Your thoughts on Elam this season
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Well if he is 4 and done, it makes little sense as well...you either get 3 years of him on the field or 4...i'll take 4 and the season of game experience over a RS year All day long.
You mean he didn't take his conditioning seriously as HS player in a relatively small town in Kentucky? Yeah, they surely reflects on his dedication to a college program with a system designed to get him in the best condition possible.Originally posted by C1180:
He certainly hasn't taken his conditioning seriously in the past. If he lost 45 pounds from HS he weighed 420 pounds in high school because he weighted 375 at UK last fall. IMO that is still a good 35 to 40 pounds or more over what he should weigh.Originally posted by TransyCat09:
Get his act together? He was a freshman for god's sakeOn top of that he lost 45 pounds from HS, so there's absolutely no reason to believe he is not taking his conditioning seriously
Every high school weight for him I've seen said 395 and UK says he was at 360 during the season (so I guess 35 lbs, not 45. My bad on that). The media guide weight was from his first camp weigh in. His body fat percentage has also dropped from 40% to 29%. Sounds like a slacker to me
He will probably be around 350 going into the season and will, hopefully, trim down to 340ish with a much better body fat percentage by his third year.
He needs to be around 340 of "good weight". That is about a 3 year process. Not only does he have to lose a lot of bad weight, but he then has to replace it with muscle and strength. Its one thing to be a big person and do lots of cardio and dieting to lose 100+lbs. Its another when you are trying to lose weight but also add the other areas to compete at the highest level in college football against guys who are big and strong as well. Its a tougher balancing act. Good thing for him is that he has all the resources anyone could possibly get at UK. It comes down to how bad does he want it.Originally posted by TransyCat09:
You mean he didn't take his conditioning seriously as HS player in a relatively small town in Kentucky? Yeah, they surely reflects on his dedication to a college program with a system designed to get him in the best condition possible.Originally posted by C1180:
He certainly hasn't taken his conditioning seriously in the past. If he lost 45 pounds from HS he weighed 420 pounds in high school because he weighted 375 at UK last fall. IMO that is still a good 35 to 40 pounds or more over what he should weigh.Originally posted by TransyCat09:
Get his act together? He was a freshman for god's sakeOn top of that he lost 45 pounds from HS, so there's absolutely no reason to believe he is not taking his conditioning seriously
Every high school weight for him I've seen said 395 and UK says he was at 360 during the season (so I guess 35 lbs, not 45. My bad on that). The media guide weight was from his first camp weigh in. His body fat percentage has also dropped from 40% to 29%. Sounds like a slacker to me
He will probably be around 350 going into the season and will, hopefully, trim down to 340ish with a much better body fat percentage by his third year.
I'm betting he weighs in at 350, and at his height and in view of his ridiculous frame, I feel like he can play a lot of successful ball at that size, as long as weight has been both lost and reorganized. 330-340 is not mandatory, though it might be an intermediate stop on the way to playing at a solid 350..
If you mean by that do I hate to see anyone waste tremendous potential? Than you are absolutely right. I would have given anything to of had this kids potential coming out of HS. I will guarantee you I would have not wasted it. I am not saying that this kid is wasting it because I really don't know. A fact however is he was not great at maintaining conditioning in high school. No one trying to maintain conditioning get up to 420 pounds.
He's not in high school anymore. He never weighed 420 pounds. He currently weighs between 350 and 360 pounds. He played well as a freshman, all things considered. Facts.
What/who are you arguing against? Again, Elam is currently playing for the University of Kentucky where he is in a conditioning program that has seen him lose 30-40 pounds and greatly reduce his body fat percentage. He is not a 395 pound high school senior. So why you keep bringing that up is a bit baffling.
It seems that some are forgetting a certain QB we had at UK that had great potential but would never bit the bullet and get into a proper playing weight. IMO that certain QB had the ability to have become a very long term QB in the NFL if he would only have been able to maintain proper conditioning. Elam is at a cross road in his career. He can bite the bullet and get into proper football shape or he will likely go down the same road as that UK QB who would not.
I do not know if Elam was at 420, 400, or 395 in high school but I know he was at 375 when he arrived at UK and was so out of shape he could not play more than 2 or 3 plays in a row effectively.
I sure hope he has more success than that certain QB had in getting his weight under control and getting in football shape. I am pulling for him to succeed because I hate wasted potential.
I think this kid has the potential to be a monster NT that can control the entire center of a LOS but he can not do it on the bench winded.
I do not know if Elam was at 420, 400, or 395 in high school but I know he was at 375 when he arrived at UK and was so out of shape he could not play more than 2 or 3 plays in a row effectively.
I sure hope he has more success than that certain QB had in getting his weight under control and getting in football shape. I am pulling for him to succeed because I hate wasted potential.
I think this kid has the potential to be a monster NT that can control the entire center of a LOS but he can not do it on the bench winded.
Elam is too big. This is visible, so it can't be argued rationally. If he was in playing shape at a good weight, he would have played more last season. He was only able to play a couple of plays at a time. If Stoops had it to do over again, he might have redshirted Elam. Or not. Stoops knows more about the player than we do. Maybe early playing time was part of the deal when he signed. Maybe Stoops believed Elam would not have been able to control his weight during a redshirt season. Maybe the coaches believed that playing him was a better way to motivate him and get him onto a good conditioning pathway. Maybe Stoops was so concerned about our run defense that he was forced to play Elam last year. Whatever. The past is the past. Elam can be a very good player if he keeps working at it. He will have competition, and that ought to make him better.
Admittly I didn't see him play every game, maybe he played well in some games, but against SEC teams he didn't play well at all. Now I am not knocking the kid because he has a large stomach, but he couldn't even get in his stance, a quick count caught him bent over or on his knees. If a back ran into him he could drag him down but if he had to move a step he was late, he didn't require double teams, the main purpose of a huge NT in the 3-4. Even if he was great, when you can only play a series per half you are not very effective. He has to show the self discipline to get himself in condition to be a consistent effective defensive lineman, no matter how hard a S&C coach works, if he is sneaking sneakers bars it isn't going to work. At his height he was every bit of 370 if not more last year. I remember UGA had a kid report that big one year and would let him practice until he got to 335, he jogged the entire practice, everyday until he got there. Elam can be a great dominant NT or he can be a kid who eats himself into an afterthought, ball is clearly in his court in which way he goes. That doesn't mean he isn't a great kid and great ambassador for UK, just means he has to have more self discipline than in the past.
^ Grumpy, Elam didn't play enough snaps against SEC teams to even come to those conclusions.
He has been nothing but disciplined while in college, his physical transformation shows as much. If he fails it will be due to technique, not because he wasn't discipline enough to get in shape.
He has been nothing but disciplined while in college, his physical transformation shows as much. If he fails it will be due to technique, not because he wasn't discipline enough to get in shape.
Then he has turned the corner, if he has decided to get himself in shape he will certainly be able to learn the proper technique to play the position, much easier process than laying off the pizza and beer. Good to hear about him.
The last report I have on his weight is from after the season ended and he is still listed as 375 pounds. I am not sure if that is correct it came out of a Catspause projected 2015 depth chart.
I will repeat what I said in an earlier post. If he comes into spring camp at 375 he has major problems and if he comes into fall camp at 375 pounds he has catastrophic problems. I am not saying this is going to happen but if he was still at 375 at seasons end that would be the same as he started the season and would indicate he wasn't taking his conditioning program seriously.
Oh well it will not be long until spring camp and we find out for sure his progress in his quest to become football fit. I am pulling for him to succeed because we need him in the middle of the defense more than one or two snaps at a time.
This post was edited on 2/21 9:24 AM by C1180
JLo failed in the NFL not b/c of his weight but b/c of his slo throw motion. If his weight caused the motion, then perhaps you have a point.
Elam is not at a x road as a SO. If his weight & shape are improved but still not ideal, then the x road is a good ways ahead.
C1180, what don't you understand man? I don't expect Elam to be a 5 yr player, and neither do the coaches. Which is why I would not have supported a RS year.
Avery Williamson didn't need a 5th year, bud Dupree wouldn't have played a 5th year, Randall Cobb didn't even need a 4th yr....
So once you understand that concept, then maybe you'll understand my point.
Avery Williamson didn't need a 5th year, bud Dupree wouldn't have played a 5th year, Randall Cobb didn't even need a 4th yr....
So once you understand that concept, then maybe you'll understand my point.
I agree that Elam will probably be here four years, a lot of work to be done yet, just a lot of material (maybe 350# of it even at playing weight, hard to find that) to work with though. I actually hope he is gone after three years if it is to the NFL, what a tribute to our staff and S&C program that would be, it would probably attract two or three DL with similar potential.
It seems some of you are getting the wrong impression from my post. I am not saying that the kid isn't doing the right thing and working on his weight and conditioning. I truthfully do not know. The Catspause projected depth chart from after the end of the football season still had him as 375 pound. IMO during the season should be the easiest time to lose weight
If this is true it would indicate he isn't doing what he needs to get into football playing condition. If he is making progress great. If not he is approaching a crossroad in his football career. The NFL is not looking for over weight out of shape DTs. that are not making an effort to remedy the problem.
If you think that Lorenzens lack of conditioning did not cut short his stay in the NFL you are mistaken. He had a cannon for an arm and his release was not slower than 50% of NFL QBs. Lack of Conditioning ended his NFL career period.
If this is true it would indicate he isn't doing what he needs to get into football playing condition. If he is making progress great. If not he is approaching a crossroad in his football career. The NFL is not looking for over weight out of shape DTs. that are not making an effort to remedy the problem.
If you think that Lorenzens lack of conditioning did not cut short his stay in the NFL you are mistaken. He had a cannon for an arm and his release was not slower than 50% of NFL QBs. Lack of Conditioning ended his NFL career period.
I understand why some people might have misconstrued Elam as a fast track NFL prospect because of all the hype when he was in high school. But anyone who knows football and saw him play in the fall can't believe it now. Elam will be at Kentucky for 4 years. The coaches know he is a 4 year player, still at least a year away from getting himself into shape. This didn't have anything to do with their decision. Getting drafted by the NFL is far harder than some people think, and doing it with less than a full college career is much harder still. That bar is very high. That's why Couch, Robertson, and Cobb are the only 3 Wildcats who have ever left early and gotten drafted. I hope Elam becomes a great player. But he is a long way from that right now, and it's time to be honest about this.
He must break a bad "high school level habbit" of standing erect at the snap of the ball! I would be willing to see Matt sacrifice a fraction of a second by firing-out-low at the snap. This would give him greater leverage&push and would increase his stature------looking toward the league!!!!
That was probably part of it. Stoops wanting a deeper defensive line to stop other teams' running games was part of it too. I don't have a lot of inside information, since my visits to the athletics dept are just as a contractor. But from what I could see, Elam was in terrible condition and had to learn how to eat right. When freshmen get redshirted, they usually don't feel like an important part of the team. If Elam had redshirted, I doubt he would have been motivated to work his butt off and learn to eat right. Young people don't usually make major changes like that unless they are pushed hard. Playing him provided the motivation. Elam still isn't in shape, but he is getting closer. He will be a 4 year player, improving as a sophomore with a chance to be really good in 2016-17. In the meantime, Stoops is adding other top talent on his defensive line, and I think that trend will accelerate in 2016.
I'm sure Matt's a good kid but the guy has some major weight issues and needs to get that under control if for nothing but his long-term health. He's got talent but he can't help the team until he gets is body in good condition. You can't compete at this level with a dam tire hanging out of your shirt.
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