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***NOTE: I'm going to use this thread to breakdown the AC East area by area. I will add to this first post as I complete sections, but with the season starting tonight, I wanted to get what I have up. Feel free to discuss.***
***
Arguably one of the most top-to-bottom evenly matched conferences in the OSFL, the AC East has earned a reputation for their yearly battle for the crown. The brief history of the league shows that anyone can make a run in the AC East:
2006 - Motor City (Punxsutawney won Wildcard)
2007 - Motor City (Lake County won Wildcard)
2008 - Lake County
2009 - Puxsutawney
2010 - Lake County* (Ohio Valley won Wildcard)
2011 - Ohio Valley
* - Won Steven's Cup
In 2011, a battle was waged will all four team still mathmatically in contention until Week 16.
American Conference - Eastern Division
Ohio Valley 9-7 (4-2)
Lake County 9-7 (2-4)
Punxsutawney 7-9 (4-2)
Motor City 6-10 (2-4)
With the dawn of the 2012 season, we asked an OSFL insider (who agreed to participate under the condition of anonymity) to breakdown the 2012 AC East Position by Position to determine what team had the best chance at making a run this season.
Quarterback
(1) Nick Pipkin - Lake County
(2) Billy Joe "The Jiz" Jizmejian - Motor City
(3) Rob Knopf - Ohio Valley
(4) Jamie Francis - Punxsutawney
SCOUT'S TAKE: There are really two tiers to the QB's in the AC East - the Haves and the Have Nots. Pipkin and Jizmejian are both All-Pro caliber players who will retire with their names all over the records books for passers. Though "The Jiz" may actually have more raw talent, Pipkin is the best QB in the AC East. His decision making is second to none. He simply does not make the errors that plague other QBs. Billy Joe has a huge arm and puts up big numbers, but with his sub-par receiving corp in Detroit, he's relegated to a lot of dink and dunk passing.
Knopf and Francis are both average OSFL QB's. Neither one is going to blow you away with their tools or talent anymore, but they can both manage a game. I give the slight edge to Knopf because I think he's a smarter player, but the guy needs to secure the ball better as he puts it on the turf far too much. Both teams should seriously consider spending a high draft pick very soon at QB.
Running Back + Fullback
(1) Sherman Ellison + Harry Mughelli - Ohio Valley
(2) Cris Gardner + Artie Mayes - Motor City
(3) Randall Barrouquere + Karl Pleasant - Lake County
(4) Conrad Szumnarski + Kirk Mayers - Punxsutawney
SCOUT'S TAKE: The AC East features two top-tier potential Hall of Famers coming out of the backfield. Sherman Ellison from Ohio Valley was drafted in 2007 and has already put together a career that would be the envy of many. #5 on the All-Time rushing list going into the season, he's an offesnive machine and easily makes up for a the mediocre Mughelli and earns the Showboats the checkmark as the top backfield in the East. But how long will it last?
The question on mine and other Scout's minds is how good will Cris Gardner be? He came into the draft as arguably the top prospect at the position before losing that honor to Boston's Trevor Canada. Despite the minor hiccup, he steps into big shoes in the Motor City trying to finally be a legit replacement for former OSFL MVP Kenneth Clements. Gardner will get a ton of help as he joined in the backfield by easily the greatest FB in OSFL history - Artie Mayes. Though he's getting a little older, Mayes does things from the FB position that most RBs and TEs dream of. He caught 78 passes in 2011 with a 7.4 YPC average and 41 huge first downs. He's caught 285 passes in his career - over twice as many catches as rushing attempts. Mayes and Gardner should quickly form a formidable 1-2 punch.
Lake County finds themselves in a similar scenario as verteren Karl Pleasant hopes to help break in rookie Randall Barrouquere. Pleasant, who turned down a larger contract offer from Gainsville to stay in Lake County, is a prototypical blocking FB having only toted the rock 11 times in 6 season. He will catch some passes out of a classic H-back role, but his main goal is to open holes for the new kid out of Florida A&M. Barrouquere is an interesting athlete for the running back position, while not overly large, he's surprisingly slow as doesn't run as naturally as one would typically expect. However, his unorthodox running style makes him very difficult to tackle in the openfield. Some of my associates have tipped me off that Barrouquere is not much of a team guy and is not making friends in the lockerroom so far. Should be intersting to see how he develops.
With a name that seems to come straight out of an old 50's Green Bay Packer's reel, Conrad Szumnarski joined the Phils last season after playing his first three years in Port City as a backup. He started 4 games for Punx last year and did enough to win the starting gig this season. I've seen this kid in practice and he has fantastic hands and receiver skills, yet no one seems to be able to find a way to use him correctly. He's the type of guy who may not get you 1000 yards, but should easily get you 1500+ all-purpose if used right. He's paired with Kirk Mayers, the only FB on the Phils roster and default starter. Mayers is a decent FB, but isn't going to blow anyone away.
Tight End
(1) Clyde McDonald - Lake County
(2) Casey Sommers - Motor City
(3) Rob McElroy - Punxsutawney
(4) Ernest Gregg - Ohio Valley
SCOUT'S TAKE: Motor City Mechanics' CEO/President/General Manager Clay T. Shaver was a college Tight End and fancies himself very wise in scouting and developing that position. That may explain why the Top two starting TEs in the division were both built in Detroit. Clyde McDonald left Motor City for Lake County two seasons ago to get out of the shadow of Casey Sommers. Since the move, he's emerged as a top receiving threat in the division collecting key receptions for the Extreme along the way.
Sommers, who is in his 10th professional season and edging towards retirement, can still block with the best in the league and is a key performer in the red zone. However, once rated as one of the best in the game, his skills are eroding quickly and his time in Detroit may be short lived. In fact, that's the most interesting part about evaluating the talent pool at Tight End in the AC East, the best one in the group may not even see the field this season. 4th Round draft pick Luther Biddle is a pure pass catching TE and could steal the job in MTC sooner than later.
Many of my counterparts will argue that Rob McElroy has the most potential in the group. The kid can fly and gets downfield as good as anyone in the league. I grade him down because this kid is only two seaons in and he's had three reported knee injuries. A good TE needs his knees to hold up to block DEs or get in and out of those routes. McElroy needs to stay healthy.
Ohio Valley is old school in their approach to the TE position. Ernest Gregg is a 3rd Tackle. He's there to open up the corner for Sherman Ellison and not make mistakes. However, with a relatively thin receiving corp, the Showboats could use a little bit more offense out of this guy, something I'm not sure he has in his game.
(To Be Continued)
***
Arguably one of the most top-to-bottom evenly matched conferences in the OSFL, the AC East has earned a reputation for their yearly battle for the crown. The brief history of the league shows that anyone can make a run in the AC East:
2006 - Motor City (Punxsutawney won Wildcard)
2007 - Motor City (Lake County won Wildcard)
2008 - Lake County
2009 - Puxsutawney
2010 - Lake County* (Ohio Valley won Wildcard)
2011 - Ohio Valley
* - Won Steven's Cup
In 2011, a battle was waged will all four team still mathmatically in contention until Week 16.
American Conference - Eastern Division
Ohio Valley 9-7 (4-2)
Lake County 9-7 (2-4)
Punxsutawney 7-9 (4-2)
Motor City 6-10 (2-4)
With the dawn of the 2012 season, we asked an OSFL insider (who agreed to participate under the condition of anonymity) to breakdown the 2012 AC East Position by Position to determine what team had the best chance at making a run this season.
Quarterback
(1) Nick Pipkin - Lake County
(2) Billy Joe "The Jiz" Jizmejian - Motor City
(3) Rob Knopf - Ohio Valley
(4) Jamie Francis - Punxsutawney
SCOUT'S TAKE: There are really two tiers to the QB's in the AC East - the Haves and the Have Nots. Pipkin and Jizmejian are both All-Pro caliber players who will retire with their names all over the records books for passers. Though "The Jiz" may actually have more raw talent, Pipkin is the best QB in the AC East. His decision making is second to none. He simply does not make the errors that plague other QBs. Billy Joe has a huge arm and puts up big numbers, but with his sub-par receiving corp in Detroit, he's relegated to a lot of dink and dunk passing.
Knopf and Francis are both average OSFL QB's. Neither one is going to blow you away with their tools or talent anymore, but they can both manage a game. I give the slight edge to Knopf because I think he's a smarter player, but the guy needs to secure the ball better as he puts it on the turf far too much. Both teams should seriously consider spending a high draft pick very soon at QB.
Running Back + Fullback
(1) Sherman Ellison + Harry Mughelli - Ohio Valley
(2) Cris Gardner + Artie Mayes - Motor City
(3) Randall Barrouquere + Karl Pleasant - Lake County
(4) Conrad Szumnarski + Kirk Mayers - Punxsutawney
SCOUT'S TAKE: The AC East features two top-tier potential Hall of Famers coming out of the backfield. Sherman Ellison from Ohio Valley was drafted in 2007 and has already put together a career that would be the envy of many. #5 on the All-Time rushing list going into the season, he's an offesnive machine and easily makes up for a the mediocre Mughelli and earns the Showboats the checkmark as the top backfield in the East. But how long will it last?
The question on mine and other Scout's minds is how good will Cris Gardner be? He came into the draft as arguably the top prospect at the position before losing that honor to Boston's Trevor Canada. Despite the minor hiccup, he steps into big shoes in the Motor City trying to finally be a legit replacement for former OSFL MVP Kenneth Clements. Gardner will get a ton of help as he joined in the backfield by easily the greatest FB in OSFL history - Artie Mayes. Though he's getting a little older, Mayes does things from the FB position that most RBs and TEs dream of. He caught 78 passes in 2011 with a 7.4 YPC average and 41 huge first downs. He's caught 285 passes in his career - over twice as many catches as rushing attempts. Mayes and Gardner should quickly form a formidable 1-2 punch.
Lake County finds themselves in a similar scenario as verteren Karl Pleasant hopes to help break in rookie Randall Barrouquere. Pleasant, who turned down a larger contract offer from Gainsville to stay in Lake County, is a prototypical blocking FB having only toted the rock 11 times in 6 season. He will catch some passes out of a classic H-back role, but his main goal is to open holes for the new kid out of Florida A&M. Barrouquere is an interesting athlete for the running back position, while not overly large, he's surprisingly slow as doesn't run as naturally as one would typically expect. However, his unorthodox running style makes him very difficult to tackle in the openfield. Some of my associates have tipped me off that Barrouquere is not much of a team guy and is not making friends in the lockerroom so far. Should be intersting to see how he develops.
With a name that seems to come straight out of an old 50's Green Bay Packer's reel, Conrad Szumnarski joined the Phils last season after playing his first three years in Port City as a backup. He started 4 games for Punx last year and did enough to win the starting gig this season. I've seen this kid in practice and he has fantastic hands and receiver skills, yet no one seems to be able to find a way to use him correctly. He's the type of guy who may not get you 1000 yards, but should easily get you 1500+ all-purpose if used right. He's paired with Kirk Mayers, the only FB on the Phils roster and default starter. Mayers is a decent FB, but isn't going to blow anyone away.
Tight End
(1) Clyde McDonald - Lake County
(2) Casey Sommers - Motor City
(3) Rob McElroy - Punxsutawney
(4) Ernest Gregg - Ohio Valley
SCOUT'S TAKE: Motor City Mechanics' CEO/President/General Manager Clay T. Shaver was a college Tight End and fancies himself very wise in scouting and developing that position. That may explain why the Top two starting TEs in the division were both built in Detroit. Clyde McDonald left Motor City for Lake County two seasons ago to get out of the shadow of Casey Sommers. Since the move, he's emerged as a top receiving threat in the division collecting key receptions for the Extreme along the way.
Sommers, who is in his 10th professional season and edging towards retirement, can still block with the best in the league and is a key performer in the red zone. However, once rated as one of the best in the game, his skills are eroding quickly and his time in Detroit may be short lived. In fact, that's the most interesting part about evaluating the talent pool at Tight End in the AC East, the best one in the group may not even see the field this season. 4th Round draft pick Luther Biddle is a pure pass catching TE and could steal the job in MTC sooner than later.
Many of my counterparts will argue that Rob McElroy has the most potential in the group. The kid can fly and gets downfield as good as anyone in the league. I grade him down because this kid is only two seaons in and he's had three reported knee injuries. A good TE needs his knees to hold up to block DEs or get in and out of those routes. McElroy needs to stay healthy.
Ohio Valley is old school in their approach to the TE position. Ernest Gregg is a 3rd Tackle. He's there to open up the corner for Sherman Ellison and not make mistakes. However, with a relatively thin receiving corp, the Showboats could use a little bit more offense out of this guy, something I'm not sure he has in his game.
(To Be Continued)
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