FanPost

Scouting with Bearcat: Annual D-II Prospect Breakdown

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

From the FanPosts -Joel

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls of all ages, it's that time of the year again. The time to focus on the unknowns. The guys that few have heard of and from schools that boggle the mind. As some of you know, I have done a breakdown of the Division 2 talent entering the NFL draft since I have joined Arrowhead Pride. This is something that I care about so much because of the die hard love for my alma mater Northwest Missouri State University.

You must keep in mind that tapes are very hard to come by on these guys. So everything is highlight videos or guys that I have personally watched, Highlight videos can be very hard because they only show the good things that the players do. What I try to do is breakdown the technique, whether it be knee bend of a lineman or the crispness of a route by a wideout. I also try to bring my personal knowledge of the level of competition that these players would have faced.

Last year you may remember me saying that it was one of the deepest D2 classes that I could remember. Well, this year is more on the weaker side. That being said there are two guys that I love and several that I like. Unfortunately you will have to just trust me on one of them because there is basically no tape out there at all. But enough of all this talking. Let's look at the first prospect.

Vernon Johnson - WR Texas A&M Commerce

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6' 0" 196 lbs.

2014 Stats - 77 rec - 1,258 yds 12 tds

Vernon Johnson is one of those guys that makes it very difficult for an every day fan like me to scout him. Before his pro day I watched several minutes of tape and came away with a few thoughts. One, he is very fast. Two, he plays in the LSC so he has not played a defense that could keep my three month old daughter from scoring five times.

Then came the pro day at Texas A&M where Vernon was expected to run in the low 4.4 range on the 40-yard dash. Instead he ran the 40 three times, clocking times of 4.53, 4.56 and 4.65 seconds. He had a 4.42 short shuttle and a 7.39 3-cone drill. He had a 37" vertical and 10'7 broad jump. While some of the quickness drill times are still nice, those 40 times are way below expected and can really hurt a D2 prospect. Now the question is whether that's his actual speed or he just ran slow that day.

Strengths: I am going to say that he just had a bad day running at the pro day. The guy just looks faster than that on tape. Yes he is going against bad defenses but he is covering some serious ground in a hurry and Texas still has some dang good athletes that can really run. The guy is just flat explosive with the ball in his hands and can turn any play into six.

Weakness: The guy just hasn't played against very good competition. I am not exaggerating when I say how terrible LSC defenses are. They are atrocious. Beyond that, the guy needs to work on his route running. They are not crisp. You can tell that he is used to being faster than everyone else on the field.

Projected Round : 7th - UDFA

Tape: HUDL

Darius Davis - WR, Henderson St.

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5'11" 226 lbs

Stats - 56 rec 1,261 yds 18 tds

When I watch Darius Davis I get confused. He seems to make big plays but just doesn't seem to have the speed that a Vernon Johnson does. Similar to Vernon, Davis timed very poorly at his pro day and over his playing weight of 210 lbs. He ran the 40 in 4.64 seconds, including a 1.67 10-yard split. He also had a 37.5" vertical, a 9'9 broad jump, a 4.40 short shuttle, a 7.28 3-cone drill, and 17 strength lifts. From the looks of things, the extra weight really hurt him. Was this because he was out of shape or worked out to much?

Strengths: He is very strong, like a running back and he runs like one. Also he catches with his hands, which we all like too see. He just seems to have a nose for the end zone, I will give him that.

Weakness: I just don't see the explosiveness in Darius. The plays that he turned into touchdowns at the D2 level, I just don't see happening in the NFL because of the explosiveness. The other issues I see are the lack of routes ran on a consistent basis. Seems like he ran go's, screens and shallow crossers. I personally just don't see it with Darius, but I have been wrong before.

Projected Round: 7th - UDFA

Tape : Youtube

Donatella Luckett - WR Harding

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6'0" 211 lbs

Donatella Luckett is a name that is already known around here due to the Senior Bowl and Combine invite. He is the ultimate D2 prospect. He is a complete unknown as a wideout not only because of the school but also because Harding ran a triple option offense, so he didn't get a lot of opportunities. Donatella did not impress at the Combine, running much slower than expected at a 4.63 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He however made up for it at his pro day running a 4.37 and 4.42 with 35.5" inch vertical, 10" broad jump, 4.42 short shuttle, 7.28 3 cone drill and 18 reps.

Strengths: What I didn't see in Davis I do see in Luckett. The dude is very explosive, the times at his pro day match his tape. He just has great speed and can separate from DBs. He reportedly didn't look out of place at the Senior Bowl and is very strong and can run through arm tackles.

Weakness: Playing in the triple option, he has basically no knowledge of the route tree and he is said to be surprisingly poor run blocker.

Projected Round: 6-7th round

Tape: HUDL

Cole Manhart - G/T Nebraska Kearney

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6'6" 310 lbs

Cole Manhardt has consistently been considered one of the best offensive lineman at the D2 level for the past few years. I have watched him personally a few times and left impressed with how nimble the big man was. He played in the NFLPA Bowl and reportedly look pretty good. Cole played LT in college, however I feel that he is a better fit at guard or possiblly at RT. I know you are thinking that he is a very tall guard but the kid has such good feet. He could be very good at pulling and getting out into space.

Strengths: I have said it a few times already but the guy has fantastic feet. He moves very well that could bode well for a move inside. I really think that he could be a great fit in a zone blocking scheme.

Weakness: Unfortunately I could not find any information from his pro day. However the weakness that stands out to me is that he seems to lack strength. He does not have great pop in his punch, he has gotten by on his athleticism throughout his college career, That won't get him by at the NFL level. He also needs to work on his knee bend is he is going to be successful inside. He gets too high in his stance, which is not surprising from such a tall guy.

Projected Round: UDFA

Tape: HUDL

Travis Manning - CB Northwest Missouri State University

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6'0" 196 lbs.

Stats: 32 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, 10 pass breakups and one interception

Travis was someone that I was not planning on mentioning. But after his pro day he is creating quite the buzz around him and caught the attention of several scouts that have asked him to work out. Manning ran a a 4.35 40-yard dash, 11'3 broad jump and 15 repetitions of 225 pounds on the bench press. Those are obviously very good numbers and I can see why he has caused some buzz.

Strengths: I have watched Travis throughout his career at NWMSU and I have noticed two things. He is a average corner and a pretty dang good safety. Travis actually reminds me of Ron Parker in that aspect. Travis was a safety quite a bit two years ago playing behind now NFL corners Brandon and Brian Dixon and he played pretty dang well at that position. Travis has the speed to make up a ton of ground and he tackles very well for a corner. He is very aggressive and I feel he would be a good deep safety.

Weakness: If Travis has to play corner he will not make it in the NFL. He doesn't press well and doesn't seem to have the instincts it takes to be a NFL corner. I just don't see with him. If the Dixons are going to struggle getting roster spots then he will really struggle. However that speed will surely get him a camp invite, so he will have a chance to prove himself.

Projected Round: UDFA

Tape: HUDL

Matt Longacre - DE/OLB Northwest Missouri State University

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6'3" 261 lbs

Stats: 37 tackles 10.5 tackles for loss and 7 sacks

Matt Longacre is the career sack leader at NWMSU and played the large majority of last year hobbled by a ankle injury. For comparison, he had 60 tackles. 20.5 tackles for loss and 12 sacks in 2013. Matt was long considered to be a classic high effort guy. He came into this year to try to answer some of those questions on his size and speed. He played 2013 at 245 pounds and jumped that for this year. He answered the speed question at his pro day running a 4.75 40-yard dash. According to a source I had at the pro day (yes I actually do have a source), he received a lot of work as an OLB and a lot of attention from scouts, including our very own John Dorsey.

Strengths: Matt has a motor that goes non stop, which led to the thought that he was nothing but a high energy guy. He is explosive off the ball and maintains leverage well. He has good speed and has a nasty attitude.

Weakness: Matt is a tweener that has not had to play standing up. I question if he will have that natural bend that allows him to get the edge as an OLB. Also there is a question if the extra weight hampered his ability to heal from the injury that hurt him most of the season. Also there is very little tape out there on him, so you will have to trust the word of myself and others that have seen him play.

Projected Round: UDFA

Tape: HUDL #96

Gavin Lutman - WR Pittsburg State

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6'3" 214 lbs

Stats: 70 catches 1,196 yards and 13 scores

Now it's time for my favorite prospect of the year. This guy has been getting no attention and I have kept this one in my back pocket for quite awhile until I saw what he was going to run at the Kansas pro day, which caught a lot of attention from pro scouts. I told Joel earlier on Twitter that I have watched tape on a guy that I can't believe Arrowhead Pride hasn't been talking about. Lutman is that guy.

Remember a guy by the name of Jeff Janis, who had a lot of love from fans last year? Well, Lutman is very similar to Janis. Lutman had 36" in the vertical jump, 10'5 in the broad jump and time 4.46 seconds in the 40. Lutman's 3-cone drill was 6.65 seconds and, he was timed at 4.09 seconds in the short shuttle.`1

Strengths: Lutman has some of the best body control that I have seen in a D2 prospect since Jake Soy. What he has that Soy didn't is top level athleticism. This guy makes spectacular catches and has break away speed once he has the ball in his hands. He uses his body well to shield defenders and uses his hands well. He is strong and had no problem against the press at the D2 level.

Weakness: Lutman needs to work on route running. He looks to round off routes and depends too much on his superior athleticism. It will be interesting to see how he handles the press at the NFL level. This will make or break him.

Projected Round: 6-7th

Tape: HUDL

Others to Watch

Al-Hajj Shabazz CB West Chester

Darius Allen OLB CSU-Pueblo

Edmund Robinson OLB Newberry

Tom Obarski K Concordia St. Paul

Well, that's all for me this year. Please leave your comments below. If you have anybody else you would like me to look at, just mention them and I will try to get to it.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.