'15 TN WR Van Jefferson

#2,626
#2,626
keckjm said:
Yea, but there's a difference between playing and starting. This kid isn't starting over Smith/VP, PIG, and North. That's not a knock on him either, but rather the reality of the situation. P. Will., arguably the best freshman WR in the country, isn't starting either. That's how it should be when you recruit top WRs year in and year out. Van would provide more quality depth though.

X: Von/Smith/Malone/Van
Z: North/Croom/Malone/P.Will
Y: PIG/Johnson/Vic/Jenkins

That's pretty good depth at WR, especially if Malone/Croom/Vic/Jenkins continue to grow and Smith/North get 100% healthy.
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I know Williams has talked about coming in an playing slot because of how elusive he is and he would be a mismatch on longer yardage plays. I mean send him and north deep in a Cover 2 zone and let the safety choose one or the other. Now I know this won't happen a lot but I could see him doing that earlier in his career.
 
#2,627
#2,627
Mike4Vols said:
This. He wants GA. And we didn't exactly give him any reason to believe he could thrive in this offense.

Our offensive struggles probably cost us a recruit or two. We'll never know for sure. A lot of these kids don't have strong allegiances with a school. They're looking for a way to get in 'the league'.
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You have not followed recruiting very long with statements like that. It is and has always been about relationships and playing time.
 
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#2,631
#2,631
I'm still waiting to see any sign that Malone was a 5 star recruit. He might end up being a nice player, but I just don't see it.
 
#2,632
#2,632
SeanJean said:
I'm still waiting to see any sign that Malone was a 5 star recruit. He might end up being a nice player, but I just don't see it.
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Happens a lot in a player's first year...especially with a QB situation like we had.
 
#2,634
#2,634
landscapingvol said:
You have not followed recruiting very long with statements like that. It is and has always been about relationships and playing time.
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You are quite presumptuous, my man. :)

Relationships and playing time are very important. No doubt. But they can get playing time and strong relationships at Tennessee Tech.

Players at the highest level are also looking for a successful program and the right scheme to display their talents for the NFL. This is a business.
 
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#2,638
#2,638
SeanJean said:
I'm still waiting to see any sign that Malone was a 5 star recruit. He might end up being a nice player, but I just don't see it.
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LebanonVolunteer said:
I agree. Especially with him taking an EE spot from someone else. I expected a lot more.
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Freshman WR... Same reason rookie WR's in the league are rarely superstars immediately. Need time to adjust.
 
#2,639
#2,639
TriedAndTrueVOL said:
The 5 star talent is there...just gotta get his head right. It's all mental. He'll be just fine...
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I think that's my kind of my point, is that I don't see the 5 star talent there. He seems undersized and isn't able to really separate from defenders, and doesn't do anything after the catch. He seems like a possession receiver to me.

5 star WRs can usually just walk on the field and make some big plays during the season based on talent alone, even if they don't grasp the mental part of the game. I just haven't seen any signs of that from Malone.

North on the other hand has that ability in spades, and it showed last year. How he wasn't a 5 star is beyond me.
 
#2,640
#2,640
Dust10 said:
Freshman WR... Same reason rookie WR's in the league are rarely superstars immediately. Need time to adjust.
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This isn't the league. And plenty of Freshman WRs make a big impact right away. He doesn't need to lead the conference in receiving or anything, but there is very little to point to that is encouraging thus far.
 
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#2,641
#2,641
SeanJean said:
This isn't the league. And plenty of Freshman WRs make a big impact right away. He doesn't need to lead the conference in receiving or anything, but there is very little to point to that is encouraging thus far.
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Yeah, okay let's go ahead and give up on him after 1 year. Smh...
 
#2,643
#2,643
alot of high school kids who werent seriously challenged there struggle some as a freshman. Malone didnt play tough competition very often in high school. He's simply not tough enough right now as are several of the WRs in my opinion. They really gotta fight to get off press coverage and for the football in mid air. Florida, Ole Miss and even Vandy pushed the Wrs around all game. That has to stop next yr. JMO
 
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#2,644
#2,644
I was curious how others did. I looked at the top HS 10 WRs listed by 247 for 2014.

Josh Malone TN- 22-227-1TD
Allen Lazard ISU- 43-577-3TD
Cameron Sims ALA- 7-62-1TD
Ermon Lane FSU- 11-245-1TD
Justin Bent ND- No Stats
Speedy Noil A&M- 44-559-5TD
KD Cannon BAY- 47-800-6TD
Travis Rudolph FSU- 27-421-3TD
Malachi Dupree LSU- 14-311-5TD
Johnnie Dixon OSU- 4 carries, 20 yards.
 
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#2,645
#2,645
Dust10 said:
Yeah, okay let's go ahead and give up on him after 1 year. Smh...
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Yes, that is exactly what I said. Cool post.

I just think he has been disappointing thus far, given all the camp hype. I don't think that's really that big of a stretch. Compare him with other players who had camp hype and have not been disappointing in the least (Hurd, Barnett, Pearson, etc.).
 
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#2,646
#2,646
wmcovol said:
alot of high school kids who werent seriously challenged there struggle some as a freshman. Malone didnt play tough competition very often in high school. He's simply not tough enough right now as are several of the WRs in my opinion. They really gotta fight to get off press coverage and for the football in mid air. Florida, Ole Miss and even Vandy pushed the Wrs around all game. That has to stop next yr. JMO
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That's a great point, and very well may be the case. He often looked like he was being pushed around and wasn't ready to play in the SEC. It happens, I just didn't expect it given his ranking.
 
#2,647
#2,647
SeanJean said:
Yes, that is exactly what I said. Cool post.

I just think he has been disappointing thus far, given all the camp hype. I don't think that's really that big of a stretch. Compare him with other players who had camp hype and have not been disappointing in the least (Hurd, Barnett, Pearson, etc.).
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When did the coaches ever hype him up in camp? If I recall, its been the exact opposite.

If you're arguing he has underachieved his 5 star status, yeah maybe, but again he's still young.
 
#2,648
#2,648
IMO 5 star players should be able to contribute immediately. Part of being ranked so high is that expectation.

However, rankings are just someone's educated guess so whatev. I think Josh will be fine.
 
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#2,649
#2,649
OrangeHammer said:
IMO 5 star players should be able to contribute immediately. Part of being ranked so high is that expectation.

However, rankings are just someone's educated guess so whatev. I think Josh will be fine.
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Precisely. 5 star athletes are usually ones who can contribute in some way immediately based off of their physical ability. WRs in particular. I don't see that physical ability with Malone.

And yeah, we know rankings are all a crapshoot. I hope he can get better with another offseason in the weight room and better OL/QB play.
 
#2,650
#2,650
OrangeHammer said:
IMO 5 star players should be able to contribute immediately. Part of being ranked so high is that expectation.

However, rankings are just someone's educated guess so whatev. I think Josh will be fine.
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Part of it is where they sign as well. If they sign with a school is already loaded with talent at the position, it can be tougher to break into 1st team type reps.
 
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