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News and links roundup for 4/20

By On the Banks

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  • No, the Mike Rice spin machine never, ever, stops. Seriously dude - the open politicking is off-putting. RMU is a low-major; he's more of a candidate for A10 openings. Hoops Weiss declares Jim O'Brien the favorite, while Carino's list looks more intuitive. Adam Zagoria also checks in with basketball signee Gil Biruta as he waits to get out of his letter of intent. The awful thing about the Hill blowup dragging on is that the there isn't enough time to recruit to replace the transfers.
  • Fooch spoke with Antonio Lowery last week at a practice session.
  • Dr. Saturday assessed Tom Savage over the weekend. It's very well researched, although apparent that Hinton didn't see much of Savage last year. For instance, the reason Tom drew comparisons to Elway is that both are excellent scramblers for their size. The good doctor seems to be under the impression that Savage isn't that mobile because he took a lot of sacks last year, even though that was mostly the fault of a porous offensive line.

  • Pro Football Weekly posted their third draft value chart over the weekend.Rick Gosselin also posted his second mock draft. He'll have one more before Thursday.

  • Shamar Graves has worked out for the Giants and the Jets, and Brad Biggs is reporting further interest from other teams. Graves is an excellent athlete, and his stock would have been much better off if his application for a fifth year had been successful. He had an inconsistent junior year, but projects as a pass catching H-Back in the NFL. I'm fairly high on Shamar's chances, although he'll certainly need more time to develop.

  • Mike Mayock likes Ryan D'Imperio as a draft sleeper, owing to Ryan's versatility on special teams and even the possibility of playing fullback. It's surprising that Mayock didn't mention D'Imperio's strong junior campaign, in contrast to an injured-filled 2009.

  • Haven't had a chance to listen yet, but here's a new radio interview with Devin McCourty.
  • In addition to the New York Giants, the New England Patriots are now showing interest in Darnell Stapleton. The St. Louis Rams re-signed DT Gary Gibson. He's a favorite of their coach Steve Spagnuolo, and played well last year before going on injured reserve. Congratulations are in order for Gary Brackett, who's getting married in July, and continues to work with his Impact Foundation charity. Omaha of the UFL took Mike Fladell in their initial expansion draft.
  • Owing to struggles during UNC's spring game, quarterback T.J. Yates has failed to silence his critics, and will likely be pushed by freshman Bryn Renner. Speaking of bad quarterbacks, I'm writing off UConn as a Big East contender this fall now that Edsall gave the starting job to Zach Frazer without much of a fair fight.
  • Greg Schiano is an inspiration to a high school coach all the way out in Washington, who too looked to revive a moribund program.
  • New Jersey's colleges and universities are united in opposition to proposed budget cuts. However, in a nod to tradition, and the reality that Rutgers will need to foster a good relationship with Gov. Christie, the new Governor will be awarded an honorary degree at commencement in May. As far as the budget cuts go, any lifeline would have to come from the federal government again. Regional university presidents will be meeting on the Rutgers campus at the end of the month.
  • New Brunswick and other New Jersey towns are angling for more federal aid dependent on their Census counts.
  • Steve Politi linked this story about Gannett's Devils coverage yesterday, and I'm not sure how to react.