Mobile Alabama, Here We Come!

The Jets were selected to coach the senior bowl for the first time since 1979.

Good morning Jets fans, and welcome to another edition of TJW. My plan for this week was to reduce the newsletter to three editions as we head into the off-season. Instead, here we are on Wednesday morning and we’re already on the 4th edition of the week. We have a lot to get through today so let’s just dive straight in.

Sweet Home Alabama

We’ve been waiting a long time, but finally, the Jets will be back in Mobile to coach the Senior Bowl. The Lions who will join the Jets in 2022 after having coached the game in 2020 as well, the Jets on the other hand haven’t coached at the marquee all-star game since 1979.

What is the Senior Bowl?

The Senior Bowl is the main post-season college football all-star game, held for players who have exhausted their college eligibility. It’s held annually in Mobile Alabama and in 2022 the game will be held on the 5th of February and as well as acting as a showcase for some of the best talent in college football, it’s also a charitable fundraiser. The Jets and Lions will each send their coaching staffs to Mobile to hold practices and coach in the game itself.

Practises will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday before the game on Saturday.

Can you play if you’re not a senior?

In certain circumstances, there is a way for juniors to play in the senior bowl. Both Justin Pugh and D.J Fluker played in the senior bowl as juniors, they were granted clearance to play because they had already graduated. However, the vast majority of the team will be made up of college seniors.

Is the game different?

In many ways, the game is significantly less important than the week of practice. There are certain rules in the game to help the teams and limit the potential for injuries. You are not allowed to block below the waist and the defense can only send a maximum of 4 rushers. All other rules are based on the pro game rather than the college game, for example, receivers need to get two feet in-bounds to complete a catch like it is in the NFL, in college receivers only need to get one foot down.

How are players selected?

Every single year organizers led by Jim Nagy work through hundreds of potential prospects to reduce the list to 110 invitations. Last year there were closer to 140 players on site the week before the game. The players are then divided into north and south teams with one NFL team coaching the North and one NFL team coaching the South.

Why does it matter?

Coaching at the Senior Bowl allows the team access to extended information on the prospect, you see how they react to coaching, how they handle and process information, you get a better feel for their character and personality.

You also get to see players in a controlled environment, similar to the combine. Everyone at the Senior Bowl is there on an equal footing and the one-on-one drills are always the most popular in terms of drawing scouts.

Defensive backs v wide receivers and offensive lineman v defensive lineman are key matchups that the Senior Bowl is renowned for. The Jets just so happen to have a need at all of those positions, so getting access to extended time with these prospects is only going to help the process.

Who can we expect to see there?

It would take a long time to go through everyone who’s accepted an invitation but you can see the list HERE.

Some names that stand out are Auburn’s Roger McCreary (CB), Coby Bryant from Cincy (CB), Jaquan Brisker from Penn State (S), Myjai Sanders from Cincy (Edge), Devonte Wyatt from Georgia (DT), Quay Walker from Georgia (LB), Chad Muma from Wyoming (LB), Trevor Penning from Northern Iowa (OT), Lecitus Smith from Virginia (OG), Cole Strange from Chattanooga (OG), Trey McBride from Colorado State (TE), Isaiah Likely from Coastal Carolina (TE), Jahan Dotson from Penn State (WR) and Jalen Tolbert from South Alabama (WR).

What happened last time the Jets coached the Senior Bowl?

Good things.

In short, the Jets went into that 1979 Senior Bowl and came out with Mark Gastineau and Marty Lyons, two members of the famed New York Sack Exchange. While Lyons was a well-known name and a big player at Alabama, Gastineau wasn’t quite as well known from East Central Oklahoma State University.

I reached out to former Jets scout Connie Carberg to get an inside perspective of that 1979 senior bowl and how it helped the Jets in terms of their draft preparation:

The Jets were building after Walt Michaels took over as Head Coach - and after going 8-8 in 1978 the NY Jets were awarded the opportunity to coach the North squad in the Senior Bowl which was held on January 13,1979.

This is our first opportunity in 43 years to Coach the top Seniors from Colleges. Practices were huge and getting to really know the players personally, their work ethic, love of the game, and skills.

Marty Lyons ended up Defensive MVP on the South and Mark Gastineau as Defensive MVP for the North. Marty was a star at Alabama but Mark was chosen as a substitute after Mike Stensrud suffered an injury the week before - Mark was from the small school of East central Oklahoma and the question was how would he do vs “big football schools? “ but given the opportunity - according to Jets DL Coach Dan Sekanovich he just blew everyone away in practice with quicks, strength, and intensity. Plus his speed and they all saw he wasn’t a 4-5 round pick. So Jets selected Marty 14th pick in 1st round and Mark (pick 41) in second.

The Senior Bowl gives an extra edge to the coaches of each squad for an entire week. And now each team more than back then, has different schemes and types of players that fit their particular team so being with the Senior Bowl is a true bonus as they prepare for the 2022 draft! Abilities. Attitudes, smarts, intangibles, different levels of competition playing against each other. It’s a special game and week

Is that the only other time the Jets have coached the Senior Bowl?

No. Weeb Ewbank was the first Jets coach to take control of a team at the Senior Bowl in 1966. He took the reigns again in 1971 and 1973. Robert Saleh will be the 3rd Jets coach to coach in the game, but this will be the 5th time the Jets have coached it.

The Jets ended up taking Hall of Famer John Riggins in the 1971 draft and while they did take Emerson Boozer in 1966, he wasn’t at the Senior Bowl.

#13

Earlier this week we lost one of the all-time greats in football and one of the marquee players in the history of this franchise. Don was the first-ever player to sign on to play for the Titans of New York after being drafted by the Giants and let go after just one season, and having spent some time in the CFL with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Maynard created a partnership with Maynard that was the envy of the league, they combined for TD after TD. Although Don didn’t have a catch in the Super Bowl victory over the Colts, he drew double teams all game after destroying Oakland in the Championship game, he was also suffering from a hamstring injury, a detail the Baltimore Colts were unaware of.

We could write a whole lot about Don, but I’m going to leave it here with the end of his hall of fame induction speech. You will be missed Don, once a Jet, always a Jet.

"I came to play, and I came to stay, Football was a game, Country Don was my name. I made a mark and I became a star, With a lot of help from near and far. There are good ones and great ones, I played with and against. Thank you, good Lord, for that wonderful chance. As I played my part many times even late after dark, I don't have to look back as I played it with my heart. The direction from where I came, Resulted in a whole lot of fame. I played the best and I believe I passed the test. I am glad this is over; I need some rest.”