Princeton University Athletics
Wednesday TigerBlog - Catching A Draft
April 26, 2023 | Tiger Blog
If you read yesterday's entry early in the morning, then you missed the word "enough" in the first sentence.
It made a big difference. Instead of saying that he couldn't recommend his Kane recovery shoes "enough," TigerBlog said he "couldn't recommend them." One word. Big impact.
Anyway, it was corrected around 9:30. If you read before then, TB suggests going out and buying your own Kanes. You won't regret it.
Okay, "enough" about that.
It's the last week of April. The weather is decidedly in the spring mode, for that short period of time between when the last of the cold leaves and the temperature sprints into the 80s. Now? You have chilly mornings and beautiful afternoons and evening. Can't ask for much more than that.
It used to be that spring lasted a few months. Now it's just a few weeks.
So what should TB talk about during this great spring weather? Football, of course.
First, there was the news that the New York Jets finally acquired Aaron Rodgers from Green Bay to finally, finally be the answer to their quarterback problem that has plagued the franchise since essentially Joe Namath led the team to a win in Super Bowl III. There have been a few since then (Richard Todd, Ken O'Brien, Vinny Testaverde among them) who have been good, or even very good, but nobody who has been great.
Rodgers, on the other hand, has been great his whole career in Green Bay. The question is: Does the 39 year old have anything left?
The long-suffering Jets fans can only hope so.
Will it happen? Even if it's only for one year and the Jets make a run, it would be worth it. If somehow Rodgers does what Tom Brady did in his first year in Tampa Bay, which is to say change the entire culture of the franchise and win a Super Bowl, then Rodgers will vault close the top in the history of New York sports royalty.
For him, it's a great spot to be in. TigerBlog will believe it when he sees it.
Meanwhile, you may have read somewhere that the NFL Draft is this weekend. There is no more over-hyped, over-analyzed, over-rated event than the NFL Draft, and even after all that, a team will take Zach Wilson with the No. 2 overall pick and think he's going to be a star.
The first round is tomorrow night, and then the second and third days will follow as 259 players are selected. Quarterbacks, of course, dominate the pre-draft talk, but it's hit or miss as to whether they'll become stars. The best player out of this draft may very well end up being Alabama's Will Anderson, an edge rusher.
Will Princeton's Andrei Iosivas be one of the 259 who hear their name called? The odds are very, very good.
TB has read differing accounts that have Iosivas, a wide receiver, as anywhere from a third-round to seventh-round pick. He has not seen any mock drafts that don't include him.
Iosivas did very well at the Combine in Indianapolis, a recap of which you can see HERE.
TigerBlog thinks that Iosivas can make a real impact in the NFL. He's big, obviously athletic and doesn't drop the ball. He's also very dangerous after the catch.
Compare, if you will, these two sets of numbers from the Combine:
Player A (6-3. 205): 40-yard dash - 4.43; 10-yard split - 1.52; vertical jump - 39 inches; broad jump 10-8; bench press - 19 reps
Player B (6-2, 215): 40-yard dash - 4.44; 10-yard split - 1.53; vertical jump - 40 inches; broad jump 10-4; bench press - 20 reps
Seems pretty comparable, right? Player A is Iosivas; Player B is Penn alum Justin Watson, who has two Super Bowl rings, one with Tampa Bay and this past year with Kansas City.
The presence of Iosivas makes this draft more interesting to TB than most.
Iosivas figures to be the lone Princeton player to be selected. Henry Byrd, an offensive lineman, has a chance, but he's much more likely to be an undrafted free agent.
One player who won't be drafted but who may get a shot in someone's training camp is wide receiver Dylan Classi. He's one of those players who doesn't jump off the chart at you with his physical prowess, but if you gave him a chance, he wouldn't let you down.
Maybe he'll get that chance. Maybe it'll end up being a movie, like "Invinceable."
That would be good.
Good luck to the Princetonians who are looking to make the NFL jump. And to the NFL teams who have so much invested in their first round guys, which is the world's most expensive coin toss.
