...that no Vol is taken in the NFL Draft? When AJ Johnson's combine invitation was rescinded, it left Justin Coleman as our lone representative in Indy. Coleman is 50/50 to be drafted at best, he'll go very late if it happens at all. So unless somebody takes a chance on AJ, or maybe someone like Matt Darr in the late rounds, we're likely to be shut out.
Of course this is a double edged sword, as it also means that we're not losing anyone. But it is just another indicator of how low our talent level had gotten before Butch started recruiting again. And starting next year and (especially) the year after, we figure to make our mark on future drafts in a big way.
Yep. This is the very low point of the low times. Basically the current class eligible for the draft was recruited in 2011, right after Doofus lost to UK. That class and the next one were not the greatest, then when Dooley was let go in 2012 there was the usual amount of attrition from a coaching change. Finally, Butch just benched a whole bunch of guys. While I believe most of them should have been benched, he probably erred on the side of the younger players. Why not? He had a grace period of low expectations, why not bring in his own players and get them experience?
The result is that we had almost no upperclassmen starters this year. Tough to get drafted when you are not a starter.
I do think it was the best approach and one that has already paid dividends and those will only get even better.
