Lindy's 2011 Preseason All-America Offensive Teams

[Tribal Warfare]

Lindy's 2011 Preseason All-America Offensive Teams

06/20/2011

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Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is Lindy's preseason pick for Offensive Player of the Year and headlines our 2011 All-America team. (Icon SMI)


By Jon Wilner

Rob Rang has been in the football scouting business for many years, and for much of that time LaDainian Tomlinson and Carson Palmer occupied the top of his all-time list of top prospects.

Then Ndamukong Suh came along and forced Rang to reshuffle his pantheon. Then Rang took a hard look at Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck — studied film, watched him in person, studied more film — and declared Luck the best player he had scouted. Ever.

“You like the size and the arm strength and the accuracy; all those things are Pro Bowl caliber,” said Rang, who works for CBSSports.com. “He has all the physical attributes,but a lot of quarterbacks over the years have had a rare blend of physical attributes. I’ve never seen a quarterback with the mental and physical attributes at his capacity.”

That combination — in addition to Luck’s 20-5 record as a starter — makes him the clear choice as Lindy’s 2011 preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

The 6-4, 235-pound junior, who finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting and led Stanford to an Orange Bowl victory, would have been the top pick in the NFL Draft in April. Instead, he returned for his junior season to pursue the national championship and his undergraduate degree. As for any second-guessing, Luck has none.

“I’m very happy,” he said.

Stanford’s opponents are not. Nor are teams with an eye on the national title ... or players with designs on the Heisman. Nor, for that matter, are the Carolina Panthers, who owned the No. 1 pick but were denied the chance to take the best quarterback prospect to enter the draft in years.

“Seeing him live, I’m blown away,” NFL analyst Ron Jaworski said after watching Luck during an Orange Bowl workout. “He looks, acts and carries himself like an NFL quarterback. He exudes leadership. He’s NFL-ready. He’s as sound a quarterback as anyone I’ve seen. He throws a tight spiral, has flawless mechanics and an array of throws.”

Luck even has NFL genes. His father, Oliver, was a reserve quarterback for the Houston Oilers in the mid-1980s. Oliver taught his son the game at an early age. In addition to Luck’s strong arm, he showed an instant aptitude for the game.

“He knows where everybody is; he knows about timing; he knows about anticipation,” Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. “With Oliver, (Andrew) probably was a quarterback from the time he was very young, and those genes passed on very well.”

Oliver was an NFL Europe executive, but the family returned to the United States and Andrew developed into a five-star prospect at Houston’s Stratford High School. With scholarship offers from more than 20 colleges, he picked Stanford because of the academics and coach Jim Harbaugh’s experience playing the position in the NFL.

After redshirting in his first year, Luck took command of the offense in 2009 and combined with tailback Toby Gerhart to lead Stanford to eight wins. Then Gerhart headed to the NFL and Luck blossomed into the best pro-style quarterback in the country: He had a passer rating of 170.2, enough mobility to break off two 50-yard runs and a feel for the position that left NFL scouts drooling.

“It’s amazing watching him and what he’s able to do before the snap,” USC coach Lane Kiffin said. “They change so many plays and protections. He’s so smart and so prepared and able to run when things aren’t open. The NFL scouts that come through here say his marks are off the charts and that he’s an absolute no-brainer.”

But a few days after leading Stanford to victory in the Orange Bowl, Luck announced he would return to Stanford — a decision that surprised the football world but not anyone inside the Cardinal program. Luck made it clear throughout the season that he enjoyed school, felt no pressure (financial or otherwise) to enter the draft and wanted his degree in architectural design.

Instantly, he became the 2012 Heisman favorite, and Stanford became a contender for the Pac-12 and national titles — even though it lost three starting offensive linemen, both starting receivers and Harbaugh. But the transition has been smooth. First-year coach David Shaw was Stanford’s offensive coordinator under Harbaugh and kept the playbook intact.

New quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton worked with the Stanford receivers last season as has a good relationship with Luck.

“They’ve done a great job really being on our butts about coming out every day with a purpose,” Luck said. “I think I’ve grown a lot personally.”

That’s not what Stanford’s opponents wanted to hear.

“We’re asking Andrew to take the next step,” Shaw said. “We’re asking him to be the player he was last year and even more of a leader and take even more control of the offense. He’s taken that responsibility and run with it.”


Here are Lindy's 2011 Preseason All-America Offensive Teams:


First Team

Pos. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. School

QB Andrew Luck, 6-4 235 Jr. Stanford
RB LaMichael James, 5-9 185 Jr. Oregon
RB Marcus Lattimore, 6-0 231 So. South Carolina
WR Justin Blackmon, 6-1 211 Jr. Oklahoma State
WR Ryan Broyles, 5-11 187 Sr. Oklahoma
TE Michael Egnew, 6-6 240 Sr. Missouri
C Mike Brewster, 6-5 293 Sr. Ohio State
OL Barrett Jones, 6-5 311 Jr. Alabama
OL Nate Potter, 6-6 300 Sr. Boise State
OL Matt Reynolds, 6-6 322 Sr. BYU
OL Levy Adcock, 6-6 322 Sr. Oklahoma State
PK Blair Walsh, 5-10 185 Sr. Georgia

Second Team

QB Kellen Moore, 6-0 191 Sr. Boise State
RB Trent Richardson, 5-11 224 Jr. Alabama
RB Knile Davis, 6-0 230 Jr. Arkansas
WR Alshon Jeffery, 6-4 233 Jr. South Carolina
WR Jeff Fuller, 6-4 215 Sr. Texas A&M
TE George Bryan, 6-5 265 Sr. NC State
C David Molk, 6-2 288 Sr. Michigan
OL David DeCastro, 6-5 310 Jr. Stanford
OL Jonathan Martin, 6-6 304 Jr. Stanford
OL Mike Adams, 6-8 300 Sr. Ohio State
OL Kelechi Osemele, 6-6 354 Sr. Iowa State
PK Danny Hrapmann, 5-9 160 Jr. Southern Miss