Keeping The Ball Rolling

NCAA defenses never found an answer to the
lethal legs of Montee Ball in 2011.

After being told by many draft experts that he was a third-round grade, Wisconsin Badgers' running back Montee Ball has decide to return for his senior season and forgo the 2012 NFL Draft.

Coming off the best season of his collegiate career, Ball was named the Big Ten's Offensive Player of the Year and a Heisman Trophy finalist. As a junior, Ball led the nation in rushing yards with 1,923, the seventh-highest total in Big Ten history, and tied Barry Sanders, who set 24 other NCCA records in 1988, for the most touchdowns (39) in FBS history for a single season.

Despite Ball playing in three more games than Sanders did while attending Oklahoma State, he touched the ball sixty-one fewer times than the 2004 Hall of Fame inductee, making a case that his recording-tying season was as impressive as Sanders' '88 Heisman campaign.

Ball finished the year with 2,229 all-purpose yards, the second in team history. Playing for then-Wisconsin head coach Barry Alvarez, running back Ron Dayne set the Badgers' team record in 1996 when he accumulated 2,242 yards, putting Ball's name in the same sentence with yet another Heisman Trophy winner.

Dayne captured college football's most prestigious award in 1999.

Scoring 57 total touchdowns the last two seasons, many attribute Ball's recent success to his commitment of losing weight. Shedding more than 25 pounds prior to the start of the season, the 5' 11", 210-pounder was in great shape, but plans to put on weight his offseason in hopes of getting stronger, something NFL scouts believe he must do to raise his draft stock.

A consensus All-American, Ball helped lead the No. 10 ranked Badgers to a Conference title and earned them their second consecutive Rose Bowl bid.

Facing the Michigan State Spartans, a team that beaten Ball and Co. earlier in the year, in the inaugural Big Ten title game on Dec. 3, Ball got his revenge. He scored a season-high 4 TDs, with his last coming with 3:45 remaining in the fourth quarter, sealing the win, 42-39.

And while Ball was on the losing end of the highest scoring Rose Bowl in history, 45-38, he enjoyed another fantastic game to close out his season, rushing for 164 and a score while catching 4 passes for 51 yards.

Showing once again why Madison will be happy to keep the ball rolling and hit the ground running in 2012.

Just Another First-Round Bust

Gholston is one of the biggest 1st Round busts
in recent memory.

The New York Jets have released former first-round draft pick Vernon Gholston.

After three years of disappointment the Jets decided to give up on the former Ohio State Buckeye standout. Taken with the sixth overall pick in the 2008 draft, the Jets had high hopes for Gholston.

Gholston was one of the best defensive players in his two full seasons in the NCAA.

In his first year as a starter, Gholston broken his hand and was forced to redshirt, but returning the next year, he was a force on the defensive side of the ball. He recorded 47 total tackles and sacking the quarterback eight times as a linebacker for head coach Jim Tressel.

That same year with the help of Gholston, the Buckeyes would finish 12-0, 8-0 in the Big Ten, claiming a spot in the BCS National Championship Game.

The Buckeyes would be embarrassed in Glendale, Arizona with the defense struggling, including Gholston, giving up 41 points to the Florida Gators.

In 2007, Gholston became even more of a presence of the field for the Buckeyes recording 14 sacks and winning the top defensive player honor in the Big Ten. After losing in the National Championship Game for the second straight year to an SEC opponent, Gholston declared for the NFL draft, where he had so much promise, or so we thought.

As we know now, Gholston has turned into yet another first-round bust, only recording 42 total tackles in his three seasons with the Jets. Gholston never recorded a forced fumble, interception or sack during that time. The former Buckeye was said to have an agreement in his 2010 contract that if he were to either record just one, sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, or an interception, he would have earned a $9 million bonus.

If that was not enough motivation for him than nothing ever will.

Still only 24, Gholston will probably draw interest from other teams because of his physical tools, but they have yet to translate onto the gridiron every Sunday. A prime example why the owners do not want to give first-round draft picks so much guaranteed money. Gholston signed a five-year $32 million rookie contract with $21 million guaranteed.

That is roughly $2 million per tackle in his short three-year career. Well worth it, just ask the Jets.