recent Brian Hill article

[CodyPoke]

http://www.idahostatesman.com/sports/ar ... 12032.html

[Cowboy Junky]

I thought it was stupid when he left early. I found it later just how stupid it was when he entered a deep running back class with a broken wrist AND a year of eligibility.

It looks like he's about to prove just how stupid it was.

[PokeTransplant]

Hindsight and such...but, he really could have been a part of something special this year with Josh coming back........

[joshvanklomp]

I'm torn on what happened....

Did he get bad advice?
Or did he get good advice and ignore it?

Honestly, I have a feeling it might be the latter.

[ItSucksToBeACSURam]

I'm torn on what happened....

Did he get bad advice?
Or did he get good advice and ignore it?

Honestly, I have a feeling it might be the latter.

I think he got fine advice. The window to make money in the NFL is small. He saw an opportunity, he seized it. Cant be mad at a guy for believing he would get drafted and then he goes and gets drafted.

To me, his struggles are what I expected. He was never the biggest running back. He was never the fastest running back. He was never the shiftiest running back. He relied on his ability to shake that first tackle and fall forward. In the NFL very few guys miss that fist tackle and theyre all bigger and faster defenders than he's ever seen. He was the PERFECT running back for our scheme in the MWC.

I am not saying Hill will be a bust but he is going to have to tighten his pads and change the way he approaches his job. I hope he gets it figured out.

[TSpoke]

I still don't think he made the wrong choice. It all depends on the situation he ends up in. He got drafted by a team that is already set at RB. That was unfortunate but he still has a pretty good shot at making the team. Another year of 300 touches for the cowboys was not going to make him much better if at all. He is the running back he is now and he would have just taken more of a beating.
RB's only have so many hits their body can take over the course of their career before they break down so another year as our workhorse could have hurt him in the long run. I don't think he would have gotten any better with another year of college. If he stayed its possible he would have been drafted higher but that is no guarantee of ending up in a better situation(to say nothing of possibility of injury) If he makes it in the NFL it comes down to situation, talent, and hard work.

[Cowboy Junky]

I don't buy that good decision crap. Anyone that wanted him to play a work horse roll or play right away(teams with a running back need) we're put off by the broken wrist. It's obvious he needed to get that fixed first. In a draft loaded with running backs, it was easy to pass on him and find someone else.

Hopefully he doesn't pull an Alvester Alexandre, and wash out of the league with a year of eligibility left.

Yeah, his family got paid: a little, not guaranteed. It's likely that money will be gone soon and Hills career may be as well.

He could have played his way into guaranteed money and entered the draft healthy in a year not loaded with NFL quality running backs. That way, if he washed out, his money is guaranteed.

This has the chance to be a historically stupid decision.

[DVDA]

I don't buy that good decision crap. Anyone that wanted him to play a work horse roll or play right away(teams with a running back need) we're put off by the broken wrist. It's obvious he needed to get that fixed first. In a draft loaded with running backs, it was easy to pass on him and find someone else.

Hopefully he doesn't pull an Alvester Alexandre, and wash out of the league with a year of eligibility left.

Yeah, his family got paid: a little, not guaranteed. It's likely that money will be gone soon and Hills career may be as well.

He could have played his way into guaranteed money and entered the draft healthy in a year not loaded with NFL quality running backs. That way, if he washed out, his money is guaranteed.

This has the chance to be a historically stupid decision.

You state your opinions as if they're facts. You assume he "fell" because of a wrist injury that didn't stop him from finishing last season. You also assume this next class won't be loaded at running back when people say that every year. Every class has plenty of talented running backs and Hill would still be considered middle of the pack at best. He entered the league with a significant number of carries in college. 300 more carries would only hurt his stock. Being another year older would only hurt his stock and earning potential. Another minor injury like the wrist injury would only hurt his stock. A major injury would likely keep him out of the NFL entirely. Comparing him to Alvester is laughable. Alvester never had a shot at the NFL. He played the lottery hoping to win the jackpot for his family.

Brian will end up on a practice squad at worst. In that case, he is still making a lot more money than he would in Laramie and will learn a lot more about being successful in the NFL than he would in Laramie. He made the right decision and took the rational approach. You simply overvalue his NFL potential.

[OrediggerPoke]

I don't buy that good decision crap. Anyone that wanted him to play a work horse roll or play right away(teams with a running back need) we're put off by the broken wrist. It's obvious he needed to get that fixed first. In a draft loaded with running backs, it was easy to pass on him and find someone else.

Hopefully he doesn't pull an Alvester Alexandre, and wash out of the league with a year of eligibility left.

Yeah, his family got paid: a little, not guaranteed. It's likely that money will be gone soon and Hills career may be as well.

He could have played his way into guaranteed money and entered the draft healthy in a year not loaded with NFL quality running backs. That way, if he washed out, his money is guaranteed.

This has the chance to be a historically stupid decision.

You state your opinions as if they're facts. You assume he "fell" because of a wrist injury that didn't stop him from finishing last season. You also assume this next class won't be loaded at running back when people say that every year. Every class has plenty of talented running backs and Hill would still be considered middle of the pack at best. He entered the league with a significant number of carries in college. 300 more carries would only hurt his stock. Being another year older would only hurt his stock and earning potential. Another minor injury like the wrist injury would only hurt his stock. A major injury would likely keep him out of the NFL entirely. Comparing him to Alvester is laughable. Alvester never had a shot at the NFL. He played the lottery hoping to win the jackpot for his family.

Brian will end up on a practice squad at worst. In that case, he is still making a lot more money than he would in Laramie and will learn a lot more about being successful in the NFL than he would in Laramie. He made the right decision and took the rational approach. You simply overvalue his NFL potential.

Agreed on Hill. At worst he will be on a practice squad and another year at the college level wouldn't have been worth a hill of beans to his NFL career (only perhaps one less year to play at the pro level).

Cowboy Junky sounds like a jaded girlfriend.

[OrediggerPoke]

I still don't think he made the wrong choice. It all depends on the situation he ends up in. He got drafted by a team that is already set at RB. That was unfortunate but he still has a pretty good shot at making the team. Another year of 300 touches for the cowboys was not going to make him much better if at all. He is the running back he is now and he would have just taken more of a beating.
RB's only have so many hits their body can take over the course of their career before they break down so another year as our workhorse could have hurt him in the long run. I don't think he would have gotten any better with another year of college. If he stayed its possible he would have been drafted higher but that is no guarantee of ending up in a better situation(to say nothing of possibility of injury) If he makes it in the NFL it comes down to situation, talent, and hard work.

Well stated. I think Hill's best bet would be to get cut and picked up by another (more RB needy team) before the Falcons can place him on their practice squad.

[WestWYOPoke]

This has the chance to be a historically stupid decision.

You state your opinions as if they're facts. You assume he "fell" because of a wrist injury that didn't stop him from finishing last season. You also assume this next class won't be loaded at running back when people say that every year. Every class has plenty of talented running backs and Hill would still be considered middle of the pack at best. He entered the league with a significant number of carries in college. 300 more carries would only hurt his stock. Being another year older would only hurt his stock and earning potential. Another minor injury like the wrist injury would only hurt his stock. A major injury would likely keep him out of the NFL entirely. Comparing him to Alvester is laughable. Alvester never had a shot at the NFL. He played the lottery hoping to win the jackpot for his family.

Brian will end up on a practice squad at worst. In that case, he is still making a lot more money than he would in Laramie and will learn a lot more about being successful in the NFL than he would in Laramie. He made the right decision and took the rational approach. You simply overvalue his NFL potential.

I agree with this as well. While it would have been great to have Brian back for another year in the Brown and Gold, I agree with DVDA that I don't think it would have done a whole lot to increase his draft stock. Brian's draft ceiling IMO was late 3rd/early 4th round. Do I think he is a better RB than that? Yes. Would an NFL team spend a 1st or 2nd round pick on him when they know he'll still be there in 3 or 4? No.

For what it's worth, even if he gets cut, he got a $270,000 signing bonus, plus the $6K+/week he'll make on someone's practice squad. That's $270K+ more than he would have made if he came back and injured himself.

[johnywyo]

He's got a couple more shots, jury is not out. Kid needed a payday, always thought he has talent. Get some guys in the trenches to get his first level cut, he's a sled dog then. Tear it up BHill, get that roster spot even if its special teams.


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[Cowboy Junky]

Sorry, I'm just not buying that.

I'm not an NFL draft expert, but I've got a pretty good eye for talent. Regardless, all the NFL experts agreed that this years running back class was loaded. That is a fact.

B. You guys act like a person in his early twenties doesn't get better. They do. They get bigger stronger and faster until they're about 30 and then their skills start to slip.

Exposure is what Brian Hill needed more than anything. Playing a senior year with Josh Allen, big national games against Iowa and Oregon, and the eyes of the NFL on Wyoming ALL YEAR would have exposed him to many more eyeballs. People scouting Josh would have got to see Brian.

Spin it how you want. Getting cut is not exactly what Brian Hill dreamed about and it certainly isn't something he wants to put on his resume. Brian Hills twitter page didn't read "NFL Practice Squad" all year last year. It read "NFL".

Another year of Bohl/company coaching would have helped him. It worked wonders for Gentry, Roullier, and Hollister.

With a healthy wrist, a great schedule, unprecedented national attention, a draft class not heavily stacked with running backs, and another year to improve his weaknesses: it's not only possible he could have got guaranteed money, but it's probable he would have.

Kiss his ass all you want. That was a stupid decision driven by money. He might have just sacrificed 50 million dollars for 300,000 right now. That's not smart.

You don't get many chances to make an NFL squad. It looks like he's about to fumble the first one out the back of the end zone.

The whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth. He slipped in the draft, and then told people that his wrist was broken while throwing Craig Bohl under the bus in the process. His agent was more important than his team and his head coach. He had already checked out before the bowl game, and broke curfew to prove it.

Physical talent isn't the only thing NFL scouts look for. They look for good decision making and commitment to your team. The end of the season was one bad decision after another: forgoing your senior season with a broken wrist, a curfew violation, and publicly blaming Craig Bohl for your poor draft performance.

Answer me this, if he gets cut by Atlanta, was it a good decision to enter the draft hurt, with a year of eligibility left, and the entire nations eyes on Laramie this year?

[ELKMT]

It might not have been the best choice but it wasn't wrong either. Even on a practice squad he will make over 400k this year ( signing bonus included). A lot of wat ifs, and no guarantee his draft stock rises. He might just be a 5th round talent back. What if he gets a concussion like Wick? Career over for 15k in tuition? Taking the guarantee wasn't risky, and for a lot of people that is the right decision.

PS While 400k isn't exactly life changing it is certainly on the right track for a 23 yr old.

[wyopoke123]

Sorry, I'm just not buying that.

I'm not an NFL draft expert, but I've got a pretty good eye for talent. Regardless, all the NFL experts agreed that this years running back class was loaded. That is a fact.

B. You guys act like a person in his early twenties doesn't get better. They do. They get bigger stronger and faster until they're about 30 and then their skills start to slip.

Exposure is what Brian Hill needed more than anything. Playing a senior year with Josh Allen, big national games against Iowa and Oregon, and the eyes of the NFL on Wyoming ALL YEAR would have exposed him to many more eyeballs. People scouting Josh would have got to see Brian.

Spin it how you want. Getting cut is not exactly what Brian Hill dreamed about and it certainly isn't something he wants to put on his resume. Brian Hills twitter page didn't read "NFL Practice Squad" all year last year. It read "NFL".

Another year of Bohl/company coaching would have helped him. It worked wonders for Gentry, Roullier, and Hollister.

With a healthy wrist, a great schedule, unprecedented national attention, a draft class not heavily stacked with running backs, and another year to improve his weaknesses: it's not only possible he could have got guaranteed money, but it's probable he would have.

Kiss his ass all you want. That was a stupid decision driven by money. He might have just sacrificed 50 million dollars for 300,000 right now. That's not smart.

You don't get many chances to make an NFL squad. It looks like he's about to fumble the first one out the back of the end zone.

The whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth. He slipped in the draft, and then told people that his wrist was broken while throwing Craig Bohl under the bus in the process. His agent was more important than his team and his head coach. He had already checked out before the bowl game, and broke curfew to prove it.

Physical talent isn't the only thing NFL scouts look for. They look for good decision making and commitment to your team. The end of the season was one bad decision after another: forgoing your senior season with a broken wrist, a curfew violation, and publicly blaming Craig Bohl for your poor draft performance.

Answer me this, if he gets cut by Atlanta, was it a good decision to enter the draft hurt, with a year of eligibility left, and the entire nations eyes on Laramie this year?

If he gets cut by ATL, by no means AT ALL is it a bad decision still. The jury would still be out and I guarantee he would be picked up ASAP by a team who could use him on the field this year. ATL is smarter than that. If he doesnt land the 3 job, hes going to try and get stashed on the practice squad (and even with that BHill is a better talent than practice squad level and can easily be snagged by another team so thats no guarantee for ATL).

RB's have the shortest shelf life of any position in the NFL. Not many scouts are looking for a 4 year college running back who has over 1,000 carries in his college career (bhill would have conservatively hit 1050-1100 carries for his career this year if he came back). He's been in camp for 3 weeks. Let him develop and prove himself. Its a huge adjustment. He did everything he needed to do in college to prove to teams that he can play at the next level. There was not much more he could do next year (with the threat of injury as well) that would have made such a huge difference

[ItSucksToBeACSURam]

Sorry, I'm just not buying that.

I'm not an NFL draft expert, but I've got a pretty good eye for talent. Regardless, all the NFL experts agreed that this years running back class was loaded. That is a fact.

B. You guys act like a person in his early twenties doesn't get better. They do. They get bigger stronger and faster until they're about 30 and then their skills start to slip.

Exposure is what Brian Hill needed more than anything. Playing a senior year with Josh Allen, big national games against Iowa and Oregon, and the eyes of the NFL on Wyoming ALL YEAR would have exposed him to many more eyeballs. People scouting Josh would have got to see Brian.

Spin it how you want. Getting cut is not exactly what Brian Hill dreamed about and it certainly isn't something he wants to put on his resume. Brian Hills twitter page didn't read "NFL Practice Squad" all year last year. It read "NFL".

Another year of Bohl/company coaching would have helped him. It worked wonders for Gentry, Roullier, and Hollister.

With a healthy wrist, a great schedule, unprecedented national attention, a draft class not heavily stacked with running backs, and another year to improve his weaknesses: it's not only possible he could have got guaranteed money, but it's probable he would have.

Kiss his ass all you want. That was a stupid decision driven by money. He might have just sacrificed 50 million dollars for 300,000 right now. That's not smart.

You don't get many chances to make an NFL squad. It looks like he's about to fumble the first one out the back of the end zone.

The whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth. He slipped in the draft, and then told people that his wrist was broken while throwing Craig Bohl under the bus in the process. His agent was more important than his team and his head coach. He had already checked out before the bowl game, and broke curfew to prove it.

Physical talent isn't the only thing NFL scouts look for. They look for good decision making and commitment to your team. The end of the season was one bad decision after another: forgoing your senior season with a broken wrist, a curfew violation, and publicly blaming Craig Bohl for your poor draft performance.

Answer me this, if he gets cut by Atlanta, was it a good decision to enter the draft hurt, with a year of eligibility left, and the entire nations eyes on Laramie this year?

Thoughts on the decision aside, I agree 100% with this. He was quick to forget how he got here. It was a bad look blaming Bohl and Co. for his "misfortunes".

[HomeOnTheRange]

He made the right decision to leave. Bohl put some serious wear and tear on his tires and another year with a huge work load and an OL that lost its best player (by far)? Not a recipe for improving your draft stock.

The NFL already devalues running backs given how pass-happy the league is. With 250 more carries on his legs and the potential for injury and smaller holes to run through in Roullier's absence? Guy made the right choice all day every day.

[McPeachy]

He made the right decision to leave. Bohl put some serious wear and tear on his tires and another year with a huge work load and an OL that lost its best player (by far)? Not a recipe for improving your draft stock.

The NFL already devalues running backs given how pass-happy the league is. With 250 more carries on his legs and the potential for injury and smaller holes to run through in Roullier's absence? Guy made the right choice all day every day.

Well...

UW's O line is much better this year than last, that is a bad argument for Hill leaving. That said, I also think Hill's opportunities to get drafted higher than the 5th round, to a team that really needs a running back, would be much higher had he stayed...all things considered. Is it a gamble / would it have been a gamble? Hell yes - tomorrow is no guaranty (for anyone).

[joshvanklomp]

The biggest reason I thought staying another year was to participate in the predraft bowl circuit. Whether its the Shrine Bowl or the Senior Bowl or whatever, getting a week in front of NFL scouts and executives can really be beneficial.

[joshvanklomp]

If he gets cut by ATL, by no means AT ALL is it a bad decision still. The jury would still be out and I guarantee he would be picked up ASAP by a team who could use him on the field this year.

I'm actually not sure about that.

I'll have to watch him more this week, but he didn't stand out in his first in-game audition. He was essentially called out by his coach for being too tentative.

Not a good showing so far. I'm not sure another team would be chomping at the bit to add him to their active roster.