Big East: Jarrett Brown

Not getting drafted doesn't necessarily mean the end of one's football career. Once the draft finishes, there's a scramble for players and teams to sign free-agent deals. Here's a list, compiled from various media and team reports, of undrafted Big East players who have signed with NFL teams (list will be updated as new information rolls in):

Cincinnati

Jeff Linkenbach, OT, Indianapolis

Aaron Webster, S, Houston

Mike Windt, LS, Cincinnati

Connecticut

Lindsey Witten, DE, Pittsburgh

Louisville

Joe Tronzo, FB, Cincinnati

Scott Long, WR, San Francisco

UPDATE: Trent Guy, WR, Oakland

Pittsburgh

Bill Stull, QB, Kansas City

John Malecki, OG, Tennessee

Mick Williams, DT, New York Jets

Aaron Berry, CB, Detroit

Rutgers

Kevin Haslam, OT, Jacksonville

Jack Corcoran, FB, Houston

UPDATE: Tim Brown, WR, New York Giants

South Florida

Kion Wilson, LB, San Diego

Delbert Alvarado, K, Dallas

West Virginia

Jarrett Brown, QB, San Francisco

Alric Arnett, WR, Denver

Big East in the NFL draft

April, 26, 2010
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The NFL's fortnight of drafting -- what, it was only three days? Really? -- came to an end this weekend. I already touched on the first-round results on Friday. Here's a look at where Big East players went the rest of the draft, with some quick comments on each pick:

Second round

No. 37: Nate Allen, S, South Florida, to Philadelphia: No surprise here, as Allen was mentioned as a possible first-rounder at various points.

Third round

No. 65: Jerome Murphy, CB, South Florida to St. Louis: Here is proof that college production isn't always the most important thing to NFL scouts. Murphy struggled against some of the Big East's better receivers, but he has great physical tools and hopefully will find his niche in the pros.

Fourth round

No. 99: Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati, to St. Louis: If you watched any Bearcats games the past two years, you know that the Rams got an absolute steal. Think Sam Bradford will like having Gilyard around?

No. 101: Mike Williams, WR, Syracuse, to Tampa Bay: He was a first-round talent who was lucky to get picked this high given his off-the-field issues.

No. 107: Marcus Easley, WR, UConn, to Buffalo: Easley had great workouts, and though some thought he would go higher than this, it's still a great story for a guy who was a walk-on this time a year ago.

Fifth round

No. 157: Arthur Jones, DT, Syracuse, to Baltimore: Jones was talked about as a possible first-rounder earlier in his career. This is a great value pick for a player who will always give maximum effort.

Sixth round

No. 177: Carlton Mitchell, WR, South Florida, to Cleveland: Mitchell looked impressive in his workouts, but falling to the sixth round makes you question if he made the right choice in skipping his senior year.

No. 182: Nate Byham, TE, Pittsburgh, to San Francisco: The best blocking tight end in the Big East during his career.

No. 204: Tony Pike, QB, Cincinnati, to Carolina: Pike has to be disappointed that he fell this low and that he was drafted by the same team that took Jimmy Clausen a couple rounds earlier.

Seventh round

No. 226: George Selvie, DE, South Florida, to St. Louis: How much would you have bet against the notion that Selvie would be a seventh-round pick at this time last year? Selvie's production dropped after his breakout sophomore year, and now he'll have to prove himself again.

No. 227: Dorin Dickerson, TE, Pittsburgh, to Houston: Surprised to see Dickerson go this low after his great Combine performance. He's a tweener who needs the right team to showcase his skills.

No. 231: Selvish Capers, OT, West Virginia, to Washington: Capers has a lot of talent and potential.

No. 237: Ryan D'Imperio, LB/FB, Rutgers, to Minnesota: The Scarlet Knights' linebacker was drafted as a fullback although he never played it in college.

No. 238: Ricardo Mathews, DT, Cincinnati, to Indianapolis: Mathews didn't get as much attention on the Bearcats' defense as some other players but had a nice senior season.

No. 249: Robert McClain, CB, UConn, to Carolina: McClain had four interceptions last year and also served as the team's punt returner.

Here's a handy-dandy list of NFL Draft picks per Big East school:

South Florida: 5

Rutgers: 3

Cincinnati: 3

Connecticut: 2

Pitt: 2

Syracuse: 2

West Virginia: 1

Louisville: 0

And, finally, some notable players who weren't drafted (I'll have more later on those who signed free-agent contracts): Andre Dixon and Lindsey Witten from UConn; Aaron Webster and Alex Daniels from Cincinnati; Scott Long from Louisville; and Jarrett Brown from West Virginia.
Offensive players had their turn at the all-important NFL combine over the weekend. Defensive players get started today in Indianapolis. Here's a look at how some of the Big East's offensive invitees performed:

Offensive line: The guy with the most eyeballs on him was Rutgers tackle Anthony Davis, who has been projected as potential top 5 pick. There was good and bad in Davis' performance. His 5.38 time in the 40-yard dash was disappointing, and his 21 reps on the 225-pound bench press was pedestrian. But he showed off a 33-foot vertical leap, fourth best among all offensive linemen, proving his athleticism.

Tight ends: Pitt's Dorin Dickerson turned in an eye-popping 4.40 in the 40. Of course, Big East fans are well aware of Dickerson's top-end speed and athleticism. The question for him remains whether he'll be big enough to be a blocking tight end.

Teammate Nate Byham served that role for the Panthers, and while he posted just a 5.09 time in the 40, his best trait is his physicality in the run game.

Quarterbacks: Some of the bigger-name quarterback prospects didn't throw this weekend, but Cincinnati's Tony Pike and West Virginia's Jarrett Brown did. Here is what Scouts Inc. analyst Todd McShay had to say about them:
"Pike is the third quarterback in the class to adjust his delivery and Pike showed a release that got the ball out of his hand more quickly. He was a little inconsistent with his accuracy, but there is surely an adjustment period after tweaking his delivery and the long-term benefits should outweigh the short-term inconsistency."

"[Brown's] 4.54 in the 40 was best among quarterbacks and he posted a 34.4 vertical jump, showing that he also has the athleticism to move to another position if necessary."

Here is ESPN.com's John Clayton's take:

"The highlight of the day was watching the 6-6 Pike go against the 6-3 [Zac] Robinson. Each has a tight overhand delivery in which the ball zips from the right of his ear and moves with velocity. Even though Pike will probably go ahead of Robinson, I thought Robinson won the day. His passes on comeback routes were crisp and he surprised many by throwing a better 35-yard post corner route than Pike. For whatever reason, I thought Pike's balls wobbled a little too much when he threw outside the numbers."

Receivers: UConn's Marcus Easley ran a 4.46 in the 40, seventh best among wideouts and tops among Big East receivers.

"Easley showed good explosiveness with a 10-3 broad jump and there is a lot to like about the way he tracks deep passes," McShay writes. "Easley is a former walk-on with limited game experience, but he clearly has the raw tools to warrant midround consideration as a developmental project."

Louisville's Scott Long ran a 4.46 and South Florida's Carlton Mitchell posted a 4.49. Both measured in at 6-foot-2 and helped themselves by showing a combination of size and speed. Long also had the best vertical jump among receivers at 41.5 inches and topped all wideouts in the 3-cone drill and 60-yard shuttle.

West Virginia's Alric Arnett finishing third in the receiving group with a 40-inch vertical. Cincinnati's Mardy Gilyard registered a 39-inch leap.

Big East players going to NFL combine

February, 15, 2010
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No lunchtime links today, because there aren't any. It's a slow time, though Rutgers is expected to name two new assistant coaches this afternoon. So instead, I thought I'd give you the full list of Big East players who have been invited to the NFL combine, which begins Feb. 24 in Indianapolis:

A postseason ranking of the Big East's Top 30 players ...

No. 25

Jarrett Brown, QB, West Virginia, Sr.

Preseason rank: 14

Brown
Why him here: Brown started the season off very strong then leveled off, possibly related to the concussion he suffered in the Marshall game. He finished the year with 11 touchdown passes and nine interceptions while throwing for 2,144 yards. He was also his team's second-leading rusher with 466 yards and six scores, and he ranked third in the league in total offense.

It was Brown's first year of starting after three seasons behind Pat White, and he did so behind an offensive line that was shaky in its pass blocking. He led the team to a nine-win season and showed a lot of big-play potential at times, though his lack of game experience probably kept him from having a huge year.

Still, other than some turnover problems there wasn't a whole lot to complain about with Brown, and he impressed NFL scouts at the Senior Bowl with his physical gifts. He's got a tremendous arm and deceptive speed at 6-foot-4, and he has a chance to be a starting quarterback at the next level if given time to develop those gifts.

No. 26: George Selvie, DE, South Florida
No. 27:
Kion Wilson, LB, South Florida
No. 28:
Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh
No. 29:
Lindsey Witten, DE, Connecticut
No. 30: Jeff Linkenbach, OT, Cincinnati

Gilyard steals show at Senior Bowl

February, 1, 2010
2/01/10
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NFL scouts and casual fans watching the Senior Bowl over the weekend learned what Big East followers already knew: Mardy Gilyard just makes big plays.

The former Cincinnati receiver was one of the game's brightest stars, hauling in 103 yards receiving, including a 32-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, and another 76 yards on punt and kickoff returns. Gilyard probably helped himself in the draft as much as anyone from his performance in the game.

Gilyard's ex-Cincinnati teammate, quarterback Tony Pike, finished 5-of-12 for 45 yards. Scouts Inc. gave Pike a "B" grade for his work all week in Mobile, Ala.

Former West Virginia quarterback Jarrett Brown completed four of his seven passes for 57 yards, though he did throw an interception.

Pitt's Dorin Dickerson made one catch for 7 yards.

Rutgers' Devin McCourty started at cornerback and collected six tackles, while adding a 47-yard kickoff return.

South Florida's Jerome Murphy had four tackles, while former teammates Nate Allen had three and George Selvie made one.

Big East lunchtime links

January, 29, 2010
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  • It looks like West Virginia will move its spring game back to April 30 to accommodate Geno Smith's foot injury, Dave Hickman writes in the Charleston Gazette.
  • Pitt offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti is staying and said returning home last year fulfilled a longtime goal, Ralph Paulk writes in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review.
  • A former FSU lineman won't be coming to South Florida after all, but a Georgia quarterback is on the way, Greg Auman reports in the St. Petersburg Times.
  • Jarrett Brown will be backing up Tim Tebow in the Senior Bowl, but he's used to biding his time behind a star, Jack Bogaczyk writes in the Charleston Daily Mail.
  • Syracuse got a commitment from a Florida defensive back, Donnie Webb writes in the Syracuse Post-Standard.
The Senior Bowl practices are wrapping up, with the game coming up Saturday in Mobile, Ala. Let's take a look at some of the reviews about former Big East players:

On Tuesday, ESPN.com's Scouts Inc. team had this to say Insider about West Virginia offensive lineman Selvish Capers:

"Capers was the best offensive lineman on the South team on Day 2, showing good mobility when getting to the second linebacker as a run blocker. He also played with balance and showed good lateral mobility with his feet. During 1-on-1 drills, Capers anchored well and held his ground, at one point just erasing East Carolina DE C.J. Wilson on consecutive plays. He is not overly explosive and will have trouble at times with bigger bull rushers, and Capers needs to get stronger in the lower body, but he will be a good fit for a zone blocking scheme in which the emphasis is on getting into space and taking sound angles to defenders because he plays under control and has good feet."

Cincinnati's Mardy Gilyard has been playing well, if not spectacularly, as this Day 3 report Insider notes:

"Gilyard is having a strong overall day. He's running good routes and making a lot of plays during seven-on-seven drills after showing off his quick hands and feet early in practice."

Analyst Rob Rang had high praise for West Virginia quarterback Jarrett Brown in his CBSSports.com blog:

"Brown has a quick release and a strong arm and was fearless Wednesday, attacking all levels of the field despite having already secured his status as one of the risers from this week's action. His strong performance and legitimate upside may have boosted his status into the late 2nd or early 3rd round."

Pitt's Dorin Dickerson has been working out exclusively at receiver, but will move back to tight end for the NFL Combine workouts. He has been impressive lately.

"In a nutshell, wow!" DraftInsider.net wrote. "He is fast and was able to beat cornerbacks down the field. He is also a terrific pass catcher with strong, reliable hands."

Here is DraftInsider.net's analysis of other players of note:

  • George Selvie: "[Wednesday] Best effort to date for the collegiate sackmaster. Selvie showed more strength against double teams. He was quick off the snap. He even threw a fantastic bullrush to plant an opposing blocker in pass rush rush drills."
  • Jerome Murphy: "Continued to struggle. Loses out in battles when he should not and just did not show a good feel for coverage."
  • Devin McCourty: [Tuesday] was inconsistent. He showed himself to be a strong corner and physically beat down Mardy Gilyard on a number of instances. Yet when he was not able to press receivers it usually ended up in completions for the opposition.

    Looked better [Wednesday]. For some reason showed a better burst to the ball out of his plant and did not struggle as much making plays with his back to the pass. Overall a good performance by McCourty on the most important day of the week."
While Tim Tebow is under the most scrutiny at the Senior Bowl, Tony Pike is another quarterback drawing a lot of interest from scouts in Mobile.

The Cincinnati star checked in at just 212 pounds on Monday, raising questions about how his 6-foot-6 frame will hold up in the NFL. However, the Scouts Inc. team said on the first day of practice that Pike clearly has the best arm of all the North team quarterbacks. (Todd McShay has a full breakdown of Pike here).

Pike's teammate and two-time Big East special-teams player of the year Mardy Gilyard weighed in at 179 pounds. Gilyard's lack of size may hurt him in the draft, though NFL teams would be foolish to ignore his production in college.

West Virginia's Jarrett Brown is another interesting prospect. Scouts Inc.'s Day 1 blog Insider indicated the variety of opinion on Brown. The first entry on him read, "The ball is flying out of his hand and he's putting his physical tools on display. He looks the best of the three South quarterbacks at this point."

A little later on, though, there was this: "Brown is having trouble hitting his back foot and transitioning his weight at the top of his drops. He slipped on a five-step drop and later was late on an out route that Oklahoma CB Perrish Cox read well and picked off."
It's Senior Bowl week in Mobile, Ala., and it's time for a lot of the top NFL prospects from the Big East to make their cases.

Here again are the Big East players on the rosters for Saturday's game:

North

Dorin Dickerson, TE, Pittsburgh

Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati

Devin McCourty, CB, Rutgers

Tony Pike, QB, Cincinnati

Mike Windt, LS, Cincinnati

South

Nate Allen, S, South Florida

Jarrett Brown, QB, West Virginia

Selvish Capers, OL, West Virginia

Jerome Murphy, CB, South Florida

George Selvie, DE, South Florida

It could be like old times with Selvie trying to sack Pike or Gilyard trying to beat Murphy on a route during the game.

The two quarterbacks could have the most to prove during this week's practices and the game. Pike is an intriguing prospect because of his size (6-foot-6) and arm strength, but there are questions about his durability and his ability to play under center. Brown has unlimited potential because of his physical gifts and could wow scouts with his arm and mobility. But he started only one year and still has a lot to learn about the position.

Others who could really help themselves include Gilyard, who was one of the most productive receivers/return men in Big East history, and Selvie, whose numbers fell off after his huge sophomore campaign. If McCourty plays like he did this year at Rutgers, I think he could have a big week. And Allen has some freakish physical tools.
Geno Smith, West Virginia's projected starting quarterback in 2010, broke a bone in his left foot last week during a conditioning drill, but should be ready for spring practice, Mike Casazza reports in the Charleston Daily Mail.

Smith is expected to miss six weeks, but the Mountaineers don't begin spring drills until April 6. Smith broke a bone in the same foot in an off-the-field accident last summer.

As a freshman this past season, he appeared in five games and played the entire second half of the Gator Bowl loss to Florida State after Jarrett Brown was injured. He also played most of the Marshall game after Brown was knocked out early in the first half.

Coley White is the only scholarship quarterback on the roster besides Smith, though receiver Bradley Starks can also play the position in a pinch.
ESPN.com's Scouts Inc is breaking down all the East-West Shrine game practices this week. The all-star showcase for seniors will be held Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

West Virginia receiver Alric Arnett was one of the early standouts this week in practice. Check out this evaluation from Day 1:

"Practice is about half-way through and West Virginia WR Alric Arnett is looking like the best receiver on the East team. We love the way he's catching the football, both in terms of focus and hands. He's snatching the ball out of the air and doing a good job of looking it in before heading up the field. He's the most impressive receiver on this team so far.

... Alric Arnett continues to impress today. He got behind South Carolina DB Darian Stewart, but QB John Skelton overthrew him. But the good thing about this is it showed Arnett has the ability to stretch the field."

Analyst Todd McShay named UConn's Lindsey Witten as one of the top five players to participate this week:

"Witten's senior season couldn't have gone much better, as he had his best year at UConn and finished tied for ninth in the nation with 11½ sacks. At 6-foot-4, 248 pounds, Witten is an undersized end and might be asked to move to linebacker in the NFL. He needs to prove this week that he's strong enough to hold his ground against the run and fluid enough to drop into underneath coverage. A strong showing in Orlando could land Witten a spot in the third round of April's draft."

And McShay said Rutgers tackle Kevin Haslam, a late invitee, was among those with the most to prove.

"Haslam is not nearly as physically gifted as teammate Anthony Davis, a LOT who could be a top-five pick in April, but he moves his feet well enough to develop into an effective right tackle. In addition, Haslam has experience lining up at guard and enough room on his frame to bulk up, which would give teams the option to kick him inside if he does not pan out as a tackle."

West Virginia quarterback Jarrett Brown was scheduled to participate in the East-West game but got a late invitation to the more prestigious Senior Bowl.

Top 10 games of 2009: No. 7

January, 12, 2010
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Continuing the countdown of the best Big East games of 2009:

No. 7

Cincinnati 24, West Virginia 21, Nov. 13 at Nippert Stadium

Why this one: The Big East title always goes through West Virginia, but this time the Mountaineers had to win on the road against the defending league champs to stay alive in the race. They put up a good fight, too, taking a 14-7 lead early. But Cincinnati got a favorable and controversial replay reversal on an Isaiah Pead fumble at the goal line near the end of the first half. Instead of West Virginia ball, it was ruled a Bearcats' score, tying the game. West Virginia missed on a fourth-and-8 try in the fourth quarter while down 21-14. Cincinnati tacked on a field goal before Jarrett Brown led another Mountaineers touchdown drive. But Cincinnati secured the onsides kick attempt in the final minute to hold on.

What it meant: Cincinnati beat West Virginia for the second straight year and established itself as the new big dog in the Big East.

Player of the game: Pead rushed for 175 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.

Play of the game: West Virginia fans will point to the replay call. But it was still just 21-14 after the missed fourth-down conversion gave the ball back to Cincinnati with more than five minutes left. That's when Pead ripped off a 43-yard run off a cutback, helping set up the deciding field goal.

Memorable quote: "I don't know if anybody's ever done that before. That was kind of crazy." -- Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly, on bringing injured quarterback Tony Pike in for four red zone throws, which resulted in two touchdowns.

Previously:

No. 8: West Virginia 19, Pitt 16
No. 9: South Florida 17, Florida State 7
No. 10: Syracuse 37, Northwestern 34
The official and final list of NFL scouting combine invitees isn't quite complete, but the Sporting News has put together an early list of who's going. This list does not include juniors who have declared or will declare for the draft, and some seniors will be added later.

The combine runs from Feb. 24 to March 2 in Indianapolis. Here are the Big East players who've been invited so far:

Cincinnati: WR Mardy Gilyard, QB Tony Pike

Connecticut: RB Andre Dixon, WR Marcus Easley, DE Lindsey Witten

Louisville: WR Scott Long

Pittsburgh: TE Nate Byham, TE Dorin Dickerson

Rutgers: CB Devin McCourty

South Florida: S Nate Allen, CB Jerome Murphy, DE George Selvie, LB Kion Wilson

Syracuse: DT Arthur Jones

West Virginia: WR Alric Arnett, QB Jarrett Brown, OT Selvish Capers
Reviewing some of the highs and lows of Big East bowl season:

Best defensive performance: Connecticut clamped down on South Carolina in the Papajohns.com Bowl, shutting the SEC opponent out until the final four minutes, and holding the Gamecocks to just 205 total yards. They play a little defense in the Big East, too.

[+] Enlarge
Mike Ford
John E. Sokolowski/US PresswireSouth Florida running back Mike Ford rushed for 207 yards and a touchdown in the International Bowl.
Worst defensive performance: Well, maybe they don't play defense in the Big Easy. Cincinnati's late-season struggles to stop anyone reached a nadir in the Allstate Sugar Bowl as the Bearcats allowed 51 points and 659 total yards to Florida. The plan going in was to make Tim Tebow strictly a passer; he gleefully accepted the challenge by throwing for a BCS record 482 yards while completing 31 of his 35 attempts.

Best out-of-nowhere performance: Mike Ford hadn't done a whole lot for South Florida in two years, and rushed for only 243 yards in the regular season. Then the Bulls tailback rumbled for 207 yards -- nearly all of it in the second half -- against Northern Illinois in the International Bowl. Maybe he just likes Canada. Alert the CFL.

Worst into-nowhere disappearing act: West Virginia's Noel Devine was nearly unstoppable for three quarters against Florida State. But Devine, who had 168 yards on 16 carries, never touched the ball in the fourth quarter of the Mountaineers' futile comeback attempt.

Worst break: Jarret Brown's injury at the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl. The senior waited patiently behind Pat White for three years but couldn't play after the first half of his bowl game because of an ankle problem. He deserved to finish his career in better fashion.

Best statement: Pitt and North Carolina both pride themselves on hard-nosed football. Well, Dave Wannstedt's team got the upper hand in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. Trailing by one in the fourth quarter, the Panthers went on an epic, 17-play, 8:47 drive for the winning field goal. It was old-school, smash-mouth football at its finest.

Best atmosphere: The Gator Bowl. A record crowd of 84,129 packed the Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for Bobby Bowden's last game. The sight of Bowden throwing the flaming spear into the turf before the game was undeniably cool. You can forgive West Virginia for not enjoying some of the over-the-top Bowden tributes, though, such as having the Florida State coach's picture on all the buses transporting people to the stadium.

Worst atmosphere: International Bowl. Who thought pitting South Florida and Northern Illinois in Canada would be a good idea? Fewer than 1,500 fans from either school made the trip across the border, and the announced crowd of 22,185 was the smallest of any bowl game this year.

Best future preview: It's a four-way tie. Two true freshmen -- quarterback Tom Savage and receiver Mohamed Sanu -- formed a potent duo for Rutgers in the St. Petersburg Bowl. Redshirt freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels had a solid game against Northern Illinois. And West Virginia fans got to see their next quarterback when freshman Geno Smith took over for Brown in the second half.

Worst bowl week buildup: Urban Meyer's seemingly unnecessary Sugar Bowl retirement/non-retirement drama overshadowed much of the pregame talk and excitement. Add in Cincinnati's own coaching controversies, and hardly anybody focused on the actual game (though from the Bearcats' standpoint, maybe that was a good thing). What happened to bowls being rewards for all the players' hard work?
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