Dan Bazuin article

[GreatLakeState]

From Saginaw News:

After CMU, Bazuin counting on NFL as next stop

Monday, August 14, 2006
By Hugh Bernreuter

He's still just a small-town boy from McBain.

It's just that everything Dan Bazuin does is big.

And some big people are noticing.

Bazuin, a defensive end from Central Michigan University, has the
numbers NFL scouts appreciate, both on the field and in workouts.

"I've always expected to play in the NFL," Bazuin said. "I don't focus on it,
because I expect it's going to happen.

"To me, it's just the next step. In high school, I expected to play college
football. Once I got here, the next step was to be the MAC Defensive
Player of the Year. Then the next step is the NFL. It's just a logical
progression."

Last season, Bazuin led the nation in tackles for loss with 26 1/2 and was
second in sacks with 16. Bazuin also tied for fourth nationally with five
forced fumbles.

During CMU's Pro Day in the spring, the 6-foot-3, 272-pound senior ran
the 40-yard dash in 4.68 seconds and the pro agility drill in 4.3 seconds.
He also benched 405 pounds and lifted 225 pounds 22 times.

It wasn't the first glimpse pro scouts had of Bazuin, who was the Mid-
American Conference Defensive Player of the Year and has been invited to
play in the East-West Shrine Game.

Bazuin submitted his name as an early entry candidate for April's NFL
draft.

"I basically said I was coming out to get my name out there, to make them
aware, to have the scouts look my tapes," Bazuin said. "If they came back
and said I was a first-round pick, I would have come out. I expected to
come back to CMU."

And he expects to improve his draft stock, hoping to become CMU's first
first-round selection.

"I expect this year to be more of the same, just at a different level,"
Bazuin said. "There are things I need to improve on. I look at the small
things. I expect a lot of myself, day in and day out.

"I know the NFL scouts are going to find flaws, they're going to be critical.
But they're not going to be more critical than I am.

"I watch tape of every one of my plays, over and over again. I try to pick
out things I should have done better. The one thing I need to do better is
finish on the quarterback. I should have had more sacks last season. I
missed some sacks, and it changed the game. Not finishing the
quarterback makes the difference between winning and losing a game."

Of course, there is always the knock on Bazuin that he plays in a smaller
conference against lesser opponents. Bazuin points to his games against
Big 10 teams. Against Indiana, Bazuin had 10 tackles, two sacks and two
forced fumbles. Against Penn State, Bazuin had two sacks, two pass
breakups and a forced fumble.

CMU coach Brian Kelly believes playing in the MAC will only help Bazuin,
given the offensive philosophies of the majority of conference teams.

"Playing in the MAC only makes his numbers more impressive," Kelly said.
"In this conference, you don't have quarterbacks taking seven-step drops.
It's two or three steps, and the ball is out. For Dan Bazuin to have 16
sacks is amazing. He's getting to the quarterback in a matter of seconds."

Eventually, Bazuin will likely get to the NFL, just as he expected while
growing up in McBain.

"And when I get to the NFL level, it's not going to be enough," Bazuin
said. "I'll want to take the next step and then the next and the next. Why
wouldn't I?"

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Extremely confident guy! I just hope it works for him and that he isn't shot down by the Caste System on the way to fulfilling his ambitions.

 

[Triad]

Good article GLS. Sounds like a stud with confidence.

 

[Don Wassall]

We need a lot more white athletes with that kind of confidence and determination. Know exactly what you want, go after itrelentlessly until you achieve it and then focus on the next goal, while matter of factly telling people what you're going to do. That's the admirable kind of confidence as compared to the taunting, egotistical style of braggadocio that the media likes topromote as "confidence."

 

[Sark6354201]

Nice article, I'll be following his career, which will hopefully be long and successful.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

i'm surprised that his confident poise wasn't adressed in a disparaging light. normally, confident white players are considered arrogant, me-first jerks as opposed to their black teammates.

it's refreshing to read a reporter's work that doesn't automatically include that knee-jerk response toward a white player's self assurance. good luck to Dan Bazuin this season and in years to come. frankly, i'm disappointed in myself for never having heard of him before reading this article. but you would have thought he'd have been on ESPN gameday at some point last year...

additionally, it's remarkable how far "big-time" programs go to avoid recruiting white players. you would have thought this kid would have been a no-brainer for the likes of Michigan and Michigan State to go after, that is if our detractors were correct and that the only thing that matters is talent.

 

[whiteCB]

Michigan doesn't recruit white defensive players. Gotta love that Lloyd Carr, he's just like a coach right out of the ACC or SEC.