Jimmy Graham and the Senior Bowl

One of the best things about coaching in the Senior Bowl is you get a chance to make very specific points to individual players -- on the field -- and see how they react. 

If a kid looks back at you with glassy eyes, maybe he's not so smart. If a kid resists or doesn't immediately put into practice what you're trying to get him to do, maybe he's not so coachable. 

Along those lines, I found it interesting Tuesday when Miami Dolphins/South team coach Tony Sparano took a few players aside for quick tutorials. One of those was South Florida free safety Nate Allen. Another was University of Miami tight end Jimmy Graham, who -- oh, by the way -- has signed on with Tennessee-based agent Jimmy Sexton (who also happens to represent Sparano and a guy by the name of Bill Parcells). 

At one point, Sparano, a former tight ends coach, took Graham out of a drill and basically led him by the hand into the right flat. Graham nodded, Sparano patted him on the butt and it was back to work. 

"We were just talking about fundamanetals on a particular route," Sparano said when I asked him about it later. "I was just talking about a particular route that he was running and some of the techniques he might want to use."

Earlier this week, Sparano was highly complimentary of Graham and UM players in general. Linebacker Darryl Sharpton is also here; he's a Drew Rosenhaus client. 

"I like what I've seen out of [Graham]," Sparano said. "He’s a good prospect without a doubt. Miami does a great job. Randy [Shannon] does a great job with his players. They’re very well coached. This will be a good experience for him this week."

Remember, when Parcells and GM Jeff Ireland recently attended a UM practice leading up to their bowl game, they reportedly watched Graham very intently. Graham's upside remains tremendous because the former basketball player came to the sport so late. 

If Anthony Fasano moves on in March, most likely as a restricted free agent, the Dolphins might want to take a mid-round run at Graham. Even if Fasano stays, Graham could be on the Dolphins' radar. It wasn't like Joey Haynos set the world on fire last season. 

Graham, by the way, measured at 6 feet 6, 259 pounds with 34 3/4-inch arm length and hands that measured 10 5/8 in diameter. Those hands are the biggest among the six tight ends here this week. 

By comparison, Mike Hoomanawanui came in at 10 1/4 inches. Joe W's buddy Ed Dickson (Oregon) was at 9 3/4. Wisconsin's Garrett Graham was at 9 3/8, while Alabama's Colin Peek (9 5/8) and USC's Anthony McCoy (9 3/4) were in the same range. 



(omar kelly - sun-sentinel.com)