The Herald Bulletin

Morning Update

Sports

Discussion

May 1, 2007

MIKE BEAS: Enjoying Colts' surprise draft

Not to mock your mock NFL draft, but there’s no way you had the Indianapolis Colts taking Ohio State wideout Anthony Gonzalez with the 32nd selection. You’re fibbing through your choppers if you said you did.

In hindsight, though, it makes perfect sense.

Picture Brandon Stokley. Now picture Brandon Stokley an inch taller, eight years younger and blessed with 4.4 speed. That’s Gonzalez, who turns 23 on Sept. 18, or two days after Indy visits AFC South nemesis Tennessee.

Lost in the blinding confetti snowstorm following Super Bowl XLI is the fact that Indianapolis became top dog despite having played the majority of the season minus a bona fide slot receiver in Stokley, a favorite of quarterback Peyton Manning.

Due to an injured Achilles Heel, Stokley played in only four games in 2006, good for eight receptions. Compare that to his 41 grabs in 2005 and the 68 receptions he hauled in in ’04, and one gets the idea of how big a role Stokley once played in keeping opposing defenses backpedaling.

Manning, who demoralizes teams with his mind as much as he does his right arm, utilizes the slot receiver better than any quarterback in football.

This means the 6-foot, 195-pound Gonzalez, a marvelous talent who had the misfortune of being overshadowed by Ted Ginn Jr. and Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith on the OSU offense, is about to get his number called with great frequency on the professional level.

Don’t look now, but the NFL’s most-feared offense just got better. Remember, Tony Ugoh, the 6-6, 305-pound offensive tackle out of Arkansas the Colts moved up to nab with the 42nd pick, is no bag of marshmallows.

Anything but. An All-Southeastern Conference choice, Ugoh is talented to the point where he should be expected to anchor Indianapolis’ offensive line long after the likes of Tarik Glenn and Jeff Saturday remove their shoulder pads for the final time.

Much as I like the Gonzalez-Ugoh combination, the Colts, in my opinion, sparkled brightest in the latter stages of Round 3.

Cal product Daymeion Hughes has spent the past couple of seasons attempting to break up and pick off passes thrown by quarterbacks such as Matt Leinart (USC), Trent Edwards (Stanford) and Matt Moore (Oregon State). He’s a cornerback with loads of big-game, bright-lights experience, which is exactly what Indy’s depleted secondary needs.

The 98th pick overall, Ohio State defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock, should really be named something more fitting. Like, say, Quinn Pit Bull.

Blue-collar as they come, Pitcock in time will battle Booger McFarland for the starting job. Maybe not this season, but possibly in 2008.

This draft wasn’t all cake and party balloons for Colts fans. After all, the team’s glaring lack of linebacking talent wasn’t addressed until Pitt’s Clint Session was taken by Indy late in the fourth round. This is a player who may not even make the ’07 roster. Same goes for the Colts’ final choice, seventh-rounder Keyunta Dawson, a linebacker out of Texas Tech.

It’s a problem the Colts must address and address soon.

Overall, I would grade Indianapolis President Bill Polian and his assortment of scouts a solid “B” in regard to this year’s draft class, and that’s pretty good.

Remember, when it comes to Polian, no one ever grades on a curve.



Sports Editor Mike Beas can be reached at mike.beas@heraldbulletin.com.











Text Only
Sports
  • 0530 sports phhs vs roncalli 048.jpg Pendleton Heights falls to Roncalli in regional

    Sometimes an intentional walk is more than just four balls thrown from the pitcher to the catcher.
    On Tuesday night, it was the difference in the Class 4A, Regional as Roncalli scored the game-winning run in a 3-0 victory over Pendleton Heights on a wild pitch during an intentional walk to North Carolina-bound star Kendra Lynch in the sixth inning at Legends Field in Pendleton.

    May 29, 2012 2 Photos

  • 0530 spts slyder.jpg AU men's basketball coach resigns

    Anderson University head men’s basketball coach Tom Slyder recently resigned to accept a position as the men’s basketball coach at North Park University in Chicago, Ill.
    North Park is an NCAA Division III school that competes in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW).

    May 29, 2012 1 Photo

  • DSC_1432.JPG Triumphant Tribe

    Seventeen years of frustration and disappointment for the Anderson Indians baseball team ended in a jubilant dog pile atop junior pitcher Curtis Wilson on Monday night at Pendleton Heights’ Field of Dreams.

    May 28, 2012 1 Photo

  • Argylls squeeze into crown

    Madison-Grant coach Ben Rodriguez liked his squeeze play so much that he called it again in the pivotal inning of the Class 2A, Sectional 39 championship game at Eastern High School on Monday night in Greentown.

    May 28, 2012

  • 0529 spts Lapel vs Wapahani_baseball 59a.jpg Bulldogs’ comeback falls just short

    Not even a heroic seventh-inning rally could save the Lapel baseball team in the Class 2A sectional title game at Frankton on Monday afternoon. The Bulldogs scored four runs in the seventh inning but still came up a run short as the Wapahani Raiders won the championship 9-8.

    May 28, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0413 sports Muller semifinal 038.jpg Tribe rallies past Pendleton Heights into final

    This is the stuff of legend.
    The kind of game that defines a rivalry.
    The kind of victory that breathes new life into a program.
    And the kind of defeat that won’t ever be forgotten.

    May 28, 2012 1 Photo

  • George Bremer-2.JPG George Bremer: In with Orton, out of Luck?

    There really is no offseason anymore in the National Football League.
    The Indianapolis Colts haven’t played a game since Jan. 1, but look at all the headlines they’ve generated since that date.

    May 28, 2012 1 Photo

  • de la Bastide-color.jpg Ken de la Bastide: Indy 500 lives up to hype - again

    For the second consecutive year the Indianapolis 500 demonstrated why it remains as “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing”.
    Last year there was the dramatic finish when rookie J.R. Hildebrand crashed in the fourth corner on the final lap allowing the late Dan Wheldon to record his second victory.

    May 29, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0528 NASCAR Charlotte Auto_Harl.jpg Kahne keeps Hendrick success rolling at Charlotte

    Kasey Kahne powered to victory in the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday night, taking NASCAR's longest race for the third time for his first win with Hendrick Motorsports.

    May 27, 2012 1 Photo

  • 0528 Manu.jpg Spurs strike first in West finals, win 19th in row

    Manu Ginobili scored 26 points and the San Antonio Spurs won their 19th in a row to tie the NBA record for longest winning streak kept alive in the playoffs, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 101-98 to open the Western Conference finals on Sunday night.

    May 27, 2012 1 Photo