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There are always a handful of players in the NFL draft who make people say, "Who's he?" when they get picked. A lot of times these players come from the smaller, lesser-known schools in the FCS, which obviously don't receive as much national exposure as the bigger programs in the FBS.

This weekend, the FCS playoffs head into the quarterfinal round, and it's another chance for the players to get noticed and improve their stock in the draft, but it's also a chance for scouts and NFL teams to get a closer look and evaluate the players against higher-quality competition.

The knock on FCS players, of course, is that they were not major college recruits, probably because they weren't fast enough or strong enough, and that's why they're in the FCS and not one of the bigger programs. They're good football players, but the quality of play, especially when you observe the overall team speed, generally isn't up to the standard of the FBS schools.

Still, this season alone, nearly a dozen FCS schools have wins over Div. I-A teams, including North Dakota State's win over Kansas State and Eastern Washington's win over Oregon State, both of which happened the first week of the season. There's talent to be found here.

Here's a look at a few FCS players you might not have heard about but have a good chance to play in the NFL soon. The majority of them are seniors, with a couple of underclassmen from Eastern Washington sprinkled in, and you'll have a chance to see a few of them who are still alive in the FCS playoffs this weekend.

Vidav wrote:http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap200000 ... -prospects

There are always a handful of players in the NFL draft who make people say, "Who's he?" when they get picked. A lot of times these players come from the smaller, lesser-known schools in the FCS, which obviously don't receive as much national exposure as the bigger programs in the FBS.

This weekend, the FCS playoffs head into the quarterfinal round, and it's another chance for the players to get noticed and improve their stock in the draft, but it's also a chance for scouts and NFL teams to get a closer look and evaluate the players against higher-quality competition.

The knock on FCS players, of course, is that they were not major college recruits, probably because they weren't fast enough or strong enough, and that's why they're in the FCS and not one of the bigger programs. They're good football players, but the quality of play, especially when you observe the overall team speed, generally isn't up to the standard of the FBS schools.

Still, this season alone, nearly a dozen FCS schools have wins over Div. I-A teams, including North Dakota State's win over Kansas State and Eastern Washington's win over Oregon State, both of which happened the first week of the season. There's talent to be found here.

Here's a look at a few FCS players you might not have heard about but have a good chance to play in the NFL soon. The majority of them are seniors, with a couple of underclassmen from Eastern Washington sprinkled in, and you'll have a chance to see a few of them who are still alive in the FCS playoffs this weekend.

dal4018 wrote:Marcus Williams I think is the top defender among FCS players.

rkwittem wrote:

dal4018 wrote:Marcus Williams I think is the top defender among FCS players.

No, he's not. He wasn't even considered at the top when GameDay visited Fargo. They did a piece on top draft-eligible FCS players, and Williams was #3 overall, behind Flanders and a DB from SE Louisiana (name escapes me). He's not enough of an big-time athlete and the bigger NFL WRs are going to eat him alive. He's too grabby with opponents, and we all know that the NFL doesn't allow this style of player at DB (without calling tons of PI).

I could be wrong, but I'm more willing to bet on McShay as opposed to almost every person who talks like they know anything (including almost every other Bison fan, who apparently think he's a new Deion Sanders- when he's not even close.).

clenz wrote: he was owned the entire UNI game. Threw at him all game long with great results

Gil Dobie wrote:

clenz wrote: he was owned the entire UNI game. Threw at him all game long with great results

UNI might have been the 2nd best team in the country had it not been for injuries. The knock on Williams is his tackling. He can cover and grab an int here and there, but he's one of the few Bison the doesn't fundamentally tackle very well.

clenz wrote:

rkwittem wrote: No, he's not. He wasn't even considered at the top when GameDay visited Fargo. They did a piece on top draft-eligible FCS players, and Williams was #3 overall, behind Flanders and a DB from SE Louisiana (name escapes me). He's not enough of an big-time athlete and the bigger NFL WRs are going to eat him alive. He's too grabby with opponents, and we all know that the NFL doesn't allow this style of player at DB (without calling tons of PI).

I could be wrong, but I'm more willing to bet on McShay as opposed to almost every person who talks like they know anything (including almost every other Bison fan, who apparently think he's a new Deion Sanders- when he's not even close.).

he was owned the entire UNI game. Threw at him all game long with great results

clenz wrote:

Gil Dobie wrote:
UNI might have been the 2nd best team in the country had it not been for injuries. The knock on Williams is his tackling. He can cover and grab an int here and there, but he's one of the few Bison the doesn't fundamentally tackle very well.

Vereen ran through, around, and past Williams all game long....

That game changed my opinion of him. For years all I had heard was best cb in the nation, would be fbs all American, drafted in the first 2 rounds no matter what, etc... I don't know he'd have seen the field at UNI if that is what he looked like weekly.... See Andre Martin going from all conference to not seeing the field at UNI...worked out for him though I guess

UNI might have been the 2nd best team in the country had it not been for injuries.

rkwittem wrote:

dal4018 wrote:Marcus Williams I think is the top defender among FCS players.

No, he's not. He wasn't even considered at the top when GameDay visited Fargo. They did a piece on top draft-eligible FCS players, and Williams was #3 overall, behind Flanders and a DB from SE Louisiana (name escapes me). He's not enough of an big-time athlete and the bigger NFL WRs are going to eat him alive. He's too grabby with opponents, and we all know that the NFL doesn't allow this style of player at DB (without calling tons of PI).

I could be wrong, but I'm more willing to bet on McShay as opposed to almost every person who talks like they know anything (including almost every other Bison fan, who apparently think he's a new Deion Sanders- when he's not even close.).

dal4018 wrote:

rkwittem wrote: No, he's not. He wasn't even considered at the top when GameDay visited Fargo. They did a piece on top draft-eligible FCS players, and Williams was #3 overall, behind Flanders and a DB from SE Louisiana (name escapes me). He's not enough of an big-time athlete and the bigger NFL WRs are going to eat him alive. He's too grabby with opponents, and we all know that the NFL doesn't allow this style of player at DB (without calling tons of PI).

I could be wrong, but I'm more willing to bet on McShay as opposed to almost every person who talks like they know anything (including almost every other Bison fan, who apparently think he's a new Deion Sanders- when he's not even close.).

That DB from SE Louisiana is Theo Alexander 6-4 205.Hey I feel Williams could play at the next level but he is not nor should he ever be mentioned in the same sentence as Deion "Primetime"Sanders!!!!! His 40 time is in the 4.5 range Deion could be 70 yrs old and still run faster than this guy!!!! He needs to get with a good speed coach so that 40 time can drop in the 4.3/4.4 range.Alexander is another one that needs a good speed coach as well his 40 is in the 4.7 range which is unacceptable for DB of his size needs to drop in the aforementioned 4.3/4.4 range to be drafted highly.

rkwittem wrote:

dal4018 wrote: That DB from SE Louisiana is Theo Alexander 6-4 205.Hey I feel Williams could play at the next level but he is not nor should he ever be mentioned in the same sentence as Deion "Primetime"Sanders!!!!! His 40 time is in the 4.5 range Deion could be 70 yrs old and still run faster than this guy!!!! He needs to get with a good speed coach so that 40 time can drop in the 4.3/4.4 range.Alexander is another one that needs a good speed coach as well his 40 is in the 4.7 range which is unacceptable for DB of his size needs to drop in the aforementioned 4.3/4.4 range to be drafted highly.

No, he needs to learn how to cover with his footwork, hips (aka "technique") and not mug the opposing WR. Plenty of "slow" corners have done well in the NFL. In this case, it is the technique that is an issue.

dal4018 wrote:Not every slow corner had success in the NFL imagine if they had to deal with the likes of "slow pokes"such as Randy Moss,Jake Reed,Joey Galloway,Terry Glenn,Tim Brown all these guys were 4.3 or better in their playing days!!!!!

dal4018 wrote:

rkwittem wrote: No, he needs to learn how to cover with his footwork, hips (aka "technique") and not mug the opposing WR. Plenty of "slow" corners have done well in the NFL. In this case, it is the technique that is an issue.

Not every slow corner had success in the NFL imagine if they had to deal with the likes of "slow pokes"such as Randy Moss,Jake Reed,Joey Galloway,Terry Glenn,Tim Brown all these guys were 4.3 or better in their playing days!!!!!

rkwittem wrote:

dal4018 wrote:Not every slow corner had success in the NFL imagine if they had to deal with the likes of "slow pokes"such as Randy Moss,Jake Reed,Joey Galloway,Terry Glenn,Tim Brown all these guys were 4.3 or better in their playing days!!!!!

Terry Glenn was not a 4.3 guy. I'm an OSU fan, but that's not true at all. You just don't get it. Cornerback isn't about long speed. It's not as though WR's run fly routes every play. CB, just like every other position, is as much about skill as it is about athletic ability. That's why guys like Ty Law, Charles Woodson, Ronde Barber, among others, had such good, long careers. Their game was built on skill as much as it was on athleticism. Having short-term closing speed, instincts, a high football IQ, fluid hips and COD ability is so much more important than 40 times. Ever wonder why scouts measure the 40 at the combine on 10-yardchunks? That's why.

clenz wrote:To dal everything is about speed...no matter the position of the player.

He has spent more time talking about the 40 time of OL than technique, foot speed, lateral quickness, etc...

I laid out, not long ago, the top 10 fastest 40 times on combine history...and only 1 of them was real successful in the nfl with another having had 2 or 3 good years but nothing else

Gil Dobie wrote:

dal4018 wrote:Not every slow corner had success in the NFL imagine if they had to deal with the likes of "slow pokes"such as Randy Moss,Jake Reed,Joey Galloway,Terry Glenn,Tim Brown all these guys were 4.3 or better in their playing days!!!!!

Moss was 4.3 when he felt like it, and played when he felt like it. He could have been a much better player with a better attitude towards the game.

clenz wrote:

Gil Dobie wrote:
UNI might have been the 2nd best team in the country had it not been for injuries. The knock on Williams is his tackling. He can cover and grab an int here and there, but he's one of the few Bison the doesn't fundamentally tackle very well.

Vereen ran through, around, and past Williams all game long....

That game changed my opinion of him. For years all I had heard was best cb in the nation, would be fbs all American, drafted in the first 2 rounds no matter what, etc... I don't know he'd have seen the field at UNI if that is what he looked like weekly.... See Andre Martin going from all conference to not seeing the field at UNI...worked out for him though I guess

clenz wrote:

Gil Dobie wrote:
UNI might have been the 2nd best team in the country had it not been for injuries. The knock on Williams is his tackling. He can cover and grab an int here and there, but he's one of the few Bison the doesn't fundamentally tackle very well.

Vereen ran through, around, and past Williams all game long....

That game changed my opinion of him. For years all I had heard was best cb in the nation, would be fbs all American, drafted in the first 2 rounds no matter what, etc... I don't know he'd have seen the field at UNI if that is what he looked like weekly.... See Andre Martin going from all conference to not seeing the field at UNI...worked out for him though I guess

Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:

clenz wrote:Vereen ran through, around, and past Williams all game long....

That game changed my opinion of him. For years all I had heard was best cb in the nation, would be fbs all American, drafted in the first 2 rounds no matter what, etc... I don't know he'd have seen the field at UNI if that is what he looked like weekly.... See Andre Martin going from all conference to not seeing the field at UNI...worked out for him though I guess

EWU's WRs will do that to him all day long.

Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:

clenz wrote:Vereen ran through, around, and past Williams all game long....

That game changed my opinion of him. For years all I had heard was best cb in the nation, would be fbs all American, drafted in the first 2 rounds no matter what, etc... I don't know he'd have seen the field at UNI if that is what he looked like weekly.... See Andre Martin going from all conference to not seeing the field at UNI...worked out for him though I guess

EWU's WRs will do that to him all day long.

Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:EWU's WRs will do that to him all day long.