My son and I attended the first half of the TW game to check out Will. Here are my less than informed assessments of Will, FWIW:
1. TW was a typical TW team. Short on talent and - as a team - short on competitive spirit. I don't know why, but TW has been the polar opposite of WK over the years.
2. Studlien looked a bit shorter to me than his listed height, but determining that accurately is impossible from the stands. Will played well in the half I watched. Notable strengths were his pursuit to the ball (relentless), effectiveness at contact (no one got away from him) and reading/nose for the ball. I was very impressed the way he read a screen play that was fairly well disguised. He made his initial read, quickly diagnosed the screen and got out there and broke it up. I noted also that Studlien was reading and reacting more than blitzing every play. IMO, that is very important. A lot of stud HS linebackers in effect blitz every play, which does not translate well to college. Studlien more often than not played straight up - reading and reacting. Very impressive nose for the ball.
3. I wouldn't say Will is a step slow, but speed is not his strongest asset at this point. He rarely was late to a spot, so he has sufficient speed for HS. Another step faster, however, and he would be a no brainer for
OSU. As it is, I can see why the staff may wait to offer him. There is every reason to expect he will pick up that step over the next year. He apparently is aware that this is something he has to work on, so with his work ethic I think he will get where he needs to be.
4. Will played a significant amount of OG in the first half. After the first series I noticed him on O, he sat the next series out on D. Later in the quarter, however, he was in on both O and D and to my eye he looked like he was getting a little fatigued by half time. He did an excellent job at OG, which is clearly NOT his position in college. I liked what I saw though because some of the physical skills he showed at OG translate well to LB. He pulled on a number of plays and on each one made a nice kick out block on the DB forcing the sweep. Making contact with a DB in space is a tough assignment for an OG, but Will had no problem making solid contact. That showed me his agility. On pass pro he used good technique, set up well with a good punch. He kept his feet moving VERY well, again a reflection of his agility.
5. Overall, I was very impressed with Will. If things go as I think they will, I believe he will get an
OSU offer. But I would not be surprised if that offer does not come until next summer's
OSU camp.
P.S. The other inside linebacker - #22 -looked pretty good as well. However, he got points taken off with me when - after making a nice play behind the LOS - he did a sort of pelvic thrust to his sideline in celebration. The officials immediately threw a flag as they should have and I saw no more of that out of him. I don't think the BW HC was amused.
