's mother was a crack addict. Granted, when I close my eyes, I have visions of Darren McFadden's mother inhaling crack smoke out of an apple. Price you pay, I guess! Thanks ESPN!

2) Kevin Smith went in the 3rd round. HE IS NOT A CRACK ADDICT. DON'T CONFUSE HIM WITH DARREN MCFADDEN'S MOTHER WHO IS A CRACK ADDICT. The third C-USA running back taken, Smith should get a lot of carries early on for the Lions. We predict a short but fruitful NFL career before the hits wear him out/break him down. This guy is going to get more carries then...uh...something that carries quite a lot.

2.5) Josh Sitton of the Knights went dead last in the 4th round. To Green Bay. Wow. Geez. Not a lot to say about that, other than whenever we mention Green Bay and UCF in the same sentence, it makes us nostalgic for Atari Bigby's hair.

No, this post isn't really about you at all. But when else do we get to shoehorn in a reference to our favorite player whose name is the Japanese word for "attack?"

Quatro) Oh, some Gator boys were picked, too. Derrick Harvey went to the Jaguars as the result of a surprising trade up. Andre "Bubba" Caldwell got snagged by Cincinnati. Tony Joiner (of "breaking-into-a-tow-lot-to-steal-back-a-car") fame was signed as a free agent. Carlton Medder and Drew Miller were also signed as free agents.

<*) Miami's going streaking! 14th year in a row! Everybody to the Quad. UM, like Will Ferrell, is still streaking. But just barely.

%) GGGGGEEEEE-NOOOOOO. FSU's Geno Hayes went in the sixth round. Uh, wow! This is of course the same guy who said he was going to "end" Tim Tebow, shortly before UF clobbered FSU 45-12. He made one tackle the entire game, and pushed an elderly journalist after it. Oh, he also had to be tasered outside a Tallahassee club one time. Drafted in the sixth round? Couldn't happen to a nicer guy, as far as we're concerned. Oh yeah, FSU Players fared pretty badly in the draft overall.

3+2+1) Mmm...Sweet Schadenfreude. One of our least favorite players, Colt Brennan, was taken in round six at pick number 186. Astute readers (Hell, we guess you don't really need to be astute to pick up on this) know that we hate/love-to-hate Colt Brennan: we gloated when he failed miserably at the Senior Bowl, and we watched gleefully as his poor performance in the Sugar Bowl got Don Ho kicked out of Heaven. We normally like felonious football players-- it's fun as Hell to write about them-- but this guy's felony convictions arose out of an incident in which he entered the room of a female student at Colorado and "exposed himself and fondled her." Yeah, yeah. We know the court vacated the unlawful sexual contact conviction (though the felony burglary and trespassing convictions stuck)--- But guess what? There are no burdens of proof on the internet!

Anyway, buried in the sixth round is a fine place for this guy. Unlike DARREN MCFADDEN'S MOTHER, COLT BRENNAN IS NOT A CRACK ADDICT. Or, at least, so we think.

...or so this adorable cat informed me.

Andre Caldwell Goes!

...eventually. Wide Receiver Caldwell goes to the Cincinnati Bengals with the 97th overall pick.

Here's what College Football News had to say:

34

97

Cincinnati Andre Caldwell, WR Florida One of the toughest calls among the receivers, Bubba has good size, phenomenal speed, and was a dynamic playmaker at times throughout his record-setting Florida career. How much are scouts scared off by the broken leg suffered a few years ago? He might not have the elite skills to blossom into a star of any sort, but he's tough, isn't going to worry about taking a hit, and he can flat-out move either on deep balls or on short routes to rack up big yards after the catch.

Good for you, Bubba. Hey, remember this:

24K Goes as the First 3rd Round Pick (64th Overall)

The Detroit Lions sent a sixth round draft pick to Miami for the privilege of moving up two spots to draft Kevin Smith. 24k is the first pick of the third round, and the 64th overall. Readers will no doubt remember that after many, many, many assurances that he would not turn pro, Smith reversed position.

Not only was 24k not drafted in the first or second round, he was also the third C-USA running back picked. East Carolina's Chris Johnson went to Tennessee at number 24 overall. Chicago drafted Matt Forte of Tulane in the second round.

Regardless of the self-esteem hit of not being the first or second C-USA running back drafted, the Lions seem to be an excellent fit for 24k. The Lions have no running game to speak of, and will give Kevin Smith carries until he collapses give Kevin Smith plenty of opportunities to prove himself. They’ll appreciate his complete willingness to sacrifice his body hard-nosed work ethic.

Some collected perspectives on the 24k pick by those who are far more informed than we are:

ESPN:

1(64)	Detroit (From Miami)	Kevin Smith	RB	CENTRAL FLORIDA
	Smith can dance in the backfield too much and he's a little bit of an upright runner, so he takes some big hits. However, he does an excellent job of reading his blocks and shows good burst in the hole. He also has good vision and enough lateral mobility to make defenses pay for overpursuing.

College Football News:

1

64

Detroit (from Miami) Kevin Smith, RB UCF Would Smith be considered a first rounder if he was Kevin Smith, Florida instead of Kevin Smith, UCF? While his competition will be questioned, playing in Conference USA, he produced against everyone including NC State (217 yards and two touchdowns), Texas (149 yards and two touchdowns), and Mississippi State (119 yards, but on 35 carries). George O'Leary and the Knights weren't afraid to overuse their star getting him a whopping 450 carries and 24 catches last season, and he cranked out 2,567 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns despite having all 11 defenders and the waterboy focused on stopping him. He's a producer, but he'll have a short shelf life if he's asked to be a No. 1 back.

From Sports Illustrated:

Let me get this straight: the Lions traded two picks to Miami to select Central Florida running back Kevin Smith with the first selection of the draft's second day, No. 64 overall? I think I'm beginning to understand the draft strategy in Detroit. Whenever possible, you take the best available generically named running back -- providing his first name is Kevin.

The Lions cut injury-prone veteran running back Kevin Jones (first round, 2004) earlier this offseason and just replaced him with Kevin Smith. What, was Kevin Doe draft ineligible?

But seriously, not a bad recovery by the Lions after passing on Illinois running back Rashard Mendenhall with their No. 15 first-round pick on Saturday. Smith, of course, led the nation in rushing last year for UCF, and listening to him at the scouting combine in February, he clearly has a chip on his shoulder with something to prove to the teams that classified him a second-day pick. Detroit seems satisfied to go to work with a backfield tandem of Tatum Bell and Smith.

We'll update this post with other perspectives as they come out.

Good luck 24K, and thanks for carrying our entire offense last year. Let's send you off with, say, a highlight video of everyone of the 41 carries you had against UAB:

Jacksonville Jaguars Draft Gators DE Derrick Harvey #8

Hey, look at that: a Gator goes at number 8. Harvey will join former teammate Reggie F'n Nelson, whom the Jacksonville Jaguars snapped up last year. You may remember Harvey from last year's BCS Title Game, in which he made Troy Smith weep tears of blood. And look: highlights from this year!

Yes, Another Flip-Flop...

This time from UCF's Joe Burnett. While it was previously thought that Burnett would enter the NFL draft along with his buddy Kevin Smith, Burnett says this is not longer the case. The Orlando Sentinel quotes Burnett:

"Instead of rushing my dream of playing in the NFL, I know another year of playing college football is a 10-times-better decision and I look forward to improving at UCF and pursuing my professional goals following the 2008 season."

Obviously, UCF benefits by Burnett returning for his Senior season. This past season, he had 64 tackles and a C-USA high 6 interceptions. He also had a punt return for a touchdown.

Ingram Flip-Flops Yet Again

Ingram must be a friggin' ninja, because he has flip-flopped yet again. He's staying, he's going, he's staying, he's going, this time, honest to God we swear, he's staying. Good news for the Gator Offense, which will continue to be incredible. The defense? Uh...

Cornelius Ingram, presented as a pair of flip-flops. This time, we're grateful.

FSU's Geeeennnnoooo to enter draft

FSU Linebacker Geno Hayes is no longer enrolled in school, and thus will likely be headed to the draft.

Hayes famously boasted the Tim Tebow "was going down" and that FSU would "shatter his dreams" . . . shortly before UF clobbered FSU, 45-12 at The Swamp. Hayes proceeded to make only one tackle in the entire game, not counting the elderly journalist he pushed after the game was over.

To be fair, he's still a better defensive player than he is a prognosticator.

UF's Harvey and Flip-Flopping Ingram Going Pro

UF players Derrick Harvey and Cornelius Ingram are both going pro. Harvey's news is not unexpected. Ingram had been waffling back and forth on whether to go pro, but ultimately decided to enter the draft. Ingram is not expected to go in the top 100.

UCF's Joe Burnett Also To Enter Draft

It seems that UCF's cornerback and punt returner Joe Burnett will, like 24K, also enter the draft, and skip out on his senior season.

(Thanks to ever-alert reader "Miss UCF Has-Been" for pointing this one out).

In other news, Kyle Israel will still not be any sort of pro prospect. Maybe he can hold a clipboard as a back-up for Sigma Chi's Flag Football Team. I'm just not really sure he has the football IQ for it.

Kevin Smith is Going Pro!

Well. Damn it.

ESPN has announced that UCF's Kevin Smith is going to forgo his senior season and go pro, despite his many, many, many earlier statements that he was staying.

It's thought that Smith would be drafted in the second round.

UCF fans can look forward to a season of mediocrity next year.

Good luck in the draft, 24K. UCF couldn't have won the C-USA Championship without you.