Mack goes from obscurity to top of draft class
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_a0e1d154-5979-5946-9f66-66eef45b051c.html
For three years, Khalil Mack was a highly productive yet relatively unknown college linebacker, tucked away at Buffalo in the Mid-American Conference. Then came the Bulls’ 2013 season opener at mighty Ohio State.
The Buckeyes won the game easily enough, 40-20, but Mack’s footprints were all over Ohio Stadium by the end of the day. He had nine tackles, 2½ sacks and an interception that he returned for a touchdown.
“He blew ’em up,” said analyst Mike Mayock of the NFL Network. “I mean, he made plays all over the field, on the edge, dropping into coverage. Explosion. Hustle.”
That performance put Mack on the map, and entering the draft May 8-10 every draftnik — and certainly every scout — knows all about him to the point where he’s a sure top 10 pick and a probably top 5.
“He runs like a safety,” Mayock said. “He explodes off the edge. From my perspective in today’s NFL, guys that have natural edge-rush ability are like gold. You’ve got to get them when they’re available.”
The player known as the Mack Truck rolled his way to 100 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 10½ sacks, seven pass breakups, three interceptions (two of which he returned for TDs) and five forced fumbles playing outside linebacker in the Bulls’ 3-4 alignment in 2013. Now that’s a stat line.
He holds the Football Bowl Subdivision record for career forced fumbles (16) and tied the FBS career mark for tackles for loss (75).
At the NFL scouting combine, Mack ran the 40-yard dash in 4.65 seconds, which is moving at 6-3, 251 pounds. So as edge-rushers goes, Mack may not be quite as athletic as South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, but he has a more well-rounded game. Mack can also drop in coverage and play the run. Clowney is a pass-rusher, and a ... pass-rusher.
One of the interesting wrinkles on the Rams’ “top 30” visits this spring was to see Mack on the guest list. They already have a very productive middle linebacker (James Laurinaitis) and weakside linebacker (Alec Ogletree) who rarely leave the field. They also re-signed last year’s starting strongside linebacker, Jo-Lonn Dunbar, in free agency.
Even so, former Rams linebackers coach and current NFL radio analyst Rick Venturi says it’s easier seeing Mack fit into the Rams’ defensive scheme than Clowney.
“Mack could come in and be your SAM (strongside linebacker),” Venturi said. “And on third down, then you put Mack on one side of the line, and Robert Quinn on the other side. And then you move Chris Long inside and pair him up with William Hayes, or however you want to put your best four rushers in the game.”
And go get the quarterback. Mack had 28½ career sacks in college, so he was more than a one-year wonder rushing the passer.
Mack grew up in Fort Pierce, Fla., about 90 minutes north of Fort Lauderdale, and was more into basketball than football until his senior year of high school. Buffalo was the only FBS school to offer a scholarship. After a redshirt season in 2009, he became a fixture in the lineup for the next four years.
He did miss the 2012 opener, the result of a suspension for getting into a fight with a teammate. After that season, Mack seriously considered turning pro when projected as a third- or fourth-rounder, but decided to stay for his senior season.
One game into 2013, against Ohio State, changed those projections.
“I feel like there was a lot of people watching that game,” Mack said. “It helped me tremendously. I got a lot of single blocks, and it just so happened I played off of a cut-block and got an interception. So there were a lot of things that played into my favor in that game. Hard work does pay off.”
The fact that the Buckeyes didn’t do anything extra to try to contain him, such as double-teams or chip blocks, helped motivate Mack.
“I feel like it was sort of a little disrespect from a schematic approach,” he said. “But at the same time, I wanted to make them pay for it.”
Yes, Mack is the sort who plays with a chip on his shoulder — a chip that was planted in part by something as innocuous as an NCAA football video game. The first time he was rated in the game, Mack said he had a low rating of 46.
“It was a slap in the face, man,” Mack said. “Because I knew deep down in my heart, I was better than a 46.”
He had jersey No. 46 at the time for Buffalo and decided to keep it throughout his college career because of that rating. Sort of a reminder, as it were. Turns out, Mack is a lot better than 46. He’s more like a top five.
“I just want to keep proving myself,” Mack said. “I want to be the best.”
