Matt Nelson Injury
- Thread starter lakeguy641
- Start date
Is this like an intelligence leak?
So Russia broke his leg?! Has Kirk had contact with Putin now, too?
If you have a pretty good source, you are a step ahead of everyone else.
I'm tired of injuries showing up as a question. Either state an injury, or keep it to yourself.
I'm tired of injuries showing up as a question. Either state an injury, or keep it to yourself.
I agree ichawk24 and the same with transfers.
I had hoped Matt would put on another 15/20 lbs and give the Oline a shot. He'll be at least the 4th best DE with AJ on board. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!
All I can say here is wow, I wonder if the coaches know this?
I think that rumors of injury (or transfers) are fair questions to ask. Certainly, some posters come onto the site with fake news claiming that an injury (or transfer) has occurred. But I would rather have posters put out information, and then we can determine whether it seems credible or not.
Well the coaches clearly think he is the third best DE currently on the roster. Add that to the fact that they have told Epenesa that he can play wherever he wants and that he is going to play right away, it doesn't seem far fetched that they agree with that statement.
The coaches have promised Epenesa NOTHING except a fair shot to compete right away. The same thing they promise everyone else.
Well, that should put an end to any quarterback controversy.
This post wins Friday's award for whatever award we give on hawkeyereport.
Work for Riley Re
I'm not complaining or calling coaches out. Love to see that kid in the NFL ala Riley Reiff. 6-8 285 now (more if he was trying to gain for OL), moves really well for that size. Nothing wrong with thinking he'd be a really good OT.
He's a redshirt junior who has spent his entire career at defensive end. It's too late at this point for him to switch positions. Thus, there is something wrong with such a sentiment - because it doesn't do the young man any good.
Matt improved a great deal as the season went on last year, and was playing as good or better than any of our DE's by the seasons end.
More to the truth there's a place and Iowas D-line for a 6-8 285 pound man that keeps his pad Low and is actually surprisingly mobile if anything he's increased his agility numbers.
As for AJ I have no doubt he'll be given every opportunity to play but Iowa has a lot of athletic long red shirt freshman that I expect to push for playing time and I'm not willing to hand AJ Epenesa an expanded role just because he was a five star recruit.... if it turns out he's a dominant force on the line then super for us but I'm pretty excited about the future of a bunch of these kids.
Normally I'd agree, but from all the indications at the all american camps this guy is special. None of those redshirt freshman have his combination of skills. He's already as big as Drew Ott was as a senior, with excellent quickness. Has been training for years with a former division 1 defensive lineman,(his dad), on technique. He's way ahead of the curve for an incoming lineman. If AJ is as good as advertised he's most likely in the rotation from day one, or we've got some real studs coming up in the ranks. Either way the Hawks are golden on this deal.
On a sidenote I don't know if anybody remembers but Epenesa Epenesa started at Iowa Wesleyan were my wife went to school I just went there to drink LOL. I was told at that time he ran in the 4.6, 4.7 range and bench pressed 500 pounds. No clue if it's true but he was an athletic dude for sure.
Hope the kid recovers well. Better to get hurt now than in fall camp.
This board could be pretty boring if people didn't post their "sentiment". I stand by mine despite your opinion of it.
It is never too late, matt kroul and Bryan mattison switched their rookie year in the NFL. Matt would be an amazing left tackle and could be a star.
Not all opinions are equal. The validity or quality of an opinion is directly related to the quality of the logic from which it was derived and the quality of arguments which supply the supporting reasoning. Too often people believe the fiction that all opinions are equal. It is true that anybody has the capacity to hold a well-reasoned and valid opinion ... but that doesn't imply that everybody does so.
Sure, they switched positions late ... and are they still in the NFL. Did either really have long careers in the NFL? The Hawkeye coaches also liked Tyler Blum on the OL ... but his heart was always on the defensive side of the ball. Between injuries and preference ... his "best position" (OT) never stuck. Alex Kanellis started his career on the DL for the Hawks ... and played something like 2-seasons there. However, he never truly had a lead on the DL ... and eventually decided to switch positions and give the OL a try. Unfortunately, concussions ended his playing career.
If you contrast things - Matt Nelson is essentially looking at being a co-starter at DE in '17 ... whereas he'd likely be a 3rd string OT in '17 because he'd being playing catch-up to work his way up the depth chart there. You could successfully argue that he'd potentially have a legitimate shot of earning a starting spot at OT in '18 ... however, that's an odd and risky decision to make considering all the playing time he knows he'd be getting in '17 and '18 on the DL. Furthermore, at this juncture, he already has an established community on the DL ... a band of brothers, if you will ... why would he want to give that up?
In terms of talent/ability ... AJ likely is in the same sort of neighborhood as a Bryan Bulaga, James Daniels, Anthony Moeaki, or Christian Ballard. We're taking about pretty elite physical tangibles for guys at their respective positions. All the same, the only guy out of the aforementioned group who started as a true freshman was Bryan Bulaga ... and Iowa's total lack of experience and depth on the OL during that season ('07) was the primary factor that forced the coaches to start him so early.
Even Matt Roth, who was a manimal, didn't even start until he was a junior. Playing as a backup as a SO, he was a complete wrecking ball ... and wreaked havoc when he stepped on the field. His advantage was that he largely came in as a situational pass-rusher ... and he was able play fast and not have to worry about thinking as much. That helped his development a ton as he developed into an every-down starter.
My guess is that AJ will come in to spell guys in order to supply high-quality depth AND he'll also get to see situational reps. For a freshman guy on the DL, he'll probably see a surprising number of snaps. However, I don't anticipate that he'll be asked to be an every-down player for the Hawks from day one. Quite frankly, I think that would be a mistake ... and hinder his productivity and development if he were asked to bite off too much, too early for the Hawks.
Your always very knowledgeable ghost, but I'd have to disagree here. First off didn't Daniels play alot as a true freshman? Also Roth's issue was more that he was switching positions. He came in as a linebacker, but I think they figured out he didn't have the mental side to read his keys and make the correct decisions quickly. Hence his move to DE, where they said just go get the QB. Ballard was mostly a tight end in high school at Lawrence high. AJ is I believe a high level athlete who has been training,(both on the field, and with dad), at his projected position at Iowa for several years. I never said he would start, but that he would make a significant contribution in the rotation. I'll stand by that statement. If he doesn't play in a four man DE rotation then we've got some studs ready to break out this season.
And mark Bortz become an All-Pro O-tackle for Chicago but that isn't even closee to the same thing we have here.
No one's saying Matt should give that up, merely pointing out another viable option. I don't disagree with any of your reasoning here. It is a little late in the game and risky, yes. If someone asked me though, if I thought Matt Nelson could switch and become an exceptional OT, I'd definitely say yes! He's got great size and athletic ability for it and he's got the IQ for sure. From this comment it's seems you might agree somewhat with that sentiment
I don't believe I was disagreeing with your assessment that he'd receive plenty of playing time. I'm just not certain that he'd be involved more in an every-down rotation. While his dad could teach him a lot in terms of technique ... there is still plenty that goes into playing within a 2-gap system ... particularly what is involved in reading keys, knowing your responsibility, and knowing the responsibility of those around you.
On down and distance that are rather obvious situations ... whether it being high-percentage for a run or high percentage for a pass ... those are the sorts of situations that set up young players more for success.
I frankly believe that many Iowa fans are undervaluing Hesse and A. Nelson (Matt Nelson has developed into a pretty solid contributor too). The place where we have the least proven depth on the DL is currently at DT.
Mark Bortz is better example. He supposedly wanted to play OL at Iowa but Hayden needed him on defense
Agree probably too late to move Matt and I assume he prefers defense and sees himself having a future there
Agree on A. Nelson. Might be something there as a 6-7 active DE. I think Hesse is a rotation player. I wanna see the four most active guys on third and long. I don't care what their weight is. Might be Lattimore, Gholston, Nelson and AJ.
I'd agree on the returning DE's. I thought Hesse played well after he got close to 100% from his early season quad or hammy. Also thought A Nelson showed a lot of upside for his first shot at PT. Think this could develop into Iowa's best group of DE's in a long time.
Strange that some question if M. Nelson can play DE but think he would contribute immediately at OT. I guess shows you his athleticism. He probably could play OT but has a lot of value on the defensive side of the ball. Don't rule out the fact coaches want to see him at DT. Glad we have him!
