Draft combine

[Substiute]

Combine invitations by Pac-12 school
8 – Utah, USC
7 – UW
5 – UCLA
4 – Colorado, Stanford
3 – Cal, OSU
2 – WSU
1 – ASU, Oregon
0 – Arizona

[Utah]

The PAC-12 is second to last in P5 conferences with invites. Don’t we have like 46 or so? The Big 12 has like 16 invitees. That conference is a MESS. lol. 

That is the thing with all these arms races. With there being 5 P5 conferences and 4 spots on the playoff, you just need to make sure you aren’t #5 (which we have been). The money is nice, but the more important thing is scheduling and making sure you have a playoff eligible team every year. 

I’d rather we go to an 8 game schedule for conference games to boost everyone’s resume instantly in the conference. Then urge everyone to play:

1-OOC P5 game

1-OOC P5 or upper level G5 school 

1-OOC G5 school

1-OOC any game you want (you could do FCS here)

[Utah]

If you count Stevie Tui’kolovatu as a Utah invite (and I’m ok with that because there is no way he plays any football without Utah), then only Michigan and Alabama had more combine invites than Utah. 

That is unreal. 

[Anonymous]

So coaching is the issue then?? Because Utah is underperforming with the talent on the roster. You add in Lotulelei it would be 9.

[PlainsUte]

How did they get to be so skilled they got invited to the combine if it wasn’t for coaching?   Utah did not tie with USC for best recruiting class over the past few years?

 

So maybe skills coaching is just fine and its play calling and game management that has held the Utes back from performing as well in the conference?

[PlainsUte]

Also when is the last time Utah had a QB in the combine?   Alex Smith?

[gnUTE]

I would say this is more evidence that depth is still the issue.  We have the 1st string to compete with everyone, and even the 2nd string.  By November, however, the depth is being depleted faster than other teams.  Looking at USC, they struggled early and were able to get a streak going late.  This is a testament to the strength of their recruiting classes year after year.  

[BaldHatu]

Interesting stat.  Coincidentally, I had heard that Dimick DID NOT GET AN INVITE!?  Is that true!?!?  I find that shocking to say the least.  Not only did he not get a combine invite I also heard he DID NOT get invited to the Senior Bowl games.  Please correct me if I am wrong.  If I am not the WTF?

[jamarcus24]

Dimick received an invite to the East/West Shrine game.  Apparently an injury kept him out of the game, but here’s a little blurb that explains why NFL scouts aren’t exactly drooling over him:

A pair of high-profile pass-rushers never saw the field Saturday in St. Petersburg.

Pitt’s Ejuan Price and Utah’s Hunter Dimick destroyed opposing offenses this past year. The duo combined for 27.5 sacks and 44 tackles for loss. Instead of showcasing their abilities throughout the week and during the game, scouts only got to see their negatives.

Price measured at just under 5’11” and only 245 pounds. Meanwhile, Dimick’s 31-inch arms are less than ideal for an edge defender. As productive as both were, neither fits the prototype. Both needed to show they could still perform at a high level against top competition.

Source

I hope Dimick gets drafted, heck I hope he the last pick. But if not I hope he makes a roster, works his ass off, and then has a long and productive career similar to a guy like James Harrison.

[sweetgrass]

Wilner from Mercury News brings up the question, did Utah drastically under achieve in 2016 or did they coach these kids up to get 8 combine invites?

 

[Anonymous]

That is exactly my concern.

[Utah]

If you look at our class rankings and star level, and compare them to Miami, Clemson, Alabama, Michigan, Ohio State, and USC (the other teams we are on par with) you will see we coached them up. 

The exciting thing is, we just had a top 25 recruiting class. In two years, it would an underachievement. Now, it’s a testament to how great our coaches are. 

[rbmw263]

We did more with less. Just like we always do. That said, we had the talent to be a better team than we were last year. Having such a down year at the LB spot, and ceremoneously barfing in the redzone really, really hurt

[Anonymous]

Wilner from Mercury News brings up the question, did Utah drastically under achieve in 2016 or did they coach these kids up to get 8 combine invites?

Well Dielman was among the 4 OL invites and we lost him to injury. Dielman was among the 4 different centers we had. Run blocking was spectacular, pass blocking ok. Once again, the throw game left a lot to be desired.

Did we underperform? We did fail to execute well in the red zone. Did play down to our competition.

[Author]

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