Film Evaluation: North Carolina Center Ty Howle
The latest Class of 2009 prospect to be evaluated by Laschout.com is Bunn, North Carolina Center Ty Howle. Howle will be evaluated by Laschout contributors AIW-HS and fp.
Measurables: 6'2 290 lbs (unverified)
Offers: Penn State, Navy, East Carolina
Current Rankings: Howle was 1st team All-Conference and 1st team All-State. Was named Conference Lineman of the Year. No national rank as of this time.
Competition Level: 2A in North Carolina.
AIW-HS's Evaluation:
Upside: The first thing that stands out to me in watching Howle's film is that he has a mean streak. I love that in kids. I love a kid who will get in an opponents face and punch him in the mouth when the ball is snapped. Howle does certainly likes to punish his opponent and puts a lot of kids that line up across him on the ground. There is no shortage of pancakes in Howle's film.
Additionally, Howle shows that he is well coached as he displays good technique. He stays low after snapping the ball and does a fairly good job of using his hands. He showed that he can turn the defender whichever way he wants and from there drives him backward. The way that he manhandles defenders shows me that Howle is extremely strong. Howle finishes his blocks well and showed the ability to get to the second level of defenders on several occasions.
Downside: My first concern about Howle is his body type. His pictures as well as his film indicate to me that he needs to redistribute some bodyweight. I guess that is a nice way of saying that it would serve him well to lose some body fat. He isn't severely overweight or anything so that shouldn't be a problem.
Along those same lines I don't think that Howle is overly athletic. He isn't a sloth but won't be mistaken for a Marvin Austin type athlete either. Howle seems like a solid kid whose smarts, strength, and savvy help him to overcome what he lacks in athleticism.
A third question that I have about Howle is his height. He is listed at 6'2 but based on his film I believe that listing to be generous. He certainly wouldn't be the first prospect to exaggerate his height. Several times during his video Howle looked like he was going against 6'5 defensive tackles. Since I doubt that to be the case, I believe Howle's true height to be closer to 6' even or possible 6'1. Either way that height shouldn't be an issue for a center.
Final Analysis: I'll be honest here. I was highly skeptical of Howle going into my viewing of his film. I wasn't expecting much. I incorrectly jumped to the conclusion that he couldn't play at PSU. But Howle surprised me. I really like the way he plays and I believe that he could be an effective Big 10 Center after a few years in a college S&C program. Based on his film, in my opinion the only thing holding him back from receiving more offers is his height. He is better than a 3 offer kid. I suspect his offer list will grow over the course of the spring. However, no matter how well he fares during the spring evaluation period I don't foresee Howle rising too far in the national rankings due again to his height and body type. Howle will probably end up being ranked as a 3 star by the recruiting services. Given the poor depth chart at Center at Penn State right now I would be fine with taking Howle as a member of the Class of 2009. He looks to be a very solid football player and should continue to be a solid player in college as well.
FP's Evaluation
Upside: The first thing that jumps out to me is Howle's technique. You can tell he has the fundamentals down for his position, ie, balanced stance, good knee bend, head up, etc. He is what I call, a natural center. Along with Howle's technique, another impressive attribute is his intensity. Howle is one of those play to the whistle guys you need on every successful OL. Howle also engages his blocks well and also shows good ability to get to the second level. He also shows great determination in not only blocking his opponent, but dominating his opponent. Lastly, Howle appears to be very strong which is never a negative for an OL.
Downside: Judging by the film, Howle appears to be 6-0, 6-1 maximum. While height isn't a major concern, especially for a center, a couple of inches wouldn't hurt to help redistribute some weight. Howle could benefit from shedding about 20lbs and then slowly putting the weight back on in college. Howle also doesn't appear to be that athletic either. He sometimes struggles to engage blockers on the run but again, when he does, he usually drives the opponent to the turf. Lastly, Howle's ability to pass block as well as he run blocks is up for debate.
Final Analysis: Howle is worthy of an offer imo, for the center position only. Like I mentioned earlier, he appears to be a natural center, with years of experience playing the position. He won't be one of those high school kids playing tackle that gets moved to the center position where it takes them a couple of years to adapt to the position. Also, it never hurts that he is a coach's son type of player. I suspect that Howle will be a 3-star type player that will continue to get offers steadily. I suspect that if Howle was 6-3+, he'd have double digit offers already. With that said, I'd be happy to land Howle as a future center candidate. Barring injury, Howle would certainly contribute at PSU with the potential to be a multi-year starter.
Measurables: 6'2 290 lbs (unverified)
Offers: Penn State, Navy, East Carolina
Current Rankings: Howle was 1st team All-Conference and 1st team All-State. Was named Conference Lineman of the Year. No national rank as of this time.
Competition Level: 2A in North Carolina.
AIW-HS's Evaluation:
Upside: The first thing that stands out to me in watching Howle's film is that he has a mean streak. I love that in kids. I love a kid who will get in an opponents face and punch him in the mouth when the ball is snapped. Howle does certainly likes to punish his opponent and puts a lot of kids that line up across him on the ground. There is no shortage of pancakes in Howle's film.
Additionally, Howle shows that he is well coached as he displays good technique. He stays low after snapping the ball and does a fairly good job of using his hands. He showed that he can turn the defender whichever way he wants and from there drives him backward. The way that he manhandles defenders shows me that Howle is extremely strong. Howle finishes his blocks well and showed the ability to get to the second level of defenders on several occasions.
Downside: My first concern about Howle is his body type. His pictures as well as his film indicate to me that he needs to redistribute some bodyweight. I guess that is a nice way of saying that it would serve him well to lose some body fat. He isn't severely overweight or anything so that shouldn't be a problem.
Along those same lines I don't think that Howle is overly athletic. He isn't a sloth but won't be mistaken for a Marvin Austin type athlete either. Howle seems like a solid kid whose smarts, strength, and savvy help him to overcome what he lacks in athleticism.
A third question that I have about Howle is his height. He is listed at 6'2 but based on his film I believe that listing to be generous. He certainly wouldn't be the first prospect to exaggerate his height. Several times during his video Howle looked like he was going against 6'5 defensive tackles. Since I doubt that to be the case, I believe Howle's true height to be closer to 6' even or possible 6'1. Either way that height shouldn't be an issue for a center.
Final Analysis: I'll be honest here. I was highly skeptical of Howle going into my viewing of his film. I wasn't expecting much. I incorrectly jumped to the conclusion that he couldn't play at PSU. But Howle surprised me. I really like the way he plays and I believe that he could be an effective Big 10 Center after a few years in a college S&C program. Based on his film, in my opinion the only thing holding him back from receiving more offers is his height. He is better than a 3 offer kid. I suspect his offer list will grow over the course of the spring. However, no matter how well he fares during the spring evaluation period I don't foresee Howle rising too far in the national rankings due again to his height and body type. Howle will probably end up being ranked as a 3 star by the recruiting services. Given the poor depth chart at Center at Penn State right now I would be fine with taking Howle as a member of the Class of 2009. He looks to be a very solid football player and should continue to be a solid player in college as well.
FP's Evaluation
Upside: The first thing that jumps out to me is Howle's technique. You can tell he has the fundamentals down for his position, ie, balanced stance, good knee bend, head up, etc. He is what I call, a natural center. Along with Howle's technique, another impressive attribute is his intensity. Howle is one of those play to the whistle guys you need on every successful OL. Howle also engages his blocks well and also shows good ability to get to the second level. He also shows great determination in not only blocking his opponent, but dominating his opponent. Lastly, Howle appears to be very strong which is never a negative for an OL.
Downside: Judging by the film, Howle appears to be 6-0, 6-1 maximum. While height isn't a major concern, especially for a center, a couple of inches wouldn't hurt to help redistribute some weight. Howle could benefit from shedding about 20lbs and then slowly putting the weight back on in college. Howle also doesn't appear to be that athletic either. He sometimes struggles to engage blockers on the run but again, when he does, he usually drives the opponent to the turf. Lastly, Howle's ability to pass block as well as he run blocks is up for debate.
Final Analysis: Howle is worthy of an offer imo, for the center position only. Like I mentioned earlier, he appears to be a natural center, with years of experience playing the position. He won't be one of those high school kids playing tackle that gets moved to the center position where it takes them a couple of years to adapt to the position. Also, it never hurts that he is a coach's son type of player. I suspect that Howle will be a 3-star type player that will continue to get offers steadily. I suspect that if Howle was 6-3+, he'd have double digit offers already. With that said, I'd be happy to land Howle as a future center candidate. Barring injury, Howle would certainly contribute at PSU with the potential to be a multi-year starter.
Agreed all around. As Shipley has shown the last few years, height isn't a major concern for a center. This kid would be a solid pickup for us, and might allow us to move Stankiewitch to guard to create a little more depth.
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Good analysis, gentlemen.
I also like the idea of moving Stank to OG...if Wiz shifts to center next season.
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hey guys - i gotta tell ya, i love this new type of article and look forward to the reviews of more PSU prospects - good job on the review, it appears both guys noticed essentially the same thing and it'd be nice to get a kid from NC ho could contribute some - always nice to expand the recruiting areas a little
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Good stuff. Thanks for the insight.
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who is next recruit to be evaluated?
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Corey Brown will be next.
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Is he a possible early commit? I know this is the same school as Brandon Barnes [ATH/RB] from last years class that LJ SR. was recruiting...just thought maybe we got a head start on him. Any thoughts?
I certainly think he is a promising recruit, and there is no question we are thin at the position with practically A.Q. [gone after '08], Stank [freshman in '08], and an athletic "offensive lineman" in Klopacz who may never even get himself on the field.
Unless Wiz or Walton moves over to center we could be in a bind. We are good at OG, especially if Ware were to make the move at some point and Marks seems more G than T. LT or OT in general is a major concern moving ahead, as well as C. If we don't shore that up through recruiting in '08 we are really putting ourselves in a bad position.
I would assume the staff realizes this, which is why I would think working on someone attainable like Howle since '07 recruiting would be a comfort from this staff.
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