Josh Ouellette
By Josh Ouellette
The Mid-Valley 2011 Draft was a huge success this year. 120 players were chosen and needs for NFL teams were filled. High school football for the season is unfortunately over.
I love the 1st and 3rd picks. Garrett Pendleton and Aaron Cantu definitely deserved those spots.
I don’t know where Big George was going with drafting a center that early, but it’s Big George so who knows.
Josh Lowden drafted two Monrovia players for his first two picks. Shockingly enough I wasn’t surprised.
Saile went Trent Washington and then Jeff Worthy in his first two picks. I like the lineman love he showed there, and he filled a few needs for his team. Solid picks.
I am shocked Elijhaa Penny dropped to the 20th overall pick. I am even more surprised the Packers drafted him with Ryan Grant. But I am happy he went first round, he deserved that.
Joe picked up Ellis McCarthy, Josh Jones and Arthur Brown in the first three rounds. There’s a good balance there.
Duane and Tim had good drafts too. Their second round picks were what made their draft though. Duane got Michael Ball, and as he said, “Name a better all around athlete in the draft.” I couldn’t think of one right away, making his pick even more legitimate. Tim got Tarez Lemmons in the same round. The dude was a stud, and he fills the 3-4 Nose Tackle position better than primadona Albert Haynesworth does.
Saller showed up with one of the better overall drafts this year. Snagging Connor Bednarski, Craig Jones, Jake Houts, Michael Jimenez (a fourth round steal), Mike Cortez. But then he drafted Scott Williams. Not knocking the player, just knocking the decision to go get a tight end right there.
Villa the Devil surprisingly didn’t steal all of my picks this year. Praise the lord.
Big Tony kept it mostly in the Del Rio, I guess when that’s all you really cover all year it makes it easier to choose those players.
The majority of the players taken were from Monrovia, Wes Covina, Whittier Christian, and La Serna. With Bonita, Maranatha, and Arroyo also having quite a few picks.
And to bring it to my draft I will explain my decisions. I got Eric Mickity in the first round, which was a stretch I know, but he had over 160 total tackles and 8.5 sacks playing as an undersized interior linebacker. Even though most Tennessee Titans players are undersized, they play hard, with heart and always find a way to be one of the better defensive fronts in the League.
Next I went with Cameron Stanley. Simple explanation. Titans need a possession receiver. Stanley was the best possession receiver in the area, and he can even be a deep threat when it is needed of him. I loved watching him play.
I am going to skip my third round pick to be talked about later.
In the fourth round I chose Ulises Ochoa, which was clearly a steal that late in the draft. He will settle in well running the ball when Chris Johnson needs a breather after a long touchdown run.
In the fifth I went with Chris Cornell. For me he moves from middle to the outside linebacker position. He’s a running back too, so you know he can cover receivers when he needs to. And most importantly he can fill the outside gaps and lay some heavy hits.
The sixth round is simple also. I needed to get a TC guy. Carlos Mota is a great young linebacker who is fast enough to move back into the safety position, which is where I want him as a Titan. Not only that, but he is an amazing hitter for his size and he doesn’t ever give up. Enough said.
So here is the moment I have been waiting for. Justifying the decision to choose Andrew Elfers in the third round.
Elfers put up the best passing numbers in the area by far, as a sophomore. He is cleaner mechanically than most players who are two years his elder. He plays like Colt McCoy. He has two years to grow in high school and will be one of the top players in next year’s draft, and in the 2013 draft.
He completed 65% of his passes and was only picked off 10 times all year to 37 touchdowns. The percentage and touchdowns can only go up, while the interceptions will go down.
I can’t wait to watch him play next year
If you’re still a doubter, watch his highlight video, which is posted on the site.
Then you can put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Contact Josh at josh@midvalleysports.com
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