The year ahead is filled with potential for the Indiana Hoosiers. Under the tutelage of new Head Coach Tom Allen, they open their season with a dream matchup, in Bloomington on a Thursday night against the Ohio State Buckeyes. During B1G Media Days, Allen kept calling this game the biggest opener in school history. But…
As humans we elicit some of the most powerful curiosities and questions about our feelings on life: Why are we here? What came first, the chicken or the egg? Does fate exist? Similar to life, football has many philosophical / historical questions that are posed by numerous analysts and fans. Was Bo Jackson the best…
Welcome to a new series here at Inside the Pylon called The Option Route. This one has a primary focus on the wide receiver position. The idea for this series stems from another great series you may be familiar with here at ITP, the Under the Microscope series from my ITP colleague Brandon Thorn who…
The prevailing theme at any conference media day (or days) is one of hope. Whether it comes from the commissioner of the conference extolling the virtues of the league itself, or the various head coaches promoting the improvements to the team and its facilities, media days are dominated by that human nature of hope. But…
I evaluated Pat Elflein for the 2017 Inside the Pylon Draft Guide. I broke the former Buckeye down by watching a series of six games. A five-game minimum is typically the benchmark I like to hit when fully evaluating a player. This allows for exposure to the player dealing with the pain and various ailments…
The Dallas Cowboys finished the 2016 regular season with the best record in the NFC in large part due to the impacts of their rookie class. It was led by Ezekiel Elliott and Dak Prescott offensively, but Maliek Collins and Anthony Brown also played a nice role in their success on the defensive side of…
Organizational philosophy is a widely debated topic. There are many ways to build a team’s roster up – whether it’s through free agency, trades, and/or the draft. In addition to all the different methods of going about acquiring roster talent there is also potentially an order of what position to acquire first. Should a team…
Each spring, as the sun peeks out and the remainder of the heaping piles of plowed snow slowly melt away in the corner of the food store parking lot, the feeling of new life slowly disseminates through the air. Perennial flowers are taking shape in the garden and the sight of green leaves overwhelm the…
Click here for a full explanation of methodology and categories used in the chart above. About the class: Marshon Lattimore: #2 In the context of rankings, “#2” is usually associated with being the runner-up, the second best, or the first loser. For Marshon Lattimore, #2 means his overall ranking in this class from me. In…
Click here for a full explanation of methodology and categories used in the chart above. Mask On, Mask Off: Malik Hooker and Jamal Adams Ohio State’s Malik Hooker has the chance to eventually be the best free safety in the NFL. A bold statement, I know, but when you see Hooker on tape, you know…
You can count on one hand now the days remaining until day 1 of the 2017 NFL Draft. Over these next few days, teams will be finalizing their strategies and big boards if they haven’t already. Who do these teams want on day 1? Are they looking to draft the best player available (BPA)? Or are…
Click here for a full explanation of methodology and categories used in the chart above. Head of the Class Western Kentucky left tackle (and friend of the #PylonU podcast) Forrest Lamp highlights the interior offensive line class. Lamp, a left tackle for the Hilltoppers, could play the position at the next level, but he best translates…
Versatility is a coveted trait for NFL teams. General managers, head coaches, and coordinators love for their players to have position flexibility so they can be creative on the field with their schemes. A unique player in this draft is the Ohio State product, Curtis Samuel. Samuel is an excellent athlete who played a running…
There has been a lot of discussion over where Michigan’s Jabrill Peppers should play in the NFL. Some have envisioned a safety role for him, others view him as a linebacker. Peppers’s college film reveals traits that show he is poorly suited for a linebacker role in the pros. One major issue Peppers encounters is…
Over the next several weeks, I’ll be producing five articles highlighting around 45 draft-eligible edge defenders for the 2017 NFL Draft. They’ll be divided up by class. I began with redshirt seniors and true seniors and now will look at redshirt juniors before following up with true juniors and a few redshirt sophomores that could potentially…
We’re headed down the home stretch of the college football season which means most of the attention during the next week will be centered on how to assess which four teams in the nation are the best and will ultimately meet in the College Football Playoff. When the Selection Committee makes their announcement on Sunday,…