Spotlight #1: Iowa OT Riley Reiff

Spotlight #2: Iowa DT Mike Daniels 

1st quarter

14:34: Reiff misses a cut block.

13:44: Reiff bulldozes a guy in the open field on a 2^nd level block.

12:56: Marvin McNutt has a tough low catch go off his hands, would have been a tough play, but needs to be made if it hits your hands, especially for a potential high draft pick.

12:05: Daniels gets outmuscled and pushed back.

9:17: BJ Cunningham beats Micah Hyde on a slant for a touchdown.

9:12: Reiff pushes a guy inside on an off tackle run for a small gain.

8:23: Daniels overly aggressive on a run play.

6:28: Reiff knocks a guy down after being bull rushed back a bit.

4:04: Mike Daniels bull rushes the guy back, Broderick Binns with a tackle for loss on the play, big loss.

3:11: Marvin McNutt with a highlight reel 30 yard reception.

2:16: Reiff with a cut block on a successful reverse, McNutt for 19 yards.

2^nd quarter

11:15: Reiff stands up a spin move. Quick feet, good hands.

10:19: Daniels double blocked well for a while, but eventually able to split it. Nothing comes of it.

4:25: Daniels gets into the backfield, back blows past him adjusts, helps bring him down from behind for a short gain.

2:53: Reiff poor run blocking on a play that goes for tackle for loss.

2:47: Iowa really struggling to run the ball, Reiff isn’t helping.

2:43: Reiff mirrors a speed rush well, good feet.

2:25: Daniels does a great job splitting a double team with a swim, good hand use, shedding the back block too, but quarterback releases it under pressure by several defenders, almost picked by Binns, who does a good job of diving and almost making the interception.

1:57: Daniels blocked off the play on a delay, up the middle, turns into a long touchdown.

1:21: BJ Cunningham with a great leaping catch, 2^nd touchdown of the game, again on Micah Hyde.

1:14: Reiff helps clear out a hole for a few, one of his better run blocks of the night.

0:42: Reiff stands up another spin move.

0:15: Reiff needs some double team help in pass protection.

0:00: Worthy already part of keeping Iowa’s run game in check, now has a punt block.

 

3^rd quarter

14:13: Daniels misses a tough diving tackle.

13:26: Worthy with a great solo play to limit Iowa to a yard gain on the ground.

9:29: Daniels solid speed going to sideline.

7:27: Reiff with a more powerful run block here.

6:21: Reiff pushed back on the goal line, no touchdown on an inside run.

5:43: McNutt can’t quite drag his foot on a potential fade pass for a touchdown.

5:39: Reiff allows rare pressure, McNutt scores a touchdown on the play.

2:35: Reiff does well against spin move, spins doing nothing against him tonight, he’s too athletic.

2:26: Reiff can’t open up much room against the run again.

0:49: Reiff with a good 2^nd level block on the goal line for a touchdown.

4^th quarter

14:26: Daniels breaks into the backfield, good effort to try to chase the back from behind.

13:22: Daniels penetrates for a tackle for little to no gain.

12:25: Daniels gets pressure on the quarterback, puts his hands up when he realizes he can’t get there, could have deflected it, just missed, but I like the instincts.

11:21: Reiff blocks well for a long time one on one.

10:34: Reiff opens up a big cutback lane, back sees it too late, doesn’t get nearly as big a gain as he could have.

10:10: Daniels knocked down as an interior run goes through his gap.

8:16: McNutt almost makes a tough catch against PI.

5:15: Broderick Binns gets a key sack, poor pocket presence by Cousins.

4:53: McNutt can’t track down an underthrown deep ball open downfield.

3:42: Reiff stands up another spin move, can’t beat him with quickness.

0:00: Kirk Cousins and BJ Cunningham had a terrible game against Nebraska in which Cousins went 11 of 27 for 86 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception. Cunningham was taken out of the game completely by Nebraska cornerback Alfonzo Dennard and Cousins kept forcing the ball to him and could have easily thrown 3 or 4 interceptions. In this one, the duo faced Iowa’s cornerback combo Micah Hyde and Shaun Prater. Prater is a senior and a potential late day 2 to mid round pick, while Hyde is the more athletic and figures to be a day 2 pick in 2013 should he return.

In this one, Hyde was matched up with Cunningham. Cunningham didn’t have the greatest game and Hyde might not be as good as Dennard, but he wasn’t catchless either, catching 4 passes for 46 yards and 2 catch touchdowns one on one with Hyde. Cousins had a much better game, going 18 of 31 for 260 yards and 3 touchdowns. He seemed both willing and capable to throw away from Cunningham went he wasn’t open.

Michigan State’s leading receivers were Keshawn Martin, the other senior wide receiver, who caught 4 passes for 87 yards, tight end Brian Linthicum, who caught 5 for 71, and running back LeVeon Bell, who caught 2 passes for 49 yards. Cunningham reminds a mid day 3 pick in the 5^th round range, while Cousins looks like a 4^th or 5^th rounder, an earlier day 3 pick. Martin could get drafted late. He had a solid senior season opposite Cunningham. The 5-11 190 receiver had 66 catches for 770 yards and 4 touchdowns on the season. Linthicum, meanwhile, could get drafted late as well. He’s one of a few tight ends Michigan State uses so his stats have been somewhat limited, but he’s a decent pass catcher and a good blocker as well. The 6-5 245 pound tight end has 31 catches for 364 yards on the season, but hasn’t scored.

Michigan State also had a great game on the ground, part of why they won 37-21. Senior Edwin Bell did next to nothing on the ground with 51 yards on 13 carries. He had a great junior year with 1207 yards and 13 touchdowns on 207 carries, but has had a terrible senior season and might have trouble getting drafted after just 665 yards and 5 touchdowns on 170 carries on the season. The 5-9 210 pound back has also only caught 8 passes in the last 2 seasons. The better running back was LeVeon Bell. The sophomore back is a talented player who rushed for 112 yards on 20 carries. Their best run blocker was Michigan State guard Joel Foreman. The versatile lineman is a great run blocker and an under rated player in my book. He’ll probably get drafted late.

Michigan State’s offensive line pushed around Iowa’s defensive line. On that is are two draftable prospects, defensive tackle Mike Daniels and defensive end Broderick Binns, though stopping the run is not either’s strength. Daniels had a poor game against the run and had minimal impact as a pass rusher. The 6-1 280 pound defensive tackle got some penetration, but as such a small player, rushing the passer needs to be his forte to really make any sort of impact at the next level. He really didn’t make much impact on this game. On the year, he has 66 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and 7 sacks, though in this game he managed just 3 tackles.

Binns didn’t have a great game as a run stopper either, but he had more impact as a pass rusher, getting consistent pass rush. He had a sack and also a tackle for loss against the run, 6 tackles total. The 6-2 260 pounder has 59 tackles, 11.5 for loss, and 5.5 sacks on the season. He’s also good in pass coverage. He has 8 deflections and a pick on the season and has impressed in coverage in general. He could be a late round steal as a 3-4 rush linebacker.

The best draft prospect in this game on either side is Iowa left tackle Riley Reiff, who could end up in the top 10. Reiff had a tough matchup in this one with a Michigan State front 7 that is full of young talent There’s a reason why they rank 7^th against the run with 2.8 YPC and 3^rd in sacks with 45. Reiff did an excellent job in pass protection. He didn’t come close to surrendering a sack all night and rarely made a mistake or allowed any pressure against such a good Michigan State defensive line.

As a run blocker, things weren’t quite as good for Reiff as Michigan State kept Iowa’s run game in check. Iowa’s offensive line as a whole really struggled to run block in this one and Reiff didn’t help things. Iowa has a talented running back in Marcus Coker who rushed for 1384 yards and 15 touchdowns on 281 carries this season, but managed just 57 and a score on 21 in this one. Reiff needs to get stronger, but he’s not a terrible run blocker. He just had trouble with a very good defensive front. I was more impressed by what he did in pass protection than anything. He’s a very athletic player with great feet, great technique, great instincts, and room to bulk up. He’s not the perfect prospect that Matt Kalil is, but he is deserving of a top 10 or top 15 pick.

The biggest difference maker for Michigan State, especially against the run, was, again Jerel Worthy. The 6-3 310 pound defensive tackle is a monster against the run and made several stand out plays as a run stopper in this one, both tying up blockers and making actual plays on the ball. He also blocked a punt. He’s hurt by poor statistical production with 31 tackles, 10.5 for loss, and 3.5 sacks on the season, but he is a difference maker on the defensive line who deserves to be a late first round pick. Most likely, he’ll end up going in the 2^nd round as a 4-3 defensive tackle.

Iowa’s top receiver was once again Marvin McNutt. The senior receiver is having a great year with 83 catches for 1315 yards and 12 touchdowns, including 8 catches for 130 yards and a score in this one, but he lacks breakaway speed and doesn’t stand out as an elite wide receiver on tape. He also really struggled against the best cornerback he played this season, Nebraska’s Alfonzo Dennard, who limited him to 4 catches for 29 yards. He figures to be a solid #2 possession receiver at the next level and a late 2^nd/early 3^rd round pick.