2013 NFL Draft players to watch: Cal

Published July 5, 2012 | By Justin Higdon

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The Golden Bears of Cal-Berkely always seem to send talented players to the NFL. This past year, Cal tackle Mitchell Schwartz, linebacker Mychal Kendricks, and wide receiver Marvin Jones were a few of the names called on draft weekend. This year’s class has one star and a handful of others who teams will be watching closely this fall. Underclassmen are designated with an asterisk…

Keenan Allen* WR Cal 6’3 206 – Allen was a five star safety and wide receiver out of high school in North Carolina. He’s played receiver exclusively since coming to Cal, where his half-brother, Zach Maynard, is the starting quarterback. As a sophomore last season, Allen racked up 98 receptions – 36 more than 2012 draftee Marvin Jones, who finished second on the team. Allen gained 1343 yards (13.7 yards per catch) and scored six touchdowns on the year. His combination of size and speed make him a superior prospect to draft community favorite Jones, and Allen figures to be targeted even more often this year, as the team’s next three top receivers (Jones, tight end Anthony Miller, and receiver Michael Calvin) have all moved on. Cal gets Allen the ball in a variety of ways including screens and even a direct handoff in the bowl game last season against Texas. Allen lines up outside and in the slot, and can get open deep from either spot. He’s not a burner but he’s got build-up speed and can break long gainers. Allen runs well after the catch and finishes his runs. He can snatch the ball out of the air and make tough catches amid contact; but he’ll occasionally let the ball get into his body and drop an easy one. Allen is a good enough player to enter into first round discussion early on, so barring injury, there’s an excellent chance this will be Allen’s final college season.

Isi Sofele RB 5’8 183 – Sofele’s first season as the team’s starting running back added up to 1322 rushing yards and ten touchdowns. He was a workhorse for the Bears in 2011, logging 20 or more carries in a game eight different times. Sofele is a quick runner who takes short, choppy steps and who changes directions pretty well. Still, he seems to have some wasted motion in his running style. At times, he even gets out of control and runs himself into a stumble. Sofele’s lack of size will be a detriment. He gets tossed around on hits and NFL teams will wonder if he can hold up. Also, oddly, despite his scat-back frame, Sofele is rarely used as a receiver out of the backfield. He caught just six passes a year ago and has just 14 in his career at Cal. He’ll need to show some degree of aptitude in the passing game or on special teams in order for some team to deem him worthy of a draft pick.

Zach Maynard QB Cal 6’2 185 – Maynard enters the 2012 season as the “unchallenged starting quarterback” for the Golden Bears despite battling through an uneven season as the starter last year. He’s a good athlete but a frustrating player who had a terrific game against Andrew Luck and Stanford, but laid a four-interception egg in a loss at 6-8 UCLA. The left-hander transferred from Buffalo, so this is only his second season at Cal. Perhaps coach Jeff Tedford thinks he can work with Maynard, or that Maynard’s connection to the talented Allen is crucial to the team’s success. Or, perhaps the rest of the quarterbacks on the roster just haven’t offered up any real competition. Either way, Maynard has only shown rare flashes on the field, and he lacks the frame usually required to be an NFL-caliber player.

Also keep an eye on: Matt Summers-Gavin OT 6’4 293, Marc Anthony CB 6’0 200, Brian Schwenke G 6’4 310

2013 NFL Draft players to watch: Cal

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