Run, Victor, run

Funny exchange with Victor Beasley yesterday as he came off the practice field.

Beasley looked pretty gassed and overwhelmed after he concluded his first practice of August camp, and as he stopped for an interview his helmet was still on.

He started to take it off as we began to chat, but he looked like he was too tired to do even that.

Me: "Hey, you don't have to take your helmet off if you don't want to."

Vic: "Really? OK."

Me: "You could pull a Ricky Williams."

Vic: "Who?"

Me: "Ricky Williams. Remember when he conducted a press conference with his helmet on?"

Vic: "Oh, I didn't know he did that."

We'll have a story on Beasley up later today, but it's my belief that he'll be one of the fascinating subplots of preseason camp.

I spoke with Dwayne Allen about Beasley last night, and DA raved. Called him a "freak" who can line up all over the field to create matchup advantages.

I took a look at Beasley yesterday in the 30-45 minutes the media were allowed to watch, and he looks smooth and fast and athletic and ... yes ... freakish. As noted in last night's practice observations, he demonstrated some of this when he reached high to snare a sideline pass from Kyle Parker, all the while deftly getting his feet down in bounds.

But the kid is a freshman. And as the kid pointed out to me last night, he's never even played tight end before.

He was just trying to stay afloat mentally yesterday, as should be expected from a freshman.

But there's certainly a huge need at tight end behind Allen, and Beasley is a rare guy who looks like he can pick things up quickly.

That's what'll make this one of the cool things to follow.

On to some Wednesday links...

So Vanderbilt strips the interim tag from Robbie Caldwell's title.

Wow. Talk about winning the press conference.

Would this have happened had Caldwell not pulled off the mother of all stand-ups at the recent SEC Media Days?

They couldn't have picked a better place to announce the news: The Wild Horse Saloon.

At Maryland, the Terps are hoping Yoga helps transform chicken excrement into chicken salad.

"Out on the field, it's intense; you get to it," said redshirt sophomore Justin Gilbert, a 6-foot-6, 300-pound tackle. "Even in the weight room, you throw the weight up and get going. But in there, we're kind of working on our minds as much as our bodies. We're trying to focus in and get the workout done, as opposed to just all-out working out."

Terrelle Pryor is nominated most overrated player in the Big Ten, but look at the fine print and you see he got only three votes.

Terrelle Pryor wasn’t at Big Ten football media days, but the Ohio State quarterback still generated plenty of buzz.
In an AnnArbor.com survey of 11 Big Ten players, Pryor was the landslide pick as most exciting player in the league and received votes as the Big Ten’s most overrated player.

“He’s exciting. Either way though, sometimes,” one player said.

Every player was granted anonymity for the survey and told they couldn’t vote for their own teammates, coaches or stadiums. Some chose not to answer every question. The results:

Who’s the most exciting player in the Big Ten?

Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State - 8
Adrian Clayborn, Iowa - 1
Denard Robinson, Michigan - 1
Comment: “I’ve seen how fast he is.”
N/A - 1

Who’s the most overrated player in the Big Ten?
Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State - 3
Tate Forcier, Michigan - 1
Keith Smith, Purdue - 1
Nick Toon, Wisconsin - 1
N/A - 5

An alleged blogger hijacks a teleconference featuring Gary Patterson and Mike Riley.

A sample question:

Blogger: “All right. Coach Patterson, will any of your players or cheerleaders be wearing ass-less chaps for the Cowboy Classic?”

I laughed.

The Charlotte Observer goes in-depth while previewing Clemson.

Matt Hayes of The Sporting News says Kyle Parker's return exponentially increased the Tigers' chances of winning the ACC.

In Raleigh, a look at N.C. State's unproven tailbacks.

In Buffalo, Clifford remains unsigned.

Coach Chan Gailey said Spiller's continued absence "hurts.'' "He did a great job in OTAs and mini-camps, but being here now is a different game,'' Gailey said. "It doesn't help anybody, it doesn't help him, and it doesn't help us, so we hope it gets resolved as soon as it possibly can."

With all of the players surrounding Spiller in the draft already signed, it's perplexing why a deal can't be hammered out. The parameters in the salary slotting process are clearly defined at this stage, and it should be relatively cut and dried.

No details have been leaked, but one sticking point could be length of the contract. Running backs tend to have among the shortest life spans in the NFL. Spiller's representatives may be seeking a contract longer than the Bills are willing to give.

Here's Greg Wallace's account of yesterday's practice developments.

One of his favorite days of the year was here, and Swinney was raring to soak it in.

“I don’t know how you could possibly prepare more for one practice,” he said. “The biggest thing is, you hurry up and wait. You sit around here waiting to go to practice. Our coaches have met and met and met, and we’re just excited about getting going. Looking forward to seeing them back on the field 1 more time, getting out there, doing what we do, and that’s coach football.”

Pre-Snap Read ranks South Carolina No. 31 and unearths a picture of Visor Boy and the Nature Boy.

Name of the Year so far: Kansas QB Kale Pick.

Another great name I stumbled on a few weeks ago: Wake Forest DL Gelo Orange.

Seriously.


LW