Legendary Scout C. O. Brocato

[mattvan1]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=mosley_matt&id=2812764&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab6pos1

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[LBS]

He must have been scouting future Browns.

[swerb]

Great column. Cool look inside the world of a NFL scout.

Thanks for posting Matt.

[jb]

Wow. Now this is pure football.

Things that jumped out to me....

How's it digital if you have to start it with your hand?" asks Brocato, who's responsible for teaching dozens of scouts the proper technique for timing the 40-yard dash.

We talka bout this stuff all the time. I also heard a track athlete who is now an NFL FO man talk about the lunacy of the so called fast surfaces vs slow surfaces. Say sthat is myth. I think we had this go around w/ AP's 40 time besing either very good or retarded. If "digitral" doesn't self start, what's the point?

He's standing in a hallway looking at one of Earl Campbell's jerseys while waiting for Brown to make his opening address. Brocato was in the Cotton Bowl press box when Campbell scored a touchdown against Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout in 1977.

"I tipped my cap and said, 'I don't need to see any more,'" Brocato says. "Then I went on home."

Awesome. That's what I'm talkin about.

Too much emphasis on February and March IMhO. For most of these dudes who are stars and featured players, you should be seeing what you should see in Ocotber and November, and the spring should just be a confirmation of health and uncover any major red flags - no more, no less. For the underutilized, I get the whole spring thing. BUt what are we learning about Brady Quinn and AP and Joe THomas we didn't know?

Case in point:

After the 40s, it's time for the 20-yard shuttle. The scouts become impatient when Selvin Young doesn't touch the line on his first two attempts and then falls down.

"It's a sign that he hasn't been working on it," one scout says.

Who gives a shit?


Can I bid for an hour of time listening to him a Gil Brandt talk football on e-bay? I'd start in the thousands....

Many thanks for sharing this one.

Good to see you grab a vine LBS.

You're not hoping for a QB on the 28th by chance, are yah?

Haven't read your take on the draft. Break one out?