Part A: The Best of Times, The Worst of Times: Belichick in the Draft-Breaking down Patriots draft selections by College conferences.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 10, 2011 4:28 PM EDT

Part A:

One of our Pulpiteers posted this comment a couple of days ago: "VALUE and SEC are two major contributors to BB's draft decisions" and I wanted to know if the myth of SEC players selected by Bill Belichick was indeed true. I will break down Bill's 11 draft classes by their collegiate conference and break down what Universities they attended. Using my previous fanpost; I will then determine if there was value among those conferences.

Over a series of articles, I will publish my findings.

2000 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
2	46	Adrian Klemm	Offensive tackle	WAC	Hawaii
3	76	J. R. Redmond	Running back	PAC 10	Arizona State
4	127	Greg Robinson-Randall	Offensive tackle	Big 10	Michigan State
5	141	Dave Stachelski	Tight end	WAC	Boise State
5	161	Jeff Marriott	Defensive tackle	Big 12	Missouri
6	187	Antwan Harris	Safety	ACC	Virginia
6	199	Tom Brady	Quarterback	Big 10	Michigan
6	201	David Nugent	Defensive end	Big 10	Purdue
7	226	Casey Tisdale	Linebacker	MWC	New Mexico
7	239	Patrick Pass	Fullback	SEC	Georgia

2001 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	6	Richard Seymour	Defensive tackle	SEC	Georgia
2	48	Matt Light	Offensive tackle	Big 10	Purdue
3	86	Brock Williams	Cornerback	Independent (No conference)	Notre Dame
4	96	Kenyatta Jones	Offensive tackle	Independent (No conference)	South Florida
4	119	Jabari Holloway	Tight end	Independent (No conference)	Notre Dame
5	163	Hakim Akbar	Safety	PAC 10	Washington
6	180	Arther Love	Tight end	Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference	South Carolina State
6	200	Leonard Myers	Cornerback	Big East	Miami (FL)
7	216	Owen Pochman	Kicker	MWC	BYU
7	239	T. J. Turner	Linebacker	Big 10	Michigan State

2002 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	21	Daniel Graham	Tight end	Big 12	Colorado
2	65	Deion Branch	Wide receiver	C-USA	Louisville
4	117	Rohan Davey	Quarterback	SEC	LSU
4	126	Jarvis Green	Defensive end	SEC	LSU
7	237	Antwoine Womack	Running back	ACC	Virginia
7	253	David Givens	Wide receiver	Independent (No conference)	Notre Dame

2003 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	13	Ty Warren	Defensive tackle	Big 12	Texas A&M
2	36	Eugene Wilson	Cornerback	Big 10	Illinois
2	45	Bethel Johnson	Wide receiver	Big 12	Texas A&M
4	117	Dan Klecko	Defensive tackle	Big East	Temple
4	120	Asante Samuel	Cornerback	MAC	Central Florida
5	164	Dan Koppen	Center	Big East	Boston College
6	201	Kliff Kingsbury	Quarterback	Big 12	Texas Tech
7	234	Spencer Nead	Tight end	MWC	BYU
7	239	Tully Banta-Cain	Linebacker	PAC 10	California
7	243	Ethan Kelley	Defensive tackle	Big 12	Baylor

2004 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	21	Vince Wilfork	Defensive tackle	Big East	Miami (FL)
1	32	Benjamin Watson	Tight end	SEC	Georgia
2	63	Marquise Hill	Defensive end	SEC	LSU
3	95	Guss Scott	Safety	SEC	Florida
4	128	Dexter Reid	Safety	ACC	North Carolina
4	128	Cedric Cobbs	Running back	SEC	Arkansas
5	164	P. K. Sam	Wide receiver	ACC	Florida State
7	233	Christian Morton	Cornerback	ACC	Florida State

2005 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	32	Logan Mankins	Offensive guard	WAC	Fresno State
3	84	Ellis Hobbs	Cornerback	Big 12	Iowa State
3	100	Nick Kaczur	Offensive tackle	MAC	Toledo
4	133	James Sanders	Safety	WAC	Fresno State
5	170	Ryan Claridge	Linebacker	MWC	UNLV
7	230	Matt Cassel	Quarterback	PAC 12	Southern California
7	255	Andy Stokes	Tight end	Mid-States Football Association	William Penn

2006 class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	21	Laurence Maroney	Running back	Big 10	Minnesota
2	36	Chad Jackson	Wide receiver	SEC	Florida
3	86	David Thomas	Tight end	Big 12	Texas
4	106	Garrett Mills	Tight end	C-USA	Tulsa
4	118	Stephen Gostkowski	Kicker	C-USA	Memphis
5	136	Ryan O'Callaghan	Offensive tackle	PAC 10	California
6	191	Jeremy Mincey	Defensive end	SEC	Florida
6	205	Dan Stevenson	Offensive guard	Independent	Notre Dame
6	206	Le Kevin Smith	Defensive tackle	Big 12	Nebraska
7	229	Willie Andrews	Defensive back	Big 12	Baylor

2007 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	24	Brandon Meriweather	Safety	ACC	Miami (FL)
4	127	Kareem Brown	Defensive end	ACC	Miami (FL)
5	171	Clint Oldenburg	Offensive tackle	MWC	Colorado State
6	180	Justin Rogers	Linebacker	C-USA	SMU
6	202	Mike Richardson	Cornerback	Independent	Notre Dame
6	208	Justise Hairston	Running back	Northeast	Central Connecticut State
6	209	Corey Hilliard	Offensive guard	Big 12	Oklahoma State
7	211	Oscar Lua	Linebacker	PAC 10	USC
7	247	Mike Elgin	Center	Big 10	Iowa

2008 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	10	Jerod Mayo	Linebacker	SEC	Tennessee
2	62	Terrence Wheatley	Cornerback	Big 12	Colorado
3	78	Shawn Crable	Linebacker	Big 10	Michigan
3	94	Kevin O'Connell	Quarterback	MWC	San Diego State
4	129	Jonathan Wilhite	Cornerback	SEC	Auburn
5	153	Matthew Slater	Safety	PAC 10	UCLA
6	197	Bo Ruud	Linebacker	Big 12	Nebraska

2009 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
2	34	Pat Chung	Safety	PAC 10	Oregon
2	40	Ron Brace	Defensive tackle	ACC	Boston College
2	41	Darius Butler	Cornerback	Big East	Connecticut
2	58	Sebastian Vollmer	Offensive tackle	C-USA	Houston
3	83	Brandon Tate	Wide receiver	ACC	North Carolina
3	97	Tyrone McKenzie	Linebacker	Big East	South Florida
4	123	Rich Ohrnberger	Offensive guard	Big 10	Penn State
5	170	George Bussey	Offensive guard	Big East	Louisville
6	198	Jake Ingram	Long snapper	WAC	Hawaii
6	207	Myron Pryor	Defensive tackle	SEC	Kentucky
7	232	Julian Edelman	Wide receiver	MAC	Kent State
7	234	Darryl Richard	Defensive tackle	ACC	Georgia Tech

2010 Class

Round	Overall	Player	Position	Conference	College
1	27	Devin McCourty	Cornerback	Big East	Rutgers
2	42	Rob Gronkowski	Tight end	PAC 10	Arizona
2	53	Jermaine Cunningham	Linebacker	SEC	Florida
2	62	Brandon Spikes	Linebacker	SEC	Florida
3	90	Taylor Price	Wide receiver	MAC	Ohio
4	113	Aaron Hernandez	Tight end	SEC	Florida
5	150	Zoltan Mesko	Punter	Big 10	Michigan
6	205	Ted Larsen	Center	ACC	NC State
7	208	Thomas Welch	Offensive tackle	SEC	Vanderbilt
7	247	Brandon Deaderick	Defensive end	SEC	Alabama
7	248	Kade Weston	Defensive tackle	SEC	Georgia
7	250	Zac Robinson	Quarterback	Big 12	Oklahoma State

Part B of the article to be up on Monday.

The views expressed in these FanPosts are not necessarily those of the writers or SBNation.

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Comments

I wish you had e-mailed me about this first

All the information is there, but absolutely no interpretation from you.

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 5:43 PM EDT reply actions

Read the article

I said this

Over a series of articles, I will publish my findings.

Part B will be up on monday evening.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 10, 2011 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions

but this is hardly an article Ninja because there is no substance

divulging at least a little bit would’ve been nice. That’s why I said “I wish you had e-mailed me about this first”

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 7:14 PM EDT up reply actions

well.

Should have been on when I was working on it on sat.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 10, 2011 7:32 PM EDT up reply actions

can't be on gchats all the time lol

and you said you’d e-mail me to review it…

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 7:50 PM EDT up reply actions

I wonder...

Does the fact that the SEC was the best conference (by quite a way) over the last 4ish seasons have anything to do with drafting SEC guys?

Maybe someone has the actual numbers, but I would want to see if the Patriots have more SEC picks than the league average. My guess would be “not significantly”, remembering that the Pats would have had more picks than most.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 10, 2011 7:21 PM EDT reply actions

Well what those players were drafted for matters too

Hypothetically, if they drafted 10 SEC guys, but 7 were 6th and 7th rounders, they weren’t really valued all that highly, they were just better than the alternatives at the lower end of the draft

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 7:30 PM EDT up reply actions

By the same token, though...

You could interpret that as “they had a choice between a SEC 7th rounder and a [other than SEC] 7th rounder, and went SEC”.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.
Contributing Writer at PatsPulpit

by Comedic.Sans on Apr 11, 2011 3:09 AM EDT up reply actions

you could also interpret it as

“all the talented players from other conferences got taken already” lol
just saying…

by pats4life on Apr 11, 2011 10:05 AM EDT up reply actions

Given that the SEC was the best conference though, it would stand to reason that the better player at any spot was in the SEC. Now of course this doesn’t hold true for every case, but the better 1st round TE would probably have been in the SEC, and the better 7th round guard was probably playing in the SEC.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 11, 2011 10:11 AM EDT up reply actions

SEC is best conference because of what?

cause they won the most National Championships? Does that mean that the Packers played in the toughest conference this year?

by pats4life on Apr 11, 2011 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Come on.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 11, 2011 11:35 AM EDT up reply actions

you're going to have to be a little bit more specific

by pats4life on Apr 11, 2011 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions

SEC has the best win percentage in bowls and against other conferences (in regular season) past 4-5 years

It has won the past 4 national championships. If I had to bet, their reign will be a couple more years, then it will rotate. PAC-10 and Big-10, and (formerly) Big-12 will all be better (Big-12 for the past few years had been very good) and SEC will drop a little. As long as Notre Dame never wins another thing.

WE ARE PENN STATE

by Cameron O on Apr 11, 2011 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions

That is not true whatsoever

while the SEC for the past few years has been the strongest conference, that does not mean that the “SEC TE” will be better than the others. In fact, its completely different. In the SEC, they have lots of faster, smaller type players in spread offenses. The TE’s of the SEC are like Herndo, more like WR’s. PAC-10 and Big-10 TE’s would be more all around TE’s in terms of pass catching and blocking ability. The QB’s have run more pro-style offenses. The running backs are used to running from the I formation instead of the shotgun position. On Defense, their isn’t quite the difference (because almost all colleges use some variations of different systems anyways, there is no “standard defense”) So the SEC guy won’t always translate to the NFL better just because he is an “SEC” guy. Because SEC /=/ NFL.

WE ARE PENN STATE

by Cameron O on Apr 11, 2011 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

This is true

think the Jags and Broncos love their draft selections of Derrick Harvey and Jarvis Moss now?

Editor at BT Powerhouse, a Big Ten Basketball blog.
Author at Acme Packing Company, a Green Bay Packers blog

by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Apr 11, 2011 8:49 PM EDT up reply actions

It was an example.

Perhaps I should have gone WR or QB, though.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 11, 2011 10:45 PM EDT up reply actions

What Qb?

Tebow…lulz.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 11, 2011 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Hey, he's an elite guy.

We’re gonna be trading for him as soon as there’s a CBA, apparently.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 11, 2011 11:14 PM EDT up reply actions

I swear....Tolly is right...bunch of morons over there.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 11, 2011 11:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Didn't he play well, when he played?

Being behind a starter does not mean that the rookie will never be good, just that he’s behind another player that is better than him right now.

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Go see Mosul's new blog! An Observation on Sports

by PotM on Apr 14, 2011 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions

But we already have 3 tight ends... 3 really good tight ends at that

If you want to be a backup for TB, you better be one of the fiercest and angriest on field personalities around. I’m talking someone a step above Philip Rivers and a step below Ryan Leaf.. I’m talking postgame interview Derek Anderson angry. Hoyer is fun and so was Cassell. But they didn’t bring the intensity that Tom has.

If knowledge is power and power corrupts...

by satsunada on Apr 14, 2011 6:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Tebow might be interesting in the shotgun as a Faulk...

Direct snap to the RB who throws it? Uh, yeah.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.
Contributing Writer at PatsPulpit

by Comedic.Sans on Apr 15, 2011 4:30 AM EDT up reply actions

I'm still waiting for Edelman to heave one...

If knowledge is power and power corrupts...

by satsunada on Apr 15, 2011 9:21 AM EDT up reply actions

They lined him up for one...

but he jumped the gun and came into motion before the snap, which was a penalty. They settled for a more conventional play after that, but they were definitely lining him up for the direct-snap rush up the middle.

They set him out up wide in an empty backfield set and motioned him to the shotgun back position, off to Brady’s right.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.
Contributing Writer at PatsPulpit

by Comedic.Sans on Apr 15, 2011 8:37 PM EDT up reply actions

When

they brought him in for workouts, they worked him out as WR, returner, and RB.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 15, 2011 9:00 PM EDT up reply actions

Hasn't he played well, when he has played?

by PotM on Apr 14, 2011 4:26 PM EDT up reply actions

I wouldn't say well.

Average. Good for a rookie, but I’d want to see him take some huge steps this season.

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 14, 2011 11:13 PM EDT up reply actions

In his accuracy %.

He played very well, for what most people considered a huge project.

by PotM on Apr 15, 2011 4:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Hello?

Editor at BT Powerhouse, a Big Ten Basketball blog.
Author at Acme Packing Company, a Green Bay Packers blog

by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Apr 10, 2011 8:22 PM EDT reply actions

wrong thread

"Perhaps it was the Noid who should have avoided me." Mayor Adam West

by insertscreenname on Apr 10, 2011 8:35 PM EDT up reply actions

lmao

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 8:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Not really

I was promised props, Ninja!

Editor at BT Powerhouse, a Big Ten Basketball blog.
Author at Acme Packing Company, a Green Bay Packers blog

by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Apr 10, 2011 8:48 PM EDT up reply actions

lol

by pats4life on Apr 10, 2011 9:44 PM EDT up reply actions

Major Props to OB

Cause he helped me w. schools esp the ACC/Big East and the non BCS schools pre-2005…such a pain in the a**.

Non Sibi Sed Patriae ;I bleed Scarlet and Grey...A Buckeye for Life.
Cameron Heyward- Future 3-4 RDE for the New England Patriots.

by NinjaZX6R on Apr 10, 2011 9:24 PM EDT up reply actions

Anyone else wonder what Jake Ingram was doing on his draft day?

I mean, he’s a long snapper right? What are the odds of getting picked in the draft as a long snapper? I wonder if he even watched that day. Think he was out tipping a few pack and enjoying Hawaii one last time before he shipped off to tryouts as a UFA?

Even better, what do you think his agent was doing? Surely he wasn’t expecting a call… at least not that soon.

If knowledge is power and power corrupts...

by satsunada on Apr 11, 2011 12:41 AM EDT reply actions

why isn't there any substance to these charts?

I feel like these could have been posted in context with your other articles or at the very least just been posted elsewhere and then supplied as a simple link.

by pats4life on Apr 15, 2011 1:04 AM EDT reply actions