NFL Draft preview: C/OG
The college football season and Senior Bowl are finished, and the NFL Scouting Combine is coming up before the NFL Draft. Here is our look in order at the top 10 offensive guards/centers available and a look back at their ranking and recruitment along with an opinion of each from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell.
RELATED: Quarterbacks | Running Back | Wide Receivers/Tight Ends | Tackles
Ranking: Jack Conklin was not rated by Rivals.com.
Recruiting: Conklin played for his father at Plainwell, Mich., and went to Michigan State as a walk-on.
Overview: Conklin missed two games this season after he sustained a knee injury against Central Michigan in September.
Farrell’s take: Conklin earned his scholarship after his first year. He was lightly recruited and there was a question about his athleticism coming out of high school. The son of a coach, he was always smart and a leader and was another great find by Michigan State's staff. They did a great job developing him, but I was surprised Michigan State didn’t run behind him as much as they should have. He’s a physical kid who makes up for a lack of athleticism with a nasty, brawler mentality who can recover well.
Ranking: Whitehair was a three-star prospect out of Abilene, Kan., and rated as the No. 70 offensive tackle in the 2011 class.
Recruiting: Growing up less than an hour from Kansas State, the Wildcats were always a favorite and Whitehair committed during his junior season. Oklahoma State, Colorado State and others were also involved.
Overview: Kansas State averaged just under 30 points per game, 3.9 yards per carry and just under 158 rushing yards per outing.
Farrell’s take: Whitehair was a big, raw kid in high school but he liked to mix it up and his physical nature in college as well as that size serves him well. Played well at tackle even though he’s not built for it. He’s a mauler, a leader and has always been a tireless worker.
Ranking: A four-star prospect from Puyallup, Wash., Garnett was rated as the second-best offensive guard and No. 33 overall in the 2012 class.
Recruiting: About a week before National Signing Day, Garnett committed to Stanford over Michigan. Notre Dame was also in his top three.
Overview: Featuring Heisman finalist Christian McCaffrey and others, Stanford averaged nearly 38 points and about 224 rushing yards per outing.
Farrell’s take: Garnett was a national top 40 prospect and the highest-ranked non-five star in the class of 2012, so we liked him a lot. He was a kid with a tackle’s frame but a guard’s run-game mentality. Garnett probably could have gotten the nod for that fifth star, but this ranking appears to be right on the money. It took him a few years to develop, as is usually the case with offensive linemen, but he's been crucial to the running and passing success for the Cardinal. A better run-blocker than pass protector, he could move up this list with good workouts.
Ranking: Kelly was rated as a three-star center out of West Chester (Ohio) Lakota West. He was sixth at his position.
Recruiting: Kelly committed to the Crimson Tide in the summer before his senior season over offers from Florida, Florida State, Cincinnati and others.
Overview: Alabama averaged about 35 points per game, 4.7 yards per carry and just under 200 rushing yards per outing. The offensive line helped Derrick Henry rush for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns en route to the Heisman Trophy.
Farrell’s take: Kelly was just outside the top 5 nationally at center in 2011 as a high three-star and a kid who was coveted for his smarts, aggressive nature and frame. We also liked that he could play tackle, guard or center, but projected him as the leader of the line in college. A rare pickup by Alabama in the Midwest, Kelly has lived up to our expectations and is rising on the list of NFL scouts for his career body of work in the SEC. He has always been an accomplished run blocker but still needs to fill out that frame.
Ranking: Out of Indianapolis (Ind.) Bishop Chatard, Martin was rated as a three-star and the No. 66 offensive tackle in the 2011 class.
Recruiting: Martin, whose brother played for Notre Dame, flipped his commitment from Kentucky and ended up with the Irish in January, weeks before signing day. Stanford, Michigan, Iowa, Tennessee and others also offered.
Overview: The Irish averaged more than 34 points per outing and 5.6 yards per rush this season.
Farrell’s take: Martin was a very undersized tackle prospect for us out of the 2011 class who worked his way inside at Notre Dame and had a very solid career. He was a better pass blocker in high school than he was a dominant run-blocker and that’s still the case. He can be overpowered at times, so he will need to show some power during workouts to rise on the list, but I like his smarts and leadership for an NFL team.
Ranking: The four-star from Buford, Ga., was rated as the No. 11 offensive guard and No. 234 overall in the 2012 class.
Recruiting: Auburn was considered the leader and Alexander also visited Alabama, but once the four-star visited LSU, he said everything clicked and he decided to go with the Tigers.
Overview: The Tigers averaged nearly 33 points per game and more than six yards per carry, led by Leonard Fournette, who finished with 1,953 yards and 22 touchdowns this season.
Farrell’s take: Blocking for the nation's best player and the best running back in a decade in Fournette helps the visibility of everyone on the LSU line and Alexander is the best of the lot. Like most linemen, it took a while for Alexander to come into his own, add strength and get used to the physical nature of college football, but he has done all that now and is a big kid who can seal off, get out and pull in space and is good at pass protection and run blocking. The problem? His feet aren’t elite for a pulling guard and he’s inconsistent in hitting moving targets at the second level. He was raw when we first saw him and carried some baby fat, but by the end of the rankings cycle, he moved up into our Rivals250 as he trimmed down and got a bit more of an edge.
Ranking: A four-star from Harrisonburg, Va., Turner was rated as the third-best offensive guard and No. 106 overall in the 2011 class.
Recruiting: Turner committed to the Tar Heels in the summer before his senior season over offers from Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, LSU and a host of other programs.
Overview: The Tar Heels averaged just under 41 points, six yards per carry and nearly 225 rushing yards per game.
Farrell’s take: I liked Turner a lot out of high school as a powerful run-blocking guard who was an overpowering road grader. He needed some work on his feet and as a pass blocker, but he still showed good recovery skills and he re-set well. At UNC he never developed into as dominant a run-blocker as he was in high school and never developed much-needed knee bend, but he’s still been very effective overall and has good size. A high character kid, he has leadership ability and this isn’t a great group inside, so I like him higher than many.
Ranking: Odhiambo was rated as a three-star offensive guard out of Mansfield (Texas) Legacy.
Recruiting: A native of Kenya who didn’t play football until his sophomore year of high school, Odhiambo committed to Boise State, his only offer at the time, in the summer before his senior season.
Overview: Boise State averaged about 39 points per game. The Broncos also rushed for 4.5 per touch and had 36 rushing touchdowns.
Farrell’s take: Despite little interest from others, we liked Odhiambo as a three-star because he played with good leverage, had a defender’s mentality and liked to mix things up in the middle. He was a bit sawed off in high school which could have led to many sleeping on him, but he’s added an inch and filled out well. He’s a better run blocker than a pass blocker and that hasn’t changed. Some NFL team could get a kid with a chip on his shoulder.
Ranking: The San Bernardino (Calif.) Cajon prospect was a two-star coming out of high school and then was ranked as a three-star recruit after his junior college year.
Recruiting: Starting his college career at Nevada, Tretola then transferred to Iowa Western C.C. and then ended up at Arkansas.
Overview: Arkansas averaged about 36 points, five yards per rush and about 197 rushing yards per game.
Farrell’s take: Tretola was a two-star out of high school and improved everything at JUCO to emerge as a mid-range three-star. He was highly coveted because he was very physical, dominated in the run game at Iowa Western and had immediate impact size. He can open holes in the run game and is very good at the point of attack, but needs to add some athleticism and footwork in the pass game.
Ranking: The Aurora (Ill.) Marmion Academy prospect was unranked by Rivals.com.
Recruiting: Glasgow went to Michigan as a walk-on. His brother, Ryan, also played for the Wolverines.
Overview: Michigan averaged 31.4 points per game and 4.2 yards per carry. The Wolverines averaged just over 158 rushing yards per game and had 27 rushing scores.
Farrell’s take: Glasgow wasn’t’ ranked and essentially wasn’t recruited out of high school and had to work his way from walk on to NFL prospect with many twists and turns in between. We didn’t see him as a college prospect, much less a guy who could overcome off-field issues to be a mid-round NFL guy. He’s another center on this list because I think it’s a down year for guards and a very good year for centers.