The Scores Report - The National Sports Blog » Dan LeFevour Central Michigan

Chiefs, Browns, Seahawks all interested in CMU’s LeFevour

Anthony Stalter — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:20:26 +0000

According to Central Michigan beat writer Drew Ellis of the Mount Pleasant Morning Sun, the Chiefs, Browns and Seahawks were all on hand to watch quarterback prospect Dan LeFevour work out at his Pro Day on Wednesday morning. The Panthers and Vikings also watched him go through passing drills.

The most notable name on hand was new Kansas City offensive coordinator Charlie Weis, who told Ellis that he was specifically there to watch LeFevour. There was also a rumor that the Chiefs had dinner with LeFevour last night.

Questions have been raised about LeFevour’s arm strength and there also is concern that since he played mostly out of the shotgun in college that he won’t be able to run a pro style system at the next level. According to Ellis, LeFevour may not have quelled scouts’ fears about whether or not he can make all the throws.

“He did well throwing the short to intermediate passes today,” Ellis said. “But there was more loft on his deeper throws than you’d like to see and there wasn’t much velocity on his passes when he wasn’t throwing short. He might ultimately have to play in the West Coast Offense where accuracy is the most important thing.”

Ellis’ last bit about the West Coast Offense provides reason why the Browns would be interested, but why the Chiefs? GM Scott Pioli insisted in late February that the team would not be in the market for a starting quarterback in this year’s draft and is committed to Matt Cassel after signing him to a six-year, $63 million contract last season. And after extending a second-round tender on Brodie Croyle, they seem to be set on Cassel’s backup too, so it’s a little perplexing why Weis would want to watch LeFevour.

Another note from CMU’s Pro Day is that receiver Antonio Brown was garnering attention from the Vikings, Lions, Raiders and Dolphins. In fact, Miami held a private workout with him after he ran a 4.4 40-yard dash, which was an improvement over his 4.5 time at the combine. Brown’s stock has improved and he may wind up being selected before LeFevour.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Is LeFevour making the right decision by not throwing at the scouting combine?

Anthony Stalter — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:48:54 +0000

Depending on whom you ask, Central Michigan quarterback prospect Dan LeFevour is anywhere from a third round pick to a late round selection. And due to scouts’ concern about his lack of arm strength, the latter is probably more realistic.

After a lackluster week of practice leading up to the game, LeFevour threw for 97 yards and a touchdown on ten attempts in last month’s Senior Bowl. In effort to ride that success, he has decided not to throw at the NFL scouting combine, which kicks off Wednesday, February 24 and runs through March 2.

After racking up 12,905 passing yards, 2,948 rushing yards, 149 total touchdowns and a completion percentage of 66.4, his collegiate numbers speak for themselves. But is he taking a major risk by not throwing at the combine? Does he need to prove to scouts that he can make all the throws?

To gain a better perspective on the topic from someone who watched LeFevour play in college, I asked Central Michigan beat writer Drew Ellis of the Mt. Pleasant Morning Sun about the benefits and risks of LeFevour not throwing at the combine.

“The strategy behind not throwing at the combine could simply be to try and give LeFevour the best chance to impress scouts when he finally does throw in front of them,” said Ellis. “LeFevour has chemistry with Bryan Anderson and Antonio Brown and if threw at the combine, he could be throwing to some guy he has never met or worked with.”

While LeFevour opted out of throwing at the combine, he confirmed that he would throw at CMU’s Pro Day in March.

“The key to LeFevour’s draft status will clearly depend on his throwing performance, so I think he and his agent want to make sure he has the best situation possible for throwing in front of scouts,” said Ellis. “Also, at CMU’s Pro Day, he will be the lone quarterback on display. At the combine, he could get lost in the shuffle. Again, this is just maximizing his potential to move up in the draft.”

Of course, LeFevour is taking a risk by not throwing at the combine.

“The only setback to his choice could be in upsetting some teams, but for those that have covered LeFevour, you know he is not a diva or looking to big-time anyone. He is simply trying to give himself the best future possible, and you can’t fault him for that.”

Financially, the only thing that matters is being selected as high as possible come April. That’s why it’s vital for prospects to maximize their strengths and cover up their weaknesses until they get into their first camp.

For LeFevour, his strengths are his size, athleticism, accuracy, leadership, intelligence and work ethic. He can show most of those skills off at the scouting combine without worrying about picking up a ball until his pro day. Thus, it makes sense that he would skip the throwing portion at the combine and risk upsetting scouts in the process. It’s a risk that could wind up paying dividends for the CMU product in the end.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Is Dan LeFevour a potential middle-round steal?

Anthony Stalter — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:15:23 +0000

For those of you that partook in Wednesday night’s MAC football matchup between Toledo and Central Michigan, you had to be impressed from what you saw out of senior quarterback Dan LeFevour.

LeFevour completed 29-of-36 pass attempts for 341 yards and two touchdowns in the Chippewas’ 56-28 rout of the Rockets. He also rushed 14 times for 19 yards with a whopping four touchdowns, which was rather Tim Tebow-esqe.

LeFevour doesn’t get as much press as fellow quarterback prospects Tebow, Colt McCoy, and Sam Bradford because of the conference he plays in. Hell, he even takes a back seat to Cincinnati’s Tony Pike on Mel Kiper’s list of top senior prospects at the quarterback position.

But the kid is good – real good.

Now, I admit that I’m biased because I went to CMU. But it’s hard not to appreciate what LeFevour can do when you watch him. He has great size at 6-3, 238-pounds, can run, can throw with accuracy, and has demonstrated excellent leadership. He was the 2006 MAC Freshman of the Year, the MVP for the 2006 Motor City Bowl and the 2007 MAC Championship Game and was the 2007 MAC Offensive Player of the Year.

You might be thinking, “MAC football? Wow, who cares…” But don’t forget that Ben Roethlisberger is a product of the MAC, as is Chad Pennington. While not quarterbacks, Randy Moss, Joshua Cribbs, Lance Moore and a host of others also played in the MAC, so it’s clear that the conference is harvesting talent.

Granted, LeFevour does benefit from playing in a college-style offense that allows him to put up gaudy numbers and therefore it might take him awhile to learn a pro system. He also doesn’t throw the prettiest deep ball and his threat as a runner will be neutralized in the NFL because he doesn’t have great top-end speed. But he has the size, strength and durability to play at the next level, is a student of the game and is a winner. He could be a steal in the middle rounds in next April’s draft.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Mel Kiper is losing it

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:30:52 +0000

During one of his recent chats on ESPN.com, Mel Kiper answered a reader’s question about the quarterback class of 2010 and listed Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour as the next best signal caller behind Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford.

Jeff, Mpls: Looking ahead, will next years QB class be a lot better than this years?

Mel Kiper: Next year’s QB class will have Sam Bradford as the No. 1 guy. After that, you’d be looking at Dan LeFevour out of Central Michigan. Bradford should be the No. 1 overall pick. LeFevour in the top 10-15. Colt McCoy. Then Tim Tebow will factor in. And Pike out of Cincinnati.

I love Dan LeFevour. I’m a CMU grad and credit him for making the Chips relevant again in the MAC. He’s fun to watch and I’ll root for him no matter where he winds up. But I want some of whatever Kiper is smoking because there’s no way LeFevour is the second best quarterback behind Bradford in the 2010 draft class.

First and foremost, LeFevour rarely takes a snap from under center and he plays in the spread offense. He’s mobile, tough and he has decent size at 6’3″, 229 pounds. But he doesn’t have great arm strength or accuracy, doesn’t play against top competition in college and one has to believe that he would struggle trying to grasp a pro style offense. Kiper is nuts if he sees LeFevour as a top 15 pick.