MVN - Most Valuable Network

Draft Diaries: Kendall Langford

In the third installment of our ongoing offseason series Draft Diaries, we take a closer look at defensive end Kendall Langford.

Never heard of this guy? We’re not surprised. He went to Hampton University. Scouts say that if Langford would have went to a BCS school, he would have probably been a late first round selection instead of a late third round selection. So, with plenty of offers on the table from Division I-A schools after he earned All-District, All-Metro and All-Region honors in high school, why did Langford choose the Division I-AA school in southeastern Virginia? Because of it’s education system’s reputation. Sounds like a Parcells guy already.

In his freshman year in 2004, Langford only started four games but still finished the year with 4.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for a loss, second on the team. He also returned a fumble 30 yards for a touchdown. Despite Langford’s personal success that season, his team ranked a lowly 58th in the nation in total defense. In 2005, Langford started every game at a brand new position, left tackle. He made 65 tackles and led the team with 15.5 tackles for a loss, earning himself All-MEAC first team honors and almost single handedly making Hampton to the nation’s sixth best defensive team. In his junior year, Langford once again anchored Hampton’s defensive front with 8 sacks, he was a key contributor on a defensive squad that finished the season as the country’s sixth best scoring defense, a squad that only gave up 14.5 points per game and he was once again a unanimous first team All-MEAC selection. He was also named an All-American. Teams did their best to steer clear of Langford in his junior year but a 6′6″, 290 pound man takes up a lot of space. He led his team in tackles, something defensive ends rarely do, got to the quarterback 6 times and was the first player from Hampton to be named to three straight all-conference teams since 1985. Opposing coaches compared him to Reggie White. We’re not going to go that far but after solid performances at both the Shrine and Senior Bowls, Langford definitely proved he can rumble with the big boys.

Even though he’s done everything right, Langford’s ability to perform at the NFL level will probably always be questioned. The one thing he won’t be labeled as is a pile topper. He has Zach Thomas-like abilities for sniffing out the ball and wrapping up it’s carrier. If Langford gets going, he can take over a game. With above average quickness, incredible instincts and the ability to play anywhere in the 3-4, Langford could wind up being the next best thing since Cal Hubbard.

Tune in next time, when Sean takes a look at the team’s 4th round pick, guard Shawn Murphy.

Draft Diaries: Chad Henne

This is Part 2 in a series on the Dolphins draft picks after Jake Long, who was widely publicized.  Today, get to know QB Chad Henne.

It was harder to find stuff to write about on Henne.  There is much to write about guys like Phillip Merling (who walked his way into a new family) or Donald Thomas (that one is coming later).  But it can be a struggle to find stuff to write about a guy who is one of those lunchpail guys.  Just does his job.  Goes to work, plays football, goes home.

So instead of some life story with some deep moral, here’s just a look at the player we are getting.

Henne played at Wilson Senior High School (the only high school in it’s own district) in his home town of West Lawn, PA.  The town is now known as Spring Township.  He set the school records for passing yards and TDs, and was selected to play in the US Army All-American Bowl.  Henne has said that even though he’s hails from the Philly-side of PA, he kept tabs on Dan Marino (from Pittsburgh) as a kid and admired his career.

Henne chose to play at Michigan, and became the first true freshman to start at QB for the Maize and Blue since Rick Leach in 1975.  The move proved wise, as Henne was the lynchpin in an explosive 2004 Wolverines offense, featuring burners like Braylon Edwards and Steve Breaston.  Henne tied the single season Michigan TD passing record, 25, with Elvis Grbac in 1991.  Again, Henne did this as a TRUE freshman.

Henne went on to have an impressive career at Michigan that, while record setting, saw some criticism.  Some got on Henne for his inability to win “the big game”, shown by his career 1-7 record in Bowl games and games against rival Ohio State.  However, that 1 was his final college football game, in the capital One Bowl against the Florida Gators.  While I hated his efficiency as a Gator fan, even then I admired how he simply sliced through a more talented Gator defense.  He followed that up with an Offensive MVP performance in the 2008 Senior Bowl.

Henne set basically every relevant passing record at Michigan.  828 completions, 1387 attempts, 9715 yards, 87 TDs, and 32 interceptions.  That last stat isn’t really a record you WANT to own, but it’s mainly due to his playing all 4 years.  87 TDs to 32 picks is over a 2.7 TD/Int ratio.  Not bad.

Henne is a big tough QB, exactly what the Triforce wanted.  It’s not that I don’t believe that the QB competition is open, but it’s clear Henne is their dream QB.  Tough, big, “laser rocket arm”, a competitor.  One concern is that it is taking him a bit to hit on the new offense.  Henne missed some routes during the recent rookie minicamp, and was actually made to run a lap because he messed up a snap count.  But now that he has a few weeks to just wake up, eat, study, maybe throw outside on his own a bit, sleep, wake up, repeat, I’m confident he’ll get the hang of the playbook.

Tune in to the next Draft Diaries when we take a look at a more obscure player; 3rd round pick out of Hampton, DE Kendall Langford.

Draft Diaries: Phillip Merling

Welcome to the newest series here at The Phish Tank, Draft Diaries!  Over the next few weeks, we’ll be giving you a glimpse into the Dolphins Draft picks.  Not just their skills and what they bring, but who they are and what makes them tick.

This is the first entry, so you might be asking why we’re starting with second pick Phillip Merling.  The reason is that Jake Long was the number one pick, so he’s already been talked about for weeks and weeks.  We know a lot, and maybe all we need to know, about him.  But, I knew next to nothing about Phillip Merling.  He has quite an interesting story, which was recently told in the Palm Beach Post.  It’s a good writeup, go ahead and read it.

DE Phillip Merling was one of those kids that was born far bigger than his peers.  In first grade, he was the size of a 3rd grader and had more energy than the Tazmanian Devil.  His teacher suggested sports, specifically football, to his mother Sharon.  The very first challenge to what has become a successful life in football came when Sharon discovered the nearest league required children to be 8.  Phillip had just turned 6.

They went to meet with the coaches of one of the teams, and when they saw a 6 year old as big as their 8 year olds, it’s funny how fast they found a way to get him in.  But, his mother had to be concerned, right?  Her younger boy banging heads with the big boys and all?  She did have one fear.

“I was a little afraid for the other kids,” she told the Post.

As it has been for many a man, football was the cure-all for Phillip.  He settled down, and his grades improved.  But just as football was taking him higher and higher, his life was about to be turned upside down.

Phillip’s parents lived apart; his father was a naval officer and Phillip was born at the Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, Va.  Phillip and his sister Heather would spend summers with their father at his 3 story home near Langley Air Force Base, and Phillip would often be babysat by his uncle, Chris Rumph.  Chris, 14 years older than Phillip, would visit his sister’s family in the Summer, working at a restaurant.

Sharon would miss her family though, and finally convinced Phillip’s father to move back to South Carolina so the family could live together.  While that made things nice for a while, in the end it would lead to a wrenching event for Phillip.

One day, his father stayed home while the rest of the family went to visit a deathly ill family member.  When the family returned, Phillip’s dad and all his belongings…were gone.  For the rest of that night, Sharon heard her son outside cursing under his breath and hitting the shed.

“It was devastating to him.  He was so angry - hurt, most of all.  He was in disbelief.  What happened, what went wrong?  Everything was so normal until then,” she said.

Without his father in his life, and with his mother distracted by the shock of being abandoned, Phillip began to rebel.  But not traditionally.  He’d leave home, but just to walk around town, even as night fell.  He’d go to the homes of his grandparents, and spent some nights at his uncle Chris’ home.  Chris had since become his football coach at Calhoun County High School.  Phillip would randomly show up, ask Chris’ wife Kila to make her famous pancakes, stay for dinner, then spend the night.

One night, Chris and Kila were driving home near nightfall when they saw a large shadow walking down the road.  It was Phillip, walking nowhere in particular.  For Chris, enough was enough.  The next day, Phillip began the first day of his junior year having moved in with his uncle.

Chris was slightly uncomfortable being a father to a child less than 15 years younger, but he realized he had to lay down the law.  Curfew, chores, the whole 9 yards.  This went amazingly, until Chris got a chance to be an assistant coach at the University of Memphis.  They would move immediately, and Chris was not going to leave Phillip in Calhoun County, where the easy-living often trapped young men into staying at one level for a lifetime.  Phillip didn’t want to leave with his senior year about to start, but he decided to go with his new family.

He played his senior year at Cordova High School, and got offers from South Carolina and Clemson.  But his grades had slacked, and he couldn’t take them.  Clemson said they’d take him if he graduated Fork Union Military Academy.  Merling stepped up to the latest challenge, getting up at 5AM, marching before dawn, and learning all the discipline.

In a moment out of a movie script, Phillip saw Chris for the first time since entering the school at his graduation.  He couldn’t stop the tears, and Kila caught them in a picture which she now keeps in her living room.  Chris has 2 children of his own now, but credits Phillip for helping him learn how to be a dad.

Chris and Phillip reunited one more time when Chris was hired as Clemson’s defensive line coach before Phillip’s second year.  Chris was coaching Phillip again, but knew he only needed football coaching, as the man was ready.  Phillip fell in love with a student at South Carolina (SCANDAL!  Sure that went over really well in Tiger-Land), and they had a daughter he named Justice.  That made the decision to leave as a junior easier, for his family.

Phillip Merling is a mature, strong, disciplined young man that won’t flunk out of this league for not trying.  He is working through sports hernia surgery, which is somewhat limiting him in rookie camp, but the flashes are already showing.

Be on the lookout for the next Draft Diaries, where we will talk about former Michigan QB and Dolphins 3rd selection Chad Henne!

More to go Camping With: Dolphins add 7 more Undrafteds

The Dolphins roster is a little thin with all the revamping going on.  As a result, the team is adding perhaps a few more undrafted free agents than most teams.

It may have been lost in my recap of the Draft, but the Dolphins added this group immediately after the draft.

WR Davone Bess, Hawaii
QB/WR Jayson Foster, Georgia Southern
OT Daren Heerspink, Portland State
OT Mike Byrne, Delaware
OT Dan Gore, Boise State
K Dan Carpenter, Montana
LB Kelly Poppinga, BYU
TE Matt Mulligan, Maine

Now, that’s a standard undrafted class for most NFL teams.  But remember I mentioned that the Dolphins are thin.  Critically thin at positions like WR and CB.  So, the Dolphins today brought in ANOTHER class of undrafted players.

WR Selwyn Lymon, formerly of Purdue
QB Willie Copeland, Valdosta
TE Kris Kasparek, Akron
FB Rolly Lumbala, Idaho
CB Aaron Lane, Purdue
DL Titus Brown, Mississippi State
CB Scorpio Babers, Sam Houston State

You might have stopped at the first one.  Selwyn Lymon, FORMERLY of Purdue?  What happened?  Well, Lymon is a little bit of a character risk.  He’s actually still on probation for his involvement in a fight outside a bar near Purdue.  Lymon was successful at Purdue, 73 catches for 1030 yards and 5 TDs the last two seasons.  But, two days after being arrested on a drunk driving charge, he was kicked off the team.

The Triforce has emphasized good character in the players they bring in, but undrafted free agents are so low risk/high reward that they are taking some chances, after doing careful research and interviews.  Bess, the Hawaii receiver, served a 15-month sentence in juvenile for driving a car with stolen goods when he was 17.  His agent says he’s been a model citizen since, but you know the front office looked into everything.

The Dolphins are a team so in transition that chances are pretty good a majority of these guys will make the roster.  Call it the “Warm Body Principle”.  They’ll fill the bench and be the just-in-case guys.  Next season, when the Dolphins bring in another draft class and more free agents, the guys that haven’t performed will be cut loose.

But, no matter if you guys are here for a cup of coffee or a lifelong career, welcome to the Phins!