Guest Post: Dog in Bowl Heaven

From Still A. Dog:

With nothing to do but eat fruit cake and watch college bowl games for the next week or so I thought I’d give you loyal readers (all 4 of you) some things to look for in the bowl games as they relate to the Pittsburgh Steelers. And with Fan out of touch until further notice, I can fill some dead space on the blog. So here we go…

Holiday Bowl 12/27/07
Texas DT Frank Okam 6’5” 325 vs. AZ State C Mike Pollack 6’4” 300. We definitely need a center and probably a defensive lineman as well. In this two-fer you get to watch both guys go against each other. Both should be day one if not first round picks.

Champs Sports Bowl 12/28/07
Boston College QB Matt Ryan – not because we’ll draft him (we got one worthless BC QB on the roster now, St. Pierre ) but because the Ravens are salivating over him.
Michigan State RB Jehuu Calucrick 6’0 260 – Closest thing to Jerome Bettis in this draft. But still far far away from Bettis’ talent. I’ve seen him look good and very average. Watch him for yourself and see what you think.

Alamo Bowl 12/29/07
Texas A&M FB Javorskie Lane 6’0 and Unlimited Weight division – Also looks like Bettis, but in short yardage situations only. A poor man’s Ron Dayne. Has a career in the NFL if he can lead block but he’s a short yardage back and that’s all.
Penn State LB Dan Connor 6’3 240 – Latest in a loooong line of quality LBs from Penn State . Not sure how interested we are in another LB, but this guy’s probably the best one who’ll be around when we draft.

Sun Bowl 12/31/07
South Florida CBs Mike Jenkins and Trae Williams. Both are good. Jenkins is better. I’m not real good with CBs (I thought Fred Smoot covered all the earth not already covered by water) but I like Jenkins and Williams is pretty darn good too. I would think these guys will both be gone by round 3.

South Florida LB Ben Moffit 6’2 240. If you want a LB here’s the guy I’d go for. You can make up your own mind, but he drops into pass coverage and kills QBs in the backfield with equal enthusiasm.

Insight.com Bowl 12/31/07
Only one guy to keep an eye on in this game. Indiana WR James Hardy 6’6” 220. Not as fast as many but gets open and can catch the ball. Has the size we are lacking at the WR position.

Fiesta Bowl 1/01/08
I would absolutely love to see the Steelers get both these guys.
Oklahoma OL (can play G or T) George “Duke” Robinson 6’5” 335 – He’s a monster. Can bulldoze an opponent in the run game and keep up with a speed rusher in the passing game. We need a guy like him bad.
West Virginia FB Owen Schmitt 6’3” 260 – Without a doubt the best FB at West Virginia since Jim Braxton (the blocking back for OJ in Buffalo ). He is the perfect replacement for Dan Kreider and is actually capable of carrying/catching the ball much more effectively than Kreider ever was. Dude broke like 8 facemasks in college. And who do you think springs Pat White and Steve Slaton for all those yards? Like to see him doing the same for Willie Parker. Should be available in the late second or third round. We need a guy like him badly too!

Rose Bowl 1/07/08
Lots of good players on both sides but watch Ohio State LB James Laurenitis. He’s only a junior but this guy can take over a football game. He can sometimes get lost in the crowd too. Plus his daddy was a pro wrestler on WWE.

So there. If you got nothing to do but watch bowl games, keep these guys in mind. Most likely you’ll see them all playing on Sundays soon. Comments and opinions welcome.