In praise of Connor Barwin
Brian Kelly is so pleased with the way Connor Barwin has taken to the switch from tight end to defensive end that he’s referring to Barwin as a potential NFL player at his new position, even though Barwin has never played a down at defensive end in a college game.
During a conversation about his defense, Kelly was talking about the talent the Bearcats have on that side of the ball.
“You’ve potentially got two draft picks in Byrd and Barwin and on the back end of your defense, Mickens, Underwood and DeAngelo Smith,” Kelly said. “There’s five potential NFL players there.”
When I pointed out that I was surprised to hear Barwin mentioned in the same breath with Byrd and Mickens, Kelly said, “He’s got all the physical tools. There’s not many guys at BCS schools running around at that position that look the way he looks.”
posted by bill koch at 5:12 PM
6 Comments:
at 8:14 AM 
Da Phoenixx said...
-
-
at 9:16 AM 
Psyloshsr said...
-
-
at 9:21 AM 
Unknown said...
-
-
at 1:02 PM 
Anonymous said...
-
-
at 2:12 PM 
'WLMNMW' Prez said...
-
-
at 7:56 AM 
RedNBlaclAttack said...
-
-
Post a Comment*This pleases me greatly.
Hopefully we aren't reliant on our defense to win games if Mauk doesn't come back and the new guy isn't ready to go. Not that the defense isn't good enough to do it, but I got sick of Dantonio-ball real quick.
If the Bearcats had an award for "Guy Most Likely to Help Out and Have a Great Attitude About It" it should go to Connor Barwin.
His help for a crippled basketball team -- in which he actually took his 6'5" up against far bigger players -- deserves special thanks.
His switching back to concentrate on his tight end spot without complaining -- because that's what his coach wanted, and because Mick no longer needed him (I'm not so sure about that) -- gets him more stars in his crown.
And now this switch from offense to defense and excelling at it -- this young man has a stellar attitude.
"The Man Who Stands in the Gap" Award should go to Connor Barwin.
Andrew...they'll never go back to that style of play with BK at the helm. Having Mauk back would be a bonus, but A) most observers feel that DJ will be ready to go come fall and B) people need to remember that Grutza is very experienced and did a fine job filling in for Mauk when needed last year. BK prefers DJ to step in over Grutza, but Grutza is a solid fallback option.
Bottom line is, they will never go back to that style of play under BK.
Connor Barwin has an attitude that should be more prevalent. Imagine the team spirit if that was the same for the majority of the athletes. It would be a team that would be very difficult to stop.
I also like the view that Kelly has of getting the best eleven on the field. It gives players added incentive for improvement. The subs have the best seat in the house, but no true athlete enjoys that view.
Another thing that would be nice is if this blog were a touch freer. Other blogs require an ID, then remove the very, very few offensive comments. And, they all receive many more comments. Check the other blogs and it's easy to see that.
Connor is a Great Bearcat! If asked, he would probably throw the shot put/javelin, wrestle, throw some cheerleaders into the air, whatever it takes to promote the well being of our great University. Connor has a bright futre and makes all Bearcat fans very proud!
* Our online blogs currently are hosted and operated by a third party, namely, Blogger.com. You are now leaving the Cincinnati.Com website and will be linked to Blogger.com's registration page. The Blogger.com site and its associated services are not controlled by Cincinnati.Com and different terms of use and privacy policy will apply to your use of the Blogger.com site and services.
By proceeding and/or registering with Blogger.com you agree and understand that Cincinnati.Com is not responsible for the Blogger.com site you are about to access or for any service you may use while on the Blogger.com site.
<< Home