Brian Reed on Matt Roark
***For the first round of the contest, each of our prospective bloggers have been tasked with writing a profile about a specific UK football player. The only directions they were given were to make them informative, entertaining and interesting.
When my wife found out that my first assignment for KSR was to preview a receiver with one career reception, she responded, “Maybe he found out early in life that it is better to give than receive.” Unfortunately for Matt Roark, at this point in his career his biggest on-field moment hasn’t been a catch, but a collision with the ECU punter in the Liberty Bowl. I thought Coach Brooks was going to flip out and kill someone on that one. We’ll chalk that penalty up to Roark's youthful exuberance because off the field, his appearance on the Daily Dicky was classic. Here it is in case you missed it:
So, as you can see Roark set himself apart from the other freshmen receivers with his big personality and superior ability to riff with Dicky while lounging in the ice bath. It looked like he was positioning himself to be a big part of the Wildcat offense. Cue the quarterback troubles, the inability of the young receiver to adequately grasp the offense and the unapologetic SEC schedule, and before you know it, Eric Adeyemi and Gene McCaskill overshadow Roark. I guess kicking it with Dicky and being wiry can only take you so far.
Regardless of how Roark’s 2008 is remembered, the Cats are going to need the spindly 6’6” 195 pound sophomore from Georgia to step up, especially with the loss of senior EJ Adams. So far in 2009, he only catches touchdowns (one for nine yards in the Blue-White game). It wouldn’t hurt if he gained some muscle in the weight room during the off-season, but as DLJ says, “There’s not much more you can put on this guy.”
Yet it is Roark’s body and athletic ability that make him such a sought-after target and one of the most enticing options on the offense. With all of the skills and a year of learning under his belt, hopefully Roark can put the pieces together and be the big downfield target that Mike Hartline needs to keep SEC defenses honest. He’s poised to have a breakout season and if he happens to rough up a kicker or two in the process, lets just hope Papa Brooks doesn’t snap on him.
Beisner's take:First, let me just say I hate critiquing these things. Not only do I feel uncomfortable telling another writer if they're good or not, but I also like to think I'm a pretty nice guy....and ultimately come off as the biggest a-hole judge in the whole thing. Being a jerk aside, as the KSR Favorite Blogger, I am and always be a man of the people and I am promising to cater to my constituents throughout this entire contest. Make your voices heard people because I am here for you, the reader. My decision is your decision. Unless you're wrong. Then I'm going to veto you.
Anyway, sorry about that Brian. Let's make this about you now. Unfortunately for you, you are not only burdened with being the first contestant of this elimination period, but you also were given the gift of Matt Roark - a player who hasn't made a huge impact thus far. But, the task wasn't to start a Heisman campaign and I think that your post did a pretty good job of encompassing the three ideals laid out by El Capitan Jones. It was informative, entertaining and interesting....although, honestly, I don't think you really hit it out of the park with any of them. I think when there is a lesser-known player, it's more of a green light to get creative and have fun with it and, personally, I think you could have gambled a bit more. But, the post was well-written and brief and if it was on the site (wait, it is), I don't think it would be out of place. I like the introduction with the witty line from your wife and including Dicky is never a bad thing. Writing about Matt Roark isn't like hitting the information lottery, but I think you did a pretty good job with it. A nice first effort.
However, I'm not going to guarantee you that second round spot just yet. My KSR family, your thoughts?
When my wife found out that my first assignment for KSR was to preview a receiver with one career reception, she responded, “Maybe he found out early in life that it is better to give than receive.” Unfortunately for Matt Roark, at this point in his career his biggest on-field moment hasn’t been a catch, but a collision with the ECU punter in the Liberty Bowl. I thought Coach Brooks was going to flip out and kill someone on that one. We’ll chalk that penalty up to Roark's youthful exuberance because off the field, his appearance on the Daily Dicky was classic. Here it is in case you missed it:
So, as you can see Roark set himself apart from the other freshmen receivers with his big personality and superior ability to riff with Dicky while lounging in the ice bath. It looked like he was positioning himself to be a big part of the Wildcat offense. Cue the quarterback troubles, the inability of the young receiver to adequately grasp the offense and the unapologetic SEC schedule, and before you know it, Eric Adeyemi and Gene McCaskill overshadow Roark. I guess kicking it with Dicky and being wiry can only take you so far.
Regardless of how Roark’s 2008 is remembered, the Cats are going to need the spindly 6’6” 195 pound sophomore from Georgia to step up, especially with the loss of senior EJ Adams. So far in 2009, he only catches touchdowns (one for nine yards in the Blue-White game). It wouldn’t hurt if he gained some muscle in the weight room during the off-season, but as DLJ says, “There’s not much more you can put on this guy.”
Yet it is Roark’s body and athletic ability that make him such a sought-after target and one of the most enticing options on the offense. With all of the skills and a year of learning under his belt, hopefully Roark can put the pieces together and be the big downfield target that Mike Hartline needs to keep SEC defenses honest. He’s poised to have a breakout season and if he happens to rough up a kicker or two in the process, lets just hope Papa Brooks doesn’t snap on him.
Beisner's take:First, let me just say I hate critiquing these things. Not only do I feel uncomfortable telling another writer if they're good or not, but I also like to think I'm a pretty nice guy....and ultimately come off as the biggest a-hole judge in the whole thing. Being a jerk aside, as the KSR Favorite Blogger, I am and always be a man of the people and I am promising to cater to my constituents throughout this entire contest. Make your voices heard people because I am here for you, the reader. My decision is your decision. Unless you're wrong. Then I'm going to veto you.
Anyway, sorry about that Brian. Let's make this about you now. Unfortunately for you, you are not only burdened with being the first contestant of this elimination period, but you also were given the gift of Matt Roark - a player who hasn't made a huge impact thus far. But, the task wasn't to start a Heisman campaign and I think that your post did a pretty good job of encompassing the three ideals laid out by El Capitan Jones. It was informative, entertaining and interesting....although, honestly, I don't think you really hit it out of the park with any of them. I think when there is a lesser-known player, it's more of a green light to get creative and have fun with it and, personally, I think you could have gambled a bit more. But, the post was well-written and brief and if it was on the site (wait, it is), I don't think it would be out of place. I like the introduction with the witty line from your wife and including Dicky is never a bad thing. Writing about Matt Roark isn't like hitting the information lottery, but I think you did a pretty good job with it. A nice first effort.
However, I'm not going to guarantee you that second round spot just yet. My KSR family, your thoughts?
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