Michigan Combine participation and Draft position since 1999

Tag: Zoltan Mesko

20Mar 2012
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Michigan Combine participation and Draft position since 1999

Marquise Walker
With the NFL Combine behind us and the Draft not too far away, now seems like a good time to take a look at the recent history of Wolverines in the NFL. Here’s a list of players who have participated in the combine since 1999, with draft position included in parentheses. It’s worth remembering that the vast majority of players who are invited to the Combine end up with NFL teams, even if they are not selected in the Draft.

2012 (3): DT Mike Martin (TBD), WR Junior Hemingway (TBD), David Molk (TBD)


2011 (2): LB Jonas Mouton (2nd), Stephen Schilling (6th)

2010 (5): OLB Brandon Graham (1st), P Zoltan Mesko (5th), S Stevie Brown (7th)*, CB Donovan Warren (undrafted), RB Brandon Minor (undrafted)

2009 (4): DT Terrance Taylor (4th), CB Morgan Trent (6th), LS Sean Griffin (undrafted), DE Tim Jamison (undrafted)

2008 (7): OT Jake Long (1st), QB Chad Henne (2nd), LB Shawn Crable (3rd), WR Mario Manningham (3rd), RB Mike Hart (6th), WR Adrian Arrington (7th), SS Jamar Adams (undrafted)

2007 (6): CB Leon Hall (1st), DT Alan Branch (2nd), LB LaMarr Woodley (2nd), LB David Harris (2nd ), WR Steve Breaston (5th), LB Prescott Burgess (6th)

2006 (5): DT Gabe Watson (4th), WR Jason Avant (4th), TE Tim Massaquai (7th), OL Adam Stenavich (undrafted), LB Pierre Woods (undrafted)

2005 (7): WR Braylon Edwards (1st), CB Marlin Jackson (1st), OG David Bass (2nd), CB Markus Curry (undrafted), FB Kevin Dudley (undrafted), P Adam Finley (undrafted), S Earnest Shazor (undrafted)
2004 (5): RB Chris Perry (1st), CB Jeremy LeSueur (3rd), QB John Navarre (7th), OT Tony Pape (7th), OL David Pearson (undrafted)

2003 (7): LB Victor Hobson (2nd), TE Bennie Joppru (2nd), FB B.J. Askew (3rd), QB Drew Henson (6th), SS Cato June (6th), FS Charles Drake (7th), WR Ronald Bellamy (undrafted)

2002 (4): WR Marquise Walker (3rd), LB Larry Foote (4th), OG Jonathan Goodwin (5th), K Hayden Epstein (7th)

2001 (6): OT Jeff Backus (1st), OL Steve Hutchinson (1st), WR David Terrell (1st), RB Anthony Thomas (2nd), OT Maurice Williams (2nd), CB James Whitley (undrafted)

2000 (7): LB Ian Gold (2nd), FB Aaron Shea (4th), DT Josh Williams (4th), LB Dhani Jones (6th), QB Tom Brady (6th), DE James Hall (undrafted), WR Marcus Knight (undrafted)

1999 (8): OT Jon Jansen (2nd), TE Jerame Tuman (5th), WR Tai Streets (6th), CB Andre Weathers (7th), RB Clarence Williams (undrafted), QB Scott Dreisbach (undrafted), SS Marcus Ray (undrafted), LB Sam Sword (undrafted)
*Not invited to the Combine
Average number of Michigan players participating in the Combine: 5.4
Average number of Michigan players selected in the Draft: 4.1

Average Draft position: 3.8th round
9Feb 2012
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Former Michigan Athletes of the Week: Mario Manningham and the Super Bowl Wolverines

One, two . . . yep, that’s two feet. And a legend is made. Mario Manningham.

Eight former Michigan athletes were represented on the biggest stage of all this Super Bowl Sunday in SB XLVI, which, of course, was won by the Giants, 21-17. Here’s a recap of each player’s performance in order of their impact on the game:

Mario Manningham: In a microcosm of his season, Manningham had a rough start, but came on strong late. In the first half, he was targeted only one or two times and failed to haul in a catchable deep ball. In the second half, however, Manningham came up with the play of the game and was targeted four straight times during the game winning drive. Manningham finished with five catches for 73 yards, with most of that coming in crunch time, and announcer Chris Collinsworth called Manningham’s 38 yard reception “one of the greatest catches in Super Bowl history.” Yeah, it would have been better if Manningham had announced that he were from Michigan rather than his home town, but it seems hard to fault him too much for that.

Tom Brady: It seemed that most Michigan fans were rooting for a Patriots’ victory. If New England had won, Brady would have forever been in the conversation as the greatest quarterback of all time. It’s fair to say that Brady remains in that conversation, but his performance on Sunday didn’t exactly make a compelling case for naming him the greatest quarterback ever. Brady went 27-for-41 in the game for 276 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Although he certainly didn’t get much help from his receiving corps, Brady never looked dominate and only put 17 points on the scoreboard.

David Baas: The starting center for the Giants, Baas’s offensive line blocked for 114 rushing yards and allowed three sacks.

Zoltan Mesko: Zoltan dropped three space emperor punting bombs for an average of 41.0 yards and a net average of 37.7.

Carson Butler: Signed to New England’s practice squad on January 26th, Butler did not participate in Super Bowl XLVI; however, he’s a New England Patriot and the Patriots played in the Super Bowl, so we’re going to count him.

Honorable Mention: Jim Harbaugh may have narrowly missed out on a trip to Super Bowl XLVI, but he was still named the AP Coach of the Year, the first time a 49ers coach has won the award since Bill Walsh.

25Jan 2012
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Michigan Well Represented in Super Bowl XLVI

Seven former Michigan athletes are represented in Super Bowl XLVI, which will be played between the Giants and the Patriots in Indianapolis on February 5th.  New York Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham (2,310 yards and 27 touchdowns from 2005-07), center David Baas (Rimington Award in 2004), linebackers coach Jim Herrmann (65 career tackles from 1980-82) and running backs coach Jerald Ingram (191 career rushing yards from 1979-81) are former Michigan athletes.  New England Patriots punter Zoltan Mesko (42.5-yard average from 2006-09), Tom Brady (5,351 yards and 35 touchdowns from 1996-99), and Ryan Mallett (892 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2007) are former Wolverines, too.

Tallying only the players, Michigan is in a six-way tie for third on the list of most well-represented schools in Super Bowl XLVI, trailing Boston College (6) and Rutgers (5). (For what it’s worth, a BigTen.org article only gives Rutgers credit for four players, putting Michigan and its five acquaintances in the #2 spot.)  With 22 players on the rosters of the Giants and Patriots, the Big Ten is second only to the SEC (23) as the most represented conference.

19Jan 2012
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Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Tom Brady

Whoa, Nellie! Tom Brady shredded the Denver defense and set a playoff record with five touchdown passes in one half. He added one more TD just minutes into the third quarter, tying another NFL record for passing touchdowns in a playoff game with nearly an entire half of football left to play. Fortunately for Tim “He Just Wins Games” Tebow and the Denver defense, Brady exercised his inner virtues of mercy and compassion and decided to focus more on his punting skills than his touchdown tosses for the remainder of the game. The final score read 45-10, and Brady finished with a Patriots playoff record of 363 passing yards (76.5 CMP%), six touchdowns and a 137.6 QB rating to go along with his booming 48 yard punt. Zoltan Mesko must be proud.
Honorable Mention: Mario Manningham caught a touchdown pass for the second straight week, this time on a four yard catch in the back of the end zone, as his Giants rolled the 15-1 Packers by a score of 37-20 to advance to the NFC Championship against Jim Harbaugh and the San Francisco 49ers. Manningham finished the game with 3 catches for 31 yards (10.3 YPC) and the aforementioned touchdown.

Miscellaneous: Adrian Arrington caught one pass for 14 yards but was targeted six times in as his Saints fell to the 49ers. Jim Harbaugh can coach.  Both David Baas (New York Giants) and Jonathan Goodwin (San Francisco 49ers) started at center for their respective teams and will face off in this weekend’s NFC Championship.
8Jul 2011
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2005 Offer Board

56 total offers

QUARTERBACK (3)
Jason Forcier – San Diego, CA (Michigan)
Harrison Beck – Clearwater, FL (Nebraska)
Rob Schoenhoft – Cincinnati, OH (Ohio State)

RUNNING BACK (4)
Andre Criswell – Detroit, MI (Michigan)
Kevin Grady – Grand Rapids, MI (Michigan)
Mister Simpson – Cincinnati, OH (Michigan)
Rashawn Jackson – Jersey City, NJ (Virginia)

WIDE RECEIVER (10)
Antonio Bass – Jackson, MI (Michigan)
Mario Manningham – Warren, OH (Michigan)
LaTerryal Savoy – Mamou, LA (Michigan)
Rendrick Taylor – Bennettsville, SC (Clemson)
Nate Boateng – Brooklyn, NY (Florida)
Mohamed Massaquoi – Charlotte, NC (Georgia)
Andre Amos – Middletown, OH (Ohio State)
Eric Huggins – Conway, SC (Oklahoma)
Kevin Cousins – Richmond, VA (Penn State)
Selwyn Lymon – Fort Wayne, IN (Purdue)

TIGHT END (2)
Carson Butler – Detroit, MI (Michigan)
Ed Dickson – Bellflower, CA (Oregon)

OFFENSIVE TACKLE (5)
Justin Schifano – Webster, NY (Michigan)
Andy Kuempel – Marion, IA (Iowa)
Dace Richardson – Wheaton, IL (Iowa)
John Jerry – Batesville, MS (Mississippi)
Alex Boone – Lakewood, OH (Ohio State)

OFFENSIVE GUARD (5)
Tim McAvoy – Bloomington, IL (Michigan)
David Moosman – Libertyville, IL (Michigan)
Cory Zirbel – Murray, KY (Michigan)
Ronnie Wilson – Pompano Beach, FL (Florida)
Hivera Green – Conway, SC (Virginia Tech)

DEFENSIVE END (5)
Eugene Germany – Pomona, CA (Michigan)
Chris McLaurin – Orchard Lake, MI (Michigan)
Allan Smith – Kansas City, MO (Boston College)
Kyle Moore – Warner Robins, GA (USC)
William Wall – Chatham, VA (Virginia Tech)

DEFENSIVE TACKLE (4)
James McKinney – Louisville, KY (Michigan)
Marques Slocum – Philadelphia, PA (Michigan)
Terrance Taylor – Muskegon, MI (Michigan)
Craig Bokor – Bedford, PA (Pittsburgh)

LINEBACKER (2)
Brandon Logan – Lexington, KY (Michigan)
Jerome Hayes – Bayonne, NJ (Penn State)

CORNERBACK (11)
Brandon Harrison – Dayton, OH (Michigan)
Chris Richards – North Hills, CA (Michigan)
Johnny Sears – Fresno, CA (Michigan)
Lionel Mitchell – Chatham, VA (Alabama)
Avery Atkins – Daytona Beach, FL (Florida)
Anthony Wiseman – Hyattsville, MD (Maryland)
Demetrice Morley – Miami, FL (Miami)
Kendell Davis – Alliance, OH (Michigan State)
Jamario O’Neal – Cleveland, OH (Ohio State)
Justin King – Pittsburgh, PA (Penn State)
Kevin Thomas – Oxnard, CA (USC)

SAFETY (4)
C.J. Byrd – North Augusta, SC (Georgia)
Chris Rowell – Warrensville Heights, OH (Iowa)
Nic Harris – Alexandria, LA (Oklahoma)
Victor Harris – Highland Springs, VA (Virginia Tech)

KICKER/PUNTER (1)
Zoltan Mesko – Twinsburg, OH (Michigan)