NIU RB Garrett Wolfe (official thread)

[osugrad21]

Here ya go G-Force...stroke away.

Fox

Cavalcade of Whimsy: Can Wolfe hit 3,000?

?Get it straight buster - I'm not here to say please, I'm here to tell you what to do and if self-preservation is an instinct you possess you'd better (bleep)ing do it and do it quick. I'm here to help - if my help's not appreciated then lotsa luck, gentlemen.? ? Northern Illinois RB Garrett Wolfe has set an NCAA record for the most rushing yards gained after five games with 1,181 after tearing off 353 yards on Ball State for an average of 236.2 yards per game. At the moment, he's rushing for more yards per game than all but six teams (Navy, West Virginia, Air Force, Louisville, Connecticut and Clemson) and gained more against the Cardinals than Louisiana Tech, UTEP, Colorado State, Arizona, Ohio, Tulane, Virginia, Temple, Duke and Baylor have come up with all season, and ironically equalled Ball State's season total. In fact, his 353 yards were 66 more than Baylor and Duke combined with nine games between them.
Here?s the remaining NIU schedule with each opponent?s current national rank against the run ?

at Miami (OH) 104th
at Western Michigan 6th (but it hasn?t faced anyone who can run)
Temple 117th
Iowa 47th
Toledo 93rd
Central Michigan 69th
Eastern Michigan 108th That means Mr. Wolfe will go against three of the worst run defenses in America along two others that rank in the bottom half. If NIU wins the Western Division, it?ll play in the MAC title game and a bowl meaning Wolfe, if he stays healthy, will play in 14 games. If he stays healthy, at his current pace, which isn?t unrealistic in any way considering he could hang 400 on both Temple and Eastern Michigan, he?ll finish the season with 3,306 yards. Former Oklahoma State star Barry Sanders currently holds the record with 2,628 yards.

 

[bucknut11]

Wolfe getting benefits? (Brushback)

WARNING: SATIRE!!

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

Wolfe's Strength of Schedule issue (did you see those rush defense rankings?) will probably/maybe keep him from winning the Heisman. But I'm no longer convinced that he won't be in New York. His numbers will get him there, his degree-of-difficulty will keep him in his seat.

 

[G-FORCE]

Wolfe's Strength of Schedule issue (did you see those rush defense rankings?) will probably/maybe keep him from winning the Heisman. But I'm no longer convinced that he won't be in New York. His numbers will get him there, his degree-of-difficulty will keep him in his seat.

It probably depends what Ohio State ends up doing.

Wolfe is going to blow Peterson's numbers so far out of the water that it will make it impossible to vote for Peterson.

If Ohio State goes undefeated and earns a trip to the BCS Title game, it's Troy's award. If the stumble against Michigan or anyone else, Troy will still have a good shot, but it would make it interesting.

 

[ScriptOhio]

It is hard to believe that this guy was only a "2 star" recruit:

Garrett Wolfe

All-purpose back
Chicago (IL) Holy Cross
Ht: 5-foot-8
Wt: 180 lbs
Forty: 4.4 secs
Class: 2002 (High School)

Anyone know if he had any offers from a BCS conference school?

 

[Oneshot]

I honestly don't see Wolfe cracking the top 3 in Heisman voting. Maybe he'll be invited to NY and finish in the top 5. But voters will rightly realize that running for 350+ against Ball State just really isn't that impressive. I know, I know, he ran for 170+ against us. But the fact is that voters won't be impressed with ridiculous numbers put up against inferior talent throughout the vast majority of his season. That might sound harsh, but that's reality. If Wolfe wanted to win the Heisman, he should've gone to play in a BCS conference.

Wow.. So your logic is this:
Voters won't be impressed with a 350+ yard performance vs. an inferior opponent. THEREFORE, they will ALSO not be impressed with 170+ vs the #1 team in the country. Because some of the best runningbacks in the country have run for well over 170 against us, right?

And then you said:
Wolfe won't win the Heisman because he goes to a MAC school. THEREFORE, he SHOULD have CHOSEN to playin in a BCS conference.

K.

 

[OSUsushichic]

I honestly don't see Wolfe cracking the top 3 in Heisman voting. Maybe he'll be invited to NY and finish in the top 5. But voters will rightly realize that running for 350+ against Ball State just really isn't that impressive. I know, I know, he ran for 170+ against us. But the fact is that voters won't be impressed with ridiculous numbers put up against inferior talent throughout the vast majority of his season. That might sound harsh, but that's reality. If Wolfe wanted to win the Heisman, he should've gone to play in a BCS conference.

Whatever. I don't care who you play, 350+ yards is impressive.

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

350+ yards is one thing...

Averaging more yards per CARRY than the QB leading the Heisman Race averages per PASS ATTEMPT is another level though.

Has there been a HUGE difference in level of competition? Heck Yeah. Especially when you consider that most teams have played to contain our vertical game, and the fact that Tressel doesn't go long when he has a reasonable lead (or at least he hasn't).

But that stat is just sick, sick, sick...

 

[osugrad21]

Link

Hungry like the Wolfe By John Murphy, Yahoo! Sports
October 4, 2006

At roughly 5-foot-7 and 180 pounds, Northern Illinois running back Garrett Wolfe has been compared to San Diego Chargers scatback Darren Sproles.
The senior would like to make believers out of the scouts who don't think he has the size and strength to be a workhorse in the NFL.
Wolfe leads the nation with 1,181 yards and 11 touchdowns in his first five contests, including a very impressive outing against top-ranked Ohio State in which he gained 287 yards of total offense, 172 on the ground. Last weekend, Wolfe gained a career-high 353 yards on 31 carries against Ball State, but the Mid-American Conference standout's most impressive stat might be his carries-per-game average (25).
Outside of a matchup against Iowa in late October, Wolfe has a number of easy games left on Northern Illinois' schedule. If he comes close to 2,200-plus yards and more than 20 total touchdowns, Wolfe could put himself in position to earn an invite to New York as a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Heisman hopes aside, Wolfe must prove his game can translate to the NFL before scouts stop comparing him to Sproles and start putting his name next to guys like Warrick Dunn, Brian Westbrook and Maurice Jones-Drew. Wolfe's receiving skills have shown improvement, but his blocking assignments and return skills during his postseason appearances will determine his final draft grade

 

[osugrad21]

USAToday

Can N. Illinois' Wolfe win the Heisman?

By Matthew Emmons, US Presswire

By Eddie Timanus, USA TODAY
Every so often a player from outside the power conferences puts up such eye-popping statistics that his name starts being kicked around in Heisman Trophy discussions. Actually winning college football's most prestigious individual award is usually another matter.
But Northern Illinois coach Joe Novak has one request of Heisman voters before they dismiss star running back Garrett Wolfe: Just watch him.
The nation will have a chance to do just that Sunday night as Wolfe and the Huskies play at Miami (Ohio).
Wolfe has been on the periphery of the Heisman debate all season. The 5-7, 177-pound senior from Chicago ran for 1,580 yards and 16 touchdowns last season despite missing three games with injuries.
He didn't disappoint in his 2006 debut, rushing for 171 yards and adding 115 receiving against No. 1 Ohio State. But it was his 353 rushing yards last week against Ball State that heightened the buzz.
That performance, 13th-best in major college history, brought his season total to 1,181 yards, a record through five games in I-A. Wolfe has more rushing yards than all but six I-A teams.
"I always thought he was pretty good," Novak says. "Every week I get more impressed. ... I see him do something different, something new. He's just got so many things in his repertoire."
So how did a guy with Wolfe's talent land at NIU, a strong but not top-level program?
"What everyone was concerned about was his size," Novak says, acknowledging he also fell into that trap. "I didn't think we'd be able to hand it to him 30 times a week. I thought he was a 10- to 15-carry guy because of his size."
Says Wolfe: "That was the same thing he told me. That was the idea going into my sophomore season, and I was OK with that. I just told myself that in those 10 or 15 plays I had to get into the end zone."
So is he Heisman-worthy? The last player to win from a school not in the current Bowl Championship Series conferences was Brigham Young quarterback Ty Detmer in 1990. "That's not a concern of mine," Wolfe says. "Mine is to win football games. I think my teammates are pushing for it."
Novak sings much the same tune. "It would be great if he won the Heisman Trophy, but there's no balancing act," he says. "The only thing we're concerned about is trying to win."
But Novak does want it clear that Wolfe didn't just do his damage against Mid-American Conference competition. "I looked at the tape (of the Ohio State game) last week," Novak says. "He got 12 yards against their reserves. The rest of the time, they had their starters in.
" If people aren't going to vote for him or appreciate how good he is because he plays in the MAC, so be it. But don't give me that argument that he did it against Ohio State's second team."
Posted 10/5/2006 12:34 AM ET

 

[Dryden]

I honestly don't see Wolfe cracking the top 3 in Heisman voting. Maybe he'll be invited to NY and finish in the top 5. But voters will rightly realize that running for 350+ against Ball State just really isn't that impressive. I know, I know, he ran for 170+ against us. But the fact is that voters won't be impressed with ridiculous numbers put up against inferior talent throughout the vast majority of his season. That might sound harsh, but that's reality. If Wolfe wanted to win the Heisman, he should've gone to play in a BCS conference.

I know it's Ball State, but nobody else is rushing for 350 against them. Nobody else is hanging 250 on Buffalo, or 175 on Ohio State, or whatever. Wolfe does better against the competition he plays against than anyone else, and we're not talking about specific players, we're talking about entire TEAMS.

If Ohio State played Ball State this Saturday, do you think the entire OSU team would rush for 353? I'm going to guess no -- OSU probably wouldn't do that.

That's what makes Wolfe special.

 

[3yardsandacloud]

Wolfe's Strength of Schedule issue (did you see those rush defense rankings?) will probably/maybe keep him from winning the Heisman.

Probably the most accurate statement to date. Playing those teams will hurt GW's Heisman hopes. Not because he isn't deserving. Not because he'd wouldn't put up gaudy numbers against better competition. It's because voters will have a reasonable argument to devalue his stats when looking at those games. Sad really.

I'd LOVE to see Troy Smith win the Heisman. More than anyone else I want him to win it ... but I would have NO ISSUE whatsoever if GW took home the hardware. I know GForce took a LOT of heat from us before our game, but almost to a man we said we'd be back to sing GW's praises if he accomplished what GForce suggested. I saw the game in person ... GW is the real deal ... and then some.

 

[vrbryant]

Couldn't agree more. Troy Smith - to this point - has proven himself worthy, and I'd enjoy seeing him win. If I had to vote right now, based on the projected numbers, I give it to the guy who's on pace to make history--not simply to the best player on the #1 team.

Garrett Wolfe
Projected 2006 Stats:

305car, 2834yds, 9.3ypc, 26tds
29rec, 382yds, 13.3ypr, 2tds

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

The thing is that Wolfe is their offense, and every single opposing defense knows it, yet no one can stop him...no one.

 

[daddyphatsacs]

The thing that Wolfe has going for him is the fact that he did put up huge numbers against the Buckeyes. He's dinged us up worse than any of the QB's that we've faced so far this season........ His total yards for that game were higher than what any quarterback has done against us this season. That is saying something.