Sid on Brock, Gray, Reeves and Grant

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Tramaine Brock, who may have been the best defensive back on the Gophers last fall, is attending Gulf Community College, where he originally attended, trying to make up some academic work so he can be eligible this fall. ... Gophers football coach Tim Brewster and his staff are excited about the athletic ability shown by quarterback MarQueis Gray and linebacker Spencer Reeves, who enrolled in school this past January. ... Brewster sees a possibility of redshirt freshman Ryan Grant being the team's long snapper, playing on special teams and competing for a first-team linebacker position. ... Ryan's brother Taylor Grant, a junior tight end and quarterback at Eden Prairie, is being recruited by Iowa and has been invited to its junior football day.
 

Brew is more then likely keeping a sharp eye on Brock to make sure he is doing his studies. We only got him for one more year, but it is an important year!
 

Ryan Grant has roughly the same chance of being a first-team linebacker next year as I do.
 


dpodoll68 said:
Ryan Grant has roughly the same chance of being a first-team linebacker next year as I do.
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You are probably right and this reply isn't necessarily directed at you ... but I'm not sure what the deal is with Ryan Grant on this board. In another recent thread, people were taking him to task for getting a scholarship just becuase he was a Grant. Maybe some of you are more connected than I am, but from what I saw of him at EP, the kid is a football player and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he sees action for the Gophers sooner rather than later. Maybe he never lights the world on fire or starts at linebacker but I'd be shocked if the kid doesn't contribute on the field even as the talent level (hopefully) continues to rise.
 


I tend to agree with jags
 

jags1998 said:
You are probably right and this reply isn't necessarily directed at you ... but I'm not sure what the deal is with Ryan Grant on this board. In another recent thread, people were taking him to task for getting a scholarship just because he was a Grant. Maybe some of you are more connected than I am, but from what I saw of him at EP, the kid is a football player and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he sees action for the Gophers sooner rather than later. Maybe he never lights the world on fire or starts at linebacker but I'd be shocked if the kid doesn't contribute on the field even as the talent level (hopefully) continues to rise.
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Agreed. I think that some people can get jealous of people who have things (like a famous last name). The kid knows football inside and out, and from what he showed at EP, he is a very good athlete. Does he have the specs that jump out at you?? Probably not, but you only need those to go to the show, this kid can contribute in the Big Ten with his football IQ and the skills he showed in high school. Give the kid a chance to grow into a new fulltime position, he has the body for it if he adds weight and keeps his speed, I think he will be a nice contributor down the road.

Also, people were ripping his brother Taylor on a previous thread, don't really know a whole lot about him, but I do know Iowa invited him to their Junior day too, that should show some validation, as I'm sure Iowa could give a rip about his last name.

I'm sure there are some people out there who could give an honest assessment, and the not 'tear the kid down cause his last name is Grant' assessment.
 

I have no problem with Ryan Grant but I was annoyed that people kept talking h im up like he was badly underrated. Now everyone's entitled to their opinion so I shouldn't even have been annoyed but the truth was that the kid is a mediocre athlete who had no offers from another D1 school and got the ship because of who his dad is. Thats just the reality. I hope he maximizes his potential and Its always appeared that he may become a valuable special teams player but if his last name was Jackson and he played for Columbia Heights he would be a walk on.
 

is his dad just happy he is at the U

or will daddy be pissed if he doesnt play........which is in turn not good for the program down the road
 



oleboy41 said:
I have no problem with Ryan Grant ... who had no offers from another D1 school and got the ship because of who his dad is. Thats just the reality. I hope he maximizes his potential and Its always appeared that he may become a valuable special teams player but if his last name was Jackson and he played for Columbia Heights he would be a walk on.
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Gee, what about most the Minnesota natives that have been Gophers in the past couple decades not named Grant, also with no D1 offers (Ryan Orton, Trey Davis, Ryan Wynn, Eric Decker, Dom Barber, Willie VanDeSteeg, Mark Setterstrom, Greg Eslinger, Matt Stommes, etc., etc.)?
 

Maybe Grant is a player and maybe not, but not everyone you sign is a lead-pipe cinch and sometimes you sign someone who can help you out with that high school or conference. I'd rather have the whole Grant family in Maroon and Gold than some of the longshots from other states signed (by everyone, including Brewster) over the past few decades.
 

50PoundHead said:
Maybe Grant is a player and maybe not, but not everyone you sign is a lead-pipe cinch and sometimes you sign someone who can help you out with that high school or conference. I'd rather have the whole Grant family in Maroon and Gold than some of the longshots from other states signed (by everyone, including Brewster) over the past few decades.
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Brewster is smart. EP along with Cretin are to 2 local programs you want to be on good terms with their coaches. Grant was not a fan of the previous regime, hence players like Mark LeVoir never gave the Gophs a serious look. Brewster offers Grant's kid within hours of taking the job here. To steal a line from the Guiness commercials.....BRILLIANT!!!!! Ryan Grant is better of playing for Gagliardi up at St. John's, who incidentally will be replaced by the elder Grant when Gags decides to retire. It's basically a wasted scholarship if his Dad wasn't coaching a perenial powerhouse, but a very smart move on Brewster's part....
 

I think it's silly (especially when the kid has had only his redshirt year) to try to assess whether he was worth a scholarship or not. I, for one, don't think he got one just because of his last name. But to think he'll ever be anything more than a solid special teams player, and occasionally get marginal run from scrimmage, is expecting too much.

"Very good athlete"? Compared to you or me, certainly. By the standards of the Lake Conference? Definitely. But he is not even in the top half of this team in terms of raw athletic ability. Not exactly what I would call a "very good athlete." He definitely has a high football IQ, but it would be hard for him not to, considering the family he grew up in.

And you can never, ever base your recruiting/scholarship decisions on whether or not you may possibly at some future undetermined date cause one school's coach to not like you. You simply cannot give non-prospects schollies just so you may possibly at some future undetermined date get the great prospect that may or may not come from that school. And as other posters have already said, it's not like Eden Prairie's been routinely cranking out NFL-level talent anyway.
 



I agree with you in your assessment of how Mike Grant felt about the previous regime. However, he had nothing to do with Mark or any other kid not going to the U, or kids like D. Burns choosing the U.

Mark was set on Notre Dame very, very early. Mike just encourages kids to make a solid decision with their family. Some coaches get really involved, others not so much.
 

harrys ghost said:
Gee, what about most the Minnesota natives that have been Gophers in the past couple decades not named Grant, also with no D1 offers (Ryan Orton, Trey Davis, Ryan Wynn, Eric Decker, Dom Barber, Willie VanDeSteeg, Mark Setterstrom, Greg Eslinger, Matt Stommes, etc., etc.)?
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First off a number of those guys committed early so they didn't really get into the recruiting process. Wynn Orton and Stommes kinda suck, Eslinger and Setterstrom were perfect for our offensive system, and Decker and WVD were obviously good athletes from jump. Brewster is on record as saying he wants fast, athletic LBs. Grant is neither of those. Brewster also touted his long snapping abilities after he was signed. You don't recruit a guy to be a longsnapper. The only reason Grant got an offer was because of his name and school. I'm ok with that and I think its a good move. Dude supposedly has leadership skills and I think he'll be a good ST player for us. Still all the other kids in our class were either fairly highly recruited or had serious athletic upside (Nance, McKnight, Johnny Johnson). Grant didn't fit either mold.
 

oleboy41 said:
First off a number of those guys committed early so they didn't really get into the recruiting process. Wynn Orton and Stommes kinda suck, Eslinger and Setterstrom were perfect for our offensive system, and Decker and WVD were obviously good athletes from jump. Brewster is on record as saying he wants fast, athletic LBs. Grant is neither of those. Brewster also touted his long snapping abilities after he was signed. You don't recruit a guy to be a longsnapper. The only reason Grant got an offer was because of his name and school. I'm ok with that and I think its a good move. Dude supposedly has leadership skills and I think he'll be a good ST player for us. Still all the other kids in our class were either fairly highly recruited or had serious athletic upside (Nance, McKnight, Johnny Johnson). Grant didn't fit either mold.
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Hate to break it to you all, but Greg Eslinger is a NoDak native (Bismark), not a MN native. Thought I'd get this in before Lakes jumped all over it...
 

re

calminnfan said:
Brew is more then likely keeping a sharp eye on Brock to make sure he is doing his studies. We only got him for one more year, but it is an important year!
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Wouldn't it have been much easier to 'keep a sharp eye on Brock to make sure he was doing his studies' when he was here? Sheesh...
 

oleboy41 said:
First off a number of those guys committed early so they didn't really get into the recruiting process. Wynn Orton and Stommes kinda suck, Eslinger and Setterstrom were perfect for our offensive system, and . Brewster is on record as saying he wants fast, athletic LBs. Grant is neither of those. Brewster also touted his long snapping abilities after he was signed. You don't recruit a guy to be a longsnapper. The only reason Grant got an offer was because of his name and school. I'm ok with that and I think its a good move. Dude supposedly has leadership skills and I think he'll be a good ST player for us. Still all the other kids in our class were either fairly highly recruited or had serious athletic upside (Nance, McKnight, Johnny Johnson). Grant didn't fit either mold.
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"Decker and WVD were obviously good athletes from jump." Based on what? Certainly not their rankings or offers.

So, Grant quarterbacks the state champion and is not athletic. For what it's worth, Rivals nearly had him at three stars and rated him higher than Nance, McKight and Johnson. They must be in awe of the Grant name as well.

ESPN had him rated a 73: "Grant is currently an accurate passer who can move the chains in high school, but we feel his most upside is on the defensive side of the ball. He is tall, athletically built and could potentially tip the scales at 225 pounds in college. His continued physically development should dictate college position, but we feel he will make a solid strong safety or outside linebacker prospect. Flashes the ballhawk instincts and closing burst to be productive supporting run. Shows good strength sifting through the front-side alley trash and range chasing plays down from the backside. This kid offers an intimidating presence over the middle as run and pass defender. He can hit and delivers a solid pop on contact. Shows versatility defending the deep ball as well. Consistently positions himself correctly, reads the quarterback and utilizes his athletic ability to make plays on the ball. Our main concern with Grant is his lack of great pass support range needed to break over the top of Division 1 receivers; his stride, acceleration and burst are a question mark at the next level if positioned as a half-field safety. As an outside linebacker prospect, his current size and physicality to be a permanent fixture in the box could be an issue. Might be best as centerfield safety keying the quarterback and reacting to what he sees underneath him. We would still like to see him improve his change-of-direction ability when mirroring quicker skill player in space and become more sound as an open-field tackler. What Grant lacks in elite athletic ability he makes up for in savvy play and instincts. Good athletic prospect."
 

oleboy41 said:
Brewster also touted his long snapping abilities after he was signed. You don't recruit a guy to be a longsnapper. The only reason Grant got an offer was because of his name and school.
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Just a few weeks ago I was reading an article (I believe it was on si.com) specifically about the recruitment of longsnappers. If I recall correctly, about 1/3 of D-I teams have a longsnapper on scholarship now whereas just a few years ago that was pretty rare. The thought is that they only have about 10 plays a game, but if they screw up just once it is probably going to result in a loss of points for your team or points for the other team. Sorta of the Beamerball philosophy (He has been offering longsnappers scholarships for a long time) that field position wins games. Similiarly it used to be more rare for kickers or punters to get a scholarship offer. With Brewster stressing the importance of our "Special Forces", Grant seems like a great player to have based on that logic.

The way I see it is if Grant is competitive for the first team linebacker spot even with some of the other linebacker talent Brewster has brought in, that is great news. Just shows that he was underrated or has a ton of upside since it was not his primary high school focus. More depth and competition will only help the rest of the LB core to get better.

As a bonus to both of those we keep some more instate talent (sending a positive message about the talent of MN high school football), improve connections with an important MN coaching family, and get an emergency QB too!

Looking at all those things of course a scholarship offer makes sense. Heck, if Grant were a Mason recruit we would be thrilled to have him and probably praising his talents! ;)
 

What I got out of that ESPN scouting report was "too slow to be a safety, not big/physical enough to be a LB." Hence, long snapper/special teams coverage, which is what his role will be for his entire career here.

And why do we need an "emergency QB" when we have (at least) 5 guys on the roster who are far, far better than him at the position? That's really grasping at straws.
 

DCGopher said:
Just a few weeks ago I was reading an article (I believe it was on si.com) specifically about the recruitment of longsnappers. If I recall correctly, about 1/3 of D-I teams have a longsnapper on scholarship now whereas just a few years ago that was pretty rare. The thought is that they only have about 10 plays a game, but if they screw up just once it is probably going to result in a loss of points for your team or points for the other team. Sorta of the Beamerball philosophy (He has been offering longsnappers scholarships for a long time) that field position wins games. Similiarly it used to be more rare for kickers or punters to get a scholarship offer. With Brewster stressing the importance of our "Special Forces", Grant seems like a great player to have based on that logic.
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The article was on SI.com (written by their recruiting guy, Andy Staples). Here's the link: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/andy_staples/02/11/longsnappers/index.html
 

dpodoll68 said:
What I got out of that ESPN scouting report was "too slow to be a safety, not big/physical enough to be a LB." Hence, long snapper/special teams coverage, which is what his role will be for his entire career here.

And why do we need an "emergency QB" when we have (at least) 5 guys on the roster who are far, far better than him at the position? That's really grasping at straws.
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Per ESPN:

70-79: Good Prospect
Player does not dominate in every game, especially when matched up against the top players in the country. Could become a good starter at the Division I level.

Apparently the ESPN grader feels Grant could become a starter at LB or safety.
 


Thanks for locating the article GoAUpher!

dpodoll68 said:
And why do we need an "emergency QB" when we have (at least) 5 guys on the roster who are far, far better than him at the position?
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I didn't say we need him as an emergency QB...I said it is a bonus :) I've never heard of a team actually having to use their emergency QB and hopefully we never are in a situation where all of our other QB's are suddenly hurt/transferred/suspended/etc.
 


DCGopher said:
Thanks for locating the article GoAUpher!



I didn't say we need him as an emergency QB...I said it is a bonus :) I've never heard of a team actually having to use their emergency QB and hopefully we never are in a situation where all of our other QB's are suddenly hurt/transferred/suspended/etc.
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Try Cincinnati this season. :) By the end of the year they were playing their 5th string QB in the Orange Bowl (he'd actually started for a good portion of the season...it wasn't just that one game). It's not like this is common but it does happen.
 

Why would you want to marry Katy Perry?

dpodoll68 said:
And I could become President and marry Katy Perry.

But neither of those things are going to happen.
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She would just divorce you, then write a song about how poorly equipped you were? As she has done to ex-boyfriends.
Become starting Linebacker, then President, then marry someone like Melinda Gates who never talks about Bill. Just kidding. He was red shirted last year, at least wait until spring ball and game, then savage him. At least have something visual to go on.
 


Just wondering how everyone on here seems to know so much about Ryan Grant's talent level. He pretty much destroyed the entire state when he played QB at EP, and you haven't seen him play against D1 talent. So as far as any of you know, he may end up being the best football player form Minnesota ever. It's all just mindless speculation.

Also, the starting long-snapper gets a scholarship almost everywhere. There is a a lot of You Tube video out there demonstrating why long-snappers are important. And in case you didn't notice, the long-snapper was used on about 25% of all offensive plays in the last five games of the year.
 

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