Aztec for life

Aztecs in the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine: Leon McFadden

/ Hunter O. Hewitt / 6 Comments
Leon McFadden runs

Leon McFadden runs with the ball during a drill in the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine.

Height: 5’9 5/8″
Weight: 193 pounds
Arm length: 32 3/8″
Hand size: 9″

40-yard dash: 4.54 seconds, 23rd*
3-cone drill: 6.81 seconds, 7th*
20-yard shuttle: 4.27 seconds, 21st*
Vertical jump: 34.5 inches, 21st*
Broad jump: 119 inches, 21st*
Bench press: 10 reps, 24th*

*Rank amongst 30 cornerbacks at combine

Analysis
In last week’s preview, I said that if McFadden can beat the average 40-yard dash time of cornerbacks in the combine over the last five years, he will put himself in position to be drafted in the third or fourth round.

McFadden did just that on Tuesday, although he was a bit closer than he would have liked. McFadden recorded a time of 4.54, just one-hundredth of a second below the 5-year average of 4.55.

McFadden’s 40-time, along with an impressive performance in the defensive back drills, gave scouts closure on his skill-set. They know he can play – countless amounts of game film and a strong week of practice at the Senior Bowl supports that, they just wanted to make sure he would run an above-average time at the combine.

With his performance at the combine, McFadden has likely maintained his mid-round projection. If he can run a sub-4.5 40-yard dash at his pro day on March 19, however, don’t be surprised if some teams consider taking him earlier.

Projection
3rd round

Leon McFadden 2013 NFL Combine Highlights

LINKS:
Hunter Hewitt: APSE Bio – http://www.apsportseditors.org/newsletter/apse-student-member-bio-hunter-hewitt/
Hunter Hewitt: WordPress – http://hunterhewitt.wordpress.com
Hunter Hewitt: Blogger – http://hunterhewitt.blogspot.com
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Hunter Hewitt: Facebook – http://facebook.com/hunterhewittSDSU
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Hunter Hewitt: About.me – http://about.me/hunterhewitt
Hunter Hewitt: BrandYourself – http://hunterhewitt.brandyourself.com/
Hunter Hewitt: GoAztecs.com Player Profile – http://goaztecs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/hewitt_hunter00.html
Hunter Hewitt: SDSU News Team Story: http://newscenter.sdsu.edu/sdsu_newscenter/news.aspx?s=73846
Hunter Hewitt: FanBase: http://www.fanbase.com/Hunter-Hewitt

by Hunter Hewitt

GO AZTECS

Aztecs in the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine: Gavin Escobar

/ Hunter O. Hewitt / 9 Comments
Gavin Escobar jumps

Gavin Escobar competes in the broad jump test at the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL)

Height: 6’5 7/8″
Weight: 254 pounds
Arm length: 33 5/8″
Hand size: 9 3/4″

40-yard dash: 4.84 seconds, 11th*
3-cone drill: 7.07 seconds, 2nd*
20-yard shuttle: 4.31 seconds, 2nd*
60-yard shuttle: 11.86 seconds, 5th*
Vertical jump: 32 inches, 8th*
Broad jump: 114 inches, 7th*
Bench press: DNP**

*Rank amongst 19 tight ends at combine
**Escobar did not participate in the bench press test at the combine

Analysis
Although Escobar did not record the fastest 40-yard dash time, the rest of his combine performance was very impressive. He was the second-best amongst the tight ends in both the three-cone drill and the 20-yard shuttle, and ranked in the middle of the pack in the other tests.

What distanced Escobar from the the group was his performance in the various position drills, where he displayed his incredible ball-catching skills and had NFL analyst Mike Mayock raving about his hands.

“Trust me, Rich, you’re going to get to know this name in the next few months,” Mayock said to fellow broadcaster Rich Eisen during the combine. “Watching him catch a football, it’s like ballet. I mean this kid’s got strong hands and he goes up for the ball.”

Escobar will have a chance to better his 40-yard dash time at San Diego State’s pro day on March 19, but it won’t be too much of a concern to NFL scouts. His game film is all the proof they need to see that he is fast enough to play at the next level.

Overall, Escobar had a solid performance at the combine, and although he didn’t shock scouts with jaw-dropping numbers, he likely secured his position as one of the top three tight ends available.

Projection
2nd-3rd round

Gavin Escobar 2013 NFL Combine Highlights

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRJVgm_BaMA

Gavin Escobar 2012 Season Highlights

LINKS:
Hunter Hewitt: APSE Bio – http://www.apsportseditors.org/newsletter/apse-student-member-bio-hunter-hewitt/
Hunter Hewitt: WordPress – http://hunterhewitt.wordpress.com
Hunter Hewitt: Blogger – http://hunterhewitt.blogspot.com
Hunter Hewitt: LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/hunterhewitt
Hunter Hewitt: Twitter – http://twitter.com/hunterhewitt89
Hunter Hewitt: Facebook – http://facebook.com/hunterhewittSDSU
Hunter Hewitt: Tumblr – http://hunterhewitt.tumblr.com
Hunter Hewitt: About.me – http://about.me/hunterhewitt
Hunter Hewitt: BrandYourself – http://hunterhewitt.brandyourself.com/
Hunter Hewitt: GoAztecs.com Player Profile – http://goaztecs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/hewitt_hunter00.html
Hunter Hewitt: SDSU News Team Story: http://newscenter.sdsu.edu/sdsu_newscenter/news.aspx?s=73846
Hunter Hewitt: FanBase: http://www.fanbase.com/Hunter-Hewitt

by Hunter Hewitt

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SDSU Announces 2013 Conference Schedule

/ Hunter O. Hewitt / 3 Comments
Aztecs For Life: Hunter Hewitt

The Aztecs celebrate after beating Boise State on the road in 2012. They will host the Broncos in 2013. (Ernie Anderson/SDSU Media Relations)

San Diego State announced its 2013 Mountain West Conference football opponents on Tuesday, but has yet to finalize the dates.

Even with additional schools and the switch to two six-team divisions (Mountain Division and West Division), the Mountain West will maintain an eight-game conference schedule.

As a part of this schedule, each school will play the other five schools in its division on a yearly basis. Additionally, each school will play a rotation of three opponents from the other division to complete an eight-game conference schedule.

Here are SDSU’s 2013 conference opponents, along with the location of each game (home games in italics):

Boise State
Fresno State
Nevada
New Mexico
at Air Force
at Hawaii
at San Jose State
at UNLV

With the conference game dates yet to be finalized, here is SDSU’s current 2013 schedule (home games in italics):

08/31/13 – Eastern Illinois
09/07/13 – at Ohio State
09/14/13 – Open
09/21/13 – Oregon State
09/28/13 – at New Mexico State
TBA – Boise State*
TBA – Fresno State*
TBA – Nevada*
TBA – New Mexico*
TBA – at Air Force*
TBA – at Hawai’i*
TBA – at San Jose State*
TBA – at UNLV*
*Mountain West opponent, dates yet to be announced

Notes

  • The schedules were computer-generated, and each school will play every Mountain West opponent at home and on the road during a four-year cycle.
  • The Mountain West announced each school’s conference opponents through 2016. You can see those match-ups here.
  • San Diego State will not play Colorado State, Utah State or Wyoming (members of the Mountain Division) in the 2013 regular season.
  • The winner of the Mountain Division will play the winner of the West Division in the inaugural Mountain West Football Championship on Dec. 7, 2013. This game will be played at the home stadium of the school with the highest BCS ranking.
  • After playing just five regular season away games in each of the past two seasons, San Diego State will play six regular season away games in 2013.
  • Because of the “Hawaii Exemption Rule”, San Diego State will have the option of seeking out an additional out-of-conference opponent to give them 13 regular season games. This is unlikely, however, as the Aztecs would potentially play up to 15 games with a conference championship game set to be played in 2013 and a probable postseason bowl game.
  • San Diego State will host Fresno State in 2013 with hopes to regain possession of “The Old Oil Can”, a trophy that was established in 2011 to create a rivalry between the two schools. Although this rivalry was initially thought to be dead with the Aztecs leaving for the Big East, it will now be renewed. The two schools, both members of the West Dvision, will now play each other on a yearly basis.

Aztec fans, stay tuned for future posts including spring practice story lines, practice updates, a Pro Day recap, a post-spring depth chart prediction and more. 

In the mean time, be sure to check out the 2013 Season Previews to see the pre-spring position-by-position previews for next season.

Also, be sure to take a look at the 2013 Signing Day Recap to see the incoming athletes of San Diego State’s 2013 recruiting class.

LINKS:
Hunter Hewitt: WordPress – http://hunterhewitt.wordpress.com
Hunter Hewitt: Blogger – http://hunterhewitt.blogspot.com
Hunter Hewitt: LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/hunterhewitt
Hunter Hewitt: Twitter – http://twitter.com/hunterhewitt89
Hunter Hewitt: Facebook – http://facebook.com/hunterhewittSDSU
Hunter Hewitt: About.me – http://about.me/hunterhewitt
Hunter Hewitt: BrandYourself – http://hunterhewitt.brandyourself.com/
Hunter Hewitt: GoAztecs.com Player Profile – http://goaztecs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/hewitt_hunter00.html
Hunter Hewitt: SDSU News Team Story: http://newscenter.sdsu.edu/sdsu_newscenter/news.aspx?s=73846
Hunter Hewitt: FanBase: http://www.fanbase.com/Hunter-Hewitt

by Hunter Hewitt

GO AZTECS