This is great! Larison deserves this 100%. He is perhaps the very best RB in all of the FCS.
It also makes being left out of the playoffs again look even more egregious. Larison had 256 yards when he was injured late in the 3rd quarter of the EWU game that we went on to lose and then we lost to in a close game to Montana without him. We won every game after he returned and he was practically unstoppable even though teams knew he was our go to guy. It's obvious that the committee did not take that into account when they decided to leave the Aggies out yet again.
Kudos to Larison. A well deserved honor. He exemplifies Aggie Pride. Bummer that he was injured this season. His intensity on every running play excited me as a fan. Hard to bring down, elusive, with great field vision puts him among the Aggie great run-ing backs
Good for Lan and the team. He gave 100% effort on carry and pass reception. Amazing combination of balance, strength and speed (especially his acceleration).
without a doubt the EWU game would have been a win. EWU had absolutely no answer for him, and Ags were ahead at his departure.
Technically the Aggies did not win every game upon his return. He returned in the NAU game - a disaster of not just turnovers but big turnovers (~90 yard fumble return for TD and an interception returned for big yards). Not to mention not being able to score in red zone.
Obviously the elephant in the room is whether LL or TT will portal. I actually doubt it in part because the Aggies were in my view spurned by the playoffs selection committee and the team is probably very pissed off about that and rightfully so. That would be a very good reason for staying on next season because it would acknowledge the tight bonds that this team has and be grateful and loyal to your teammates. If they stick together I believe that the team would be a lock to get back into the playoffs next season. IMHO fingers XXX
something I can contribute to now that I'm playing dynasty fantasy football haha.
Jaleel McLaughlin (Youngstown) is doing great on the Broncos
Emanuel Wilson (Fort Valley St) has had some flashes on the Packers
Pierre Strong Jr (SDSU) was on the Patriots, now on the Browns.
Hunter Luepke (NDSU) might be used more as a fullback on the Cowboys
Then there are some decent success stories like Chase Edmonds and Jerrick McKinnon
Watching LL pound the rock against a top 10 team when literally everyone in the stadium knew it was coming was a sight to behold, one of the greatest "big boy football" moments I can remember as an Aggie fan -- along with Maier and friends picking apart Montana at Wa-Griz and the Tulsa game.
Regarding draft prospects for LL vs UG -- Larison has two inches and ten pounds on Gilliam if random draft websites are to be believed, plus has notched a higher yards per carry each of the last two years than any single year in Gilliam's career. More yards per catch too. To be clear I'm not saying that Larison is a better college RB than Gilliam, but I can see why NFL scouts would be more willing to take a chance with him.
Agreed on all comments. One of my most fulfilling moments as an Aggie football fan was watching Maier, Doss and Ags stomp on Montana in Wa-Griz. I commented to my wife when seeing Montana fans stream out of the stadium on TV something like “that is a beautiful sight” and she made some sort of comment like I was being too harsh. I don’t think she understands the deep disdain I have for Bobby Hauck and his “jerk” behavior/comments. Tulsa was great too.
If you have Larison’s time from a workout along with his weight use that for your comparison. Larison weighed 207 lbs when he ran 4.49,
Larison weighs 14 lbs. more and runs faster in 10 and 40 yards.(than Gilliam)
Keep in mind, 40 times will likely be slower at the combine compared with unofficial #s from UCD. The measurement tech is just way more precise in a combine setting and that usually means slower times.
Also interesting is the physical/statistical comparison of LL and Mccaffery (i speak of mere numbers here and not talent or accomplishments which would of course be ridiculous). But they are almost mirror images of each other. LL is a couple inches taller, a few pounds heavier, etc. their 40 times very close at 4.55 CM and 4.56 LL. If that 4.49 by LL is legit, well who knows. Anyway, doesn’t mean a thing and is just an observation. Still hope LL. Comes back!
I think we can assume the scale was accurate and Lan weighed 207lbs. They don’t make any effort to update roster weights.
Lan is a good jumper but Teddye Buchanan, amazing for his weight, is better.
I think it benefits the Aggies that Hawkins isn't leaving for another coaching job and in fact is staying on as some sort of advisory role. Hopefully that will keep what we have as a recruiting class on board and limit portal losses.