Billy Bair -- RB

[Deadlift]

I understand why Florida and Texas have a Top 100 and not a Top 250, but these other cases are eye-opening.

Both Michigan and Illinois have a Top 30 when they should probably have a Top 40!

There's no doubt a White that's not on those Top 30 lists could become a star.

And, it's fairly easy to look over the lists and weed out the blacks with "fancy" black names, and at least there would be a few more Whites on the radar to follow.


Come on Rivals, there must certainly be more great White D-Linemen out there, compared to the miniscule representation on your site. Do your job!... or maybe you are?Edited by: Deadlift

 

[jared]

On a side note, where are all the football players in New York? It's got the most people in the U.S. after Texas and California. Rivals only gives NY a top 10. Arizona has a top 25. California has: UCLA, Stanford, Cal, SDSU, SJSU, Fresno St. and USC. Texas has: UTEP, SMU, Texas, Texas Tech, A&M, North Texas, Houston, TCU, and Baylor. What does NY have? Buffalo and Syracuse. How is this so?

 

[Don Wassall]

It is quite odd that there's not one single major college program in the New York City region. And look how pathetically weak Temple and Rutgers have been when they can recruit from New York City, Newark and all the other New Jersey cities, and Philadelphia too. A significant percentage of U.S. blacks live in this region.


The entire Northeast was quite weak in college football for a long time. It only began to change when Joe Paterno started putting together powerhouse teams on a regular basis. And even then, pollsters and pundits remained suspicious, much like when BYU won the national title in 1984.Penn Statehad back to back undefeated seasons in 1968 and 1969, won major bowls after both seasons (back when there was only three or four major bowls), but still was regarded as a rung below Ohio State, Texas, USC, Alabama, etc. It wasn't until 1982 that Paterno wonhis first of twonational championships.


Pitt was revived by Johnny Majors in the mid-1970s, and later Syracuse and Boston College began getting stronger, and of course Rutgers came on last year finally. Pennsylvania appears to be the only Northeastern state where high school football is huge, and even then mostly in the western part of the state along with the Philly suburbs in the east.


But as I mentioned in an earlier post, western Pennsylvania is as rigidly Caste in its mindset and practices as anywhere in the country. A kid like Billy Bair stands zero chance of being recruited by Pitt or Penn State. Brad Mueller, a standout running back a few years ago at the same high school that Bair attends, ran a legit 4.3 and was a state sprint champion and was only recruited by Boston College and a few MAC schools as a safety.

 

[Riddlewire]

A kid like Billy Bair stands zero chance of being recruited by Pitt or Penn State. Brad Mueller, a standout running back a few years ago at the same high school that Bair attends, ran a legit 4.3 and was a state sprint champion and was only recruited by Boston College and a few MAC schools as a safety.

Billy is also his team's top defensive back. He had several interception returns for a touchdown this season. I suspect he could get a scholarship to Pitt, but not as RB or CB. I'm sure he'd be slotted into the 'Athlete' position and they might be able to find a use for him.

But maybe this Rivals discussion should be moved to its own thread. Billy's season is over, and there won't be any more news about him until we learn about his college choice (which I will try to keep on top of).

PS: One more thing I need to add about the Rivals issue. Rivals' #1 Dual-Threat Quarterback in the nation is named Terrelle Pryor. He plays in the EXACT same AA classification as Billy Bair. In fact, if Billy's team had won Friday, they would've faced each other this weekend. So don't let anybody fool you with a bunch of sh*t about Billy being from a school that is too small to get noticed. Rivals CAN identify great players at small schools. They just choose not to (if they're white).

Edited by: Riddlewire

 

[Don Wassall]

Terrelle Pryor is treated by the media in this area like a combination of Michael Vick and Michael Jordan, while Billy Bair is all but unknown. Same old same old.

 

[Riddlewire]

Billy giving a 'Go to Hell' to a brutha during a playoff game this season.

 

[Riddlewire]

Billy got some postseason honors recently, making something called the 'Elite 11' (some regional award).
What's most interesting is that the writers who did the descriptions didn't seem to notice the supreme stupidity of the situation. I'll explain.
There's a runningback named Cam Saddler from the same area as Billy. Saddler stands 5'6" at 157lbs. He ran for 1,700 yards this season. In the writeup, they mention that ."Saddler made a verbal commitment to Pitt last week. Virginia and West Virginia were his other finalists"
Just below the entry for Saddler was Billy's writeup. I'll post the whole thing for you:

Billy Bair, Mars
RB-DB 5-11 190 Sr.

Had possibly the greatest regular season of any running back in WPIAL history. Rushed for 2,112 yards on 219 yards, at least the best yardage total in the past three decades. Also scored 204 regular-season points, which ties for the most in the past three decades.

Counting two playoff games, Bair rushed for 2,428 yards on 269 attempts. He finished as the 14th-best runner in WPIAL history with 4,702 yards on 516 attempts.

Bair is undecided on a college. Will most likely play at the small-college level, although a few Mid-American Conference schools were showing interest.

You all know that Billy is white. Saddler, meanwhile... well, you already know.

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

Billy got some postseason honors recently, making something called the 'Elite 11' (some regional award).
What's most interesting is that the writers who did the descriptions didn't seem to notice the supreme stupidity of the situation. I'll explain.
There's a runningback named Cam Saddler from the same area as Billy. Saddler stands 5'6" at 157lbs. He ran for 1,700 yards this season. In the writeup, they mention that ."Saddler made a verbal commitment to Pitt last week. Virginia and West Virginia were his other finalists"
Just below the entry for Saddler was Billy's writeup. I'll post the whole thing for you:

Billy Bair, Mars
RB-DB 5-11 190 Sr.

Had possibly the greatest regular season of any running back in WPIAL history. Rushed for 2,112 yards on 219 yards, at least the best yardage total in the past three decades. Also scored 204 regular-season points, which ties for the most in the past three decades.

Counting two playoff games, Bair rushed for 2,428 yards on 269 attempts. He finished as the 14th-best runner in WPIAL history with 4,702 yards on 516 attempts.

Bair is undecided on a college. Will most likely play at the small-college level, although a few Mid-American Conference schools were showing interest.

You all know that Billy is white. Saddler, meanwhile... well, you already know.

Riddlewire, I was just thinking about how ridiculous the situation is and I had made a post about Saddler specifically, http://www.castefootball.us/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6767 Cameron Saddler is on the Rivals 250, Sam McGuffie is not. Saddler is 5'6 foot tall and has a paltry 28 inch vertical. Saddler ran for a paltry 5.3 YPC against supposdedly "weak" western Pennsylvania competition (at least that was the argument the scouts used to screw white RBs Ryan Brewer and Brad Mueller). McGuffie is "head and shoulders" above Saddler "in every category" (size, production, athleticism, level of competition). I think Rivals being so blatantly biased might actually wake some people up to the situation. Rivals at every postion including QB grossly inflates the status of black prospects and buries white players in a ditch. The only way Rivals could be any more obvious with their bias would be to not rank any white players at all, which they would prefer, I believe, if they could get away with it. I hope the drunken white morons out there wake up!Edited by: ToughJ.Riggins

 

[Van_Slyke_CF]

I can`t find any news about a commitment by Billy. Anybody know what he is planning to do?

 

[Riddlewire]

His local media says Billy is "Still Undecided".
Translation: The RB with great measurables, who had the greatest single season in WPIAL history, and is also a star DB, couldn't get a D1 scholarship.
I'm still keeping track of the situation. I'll report any news on his college choice just as soon as it's available (available on the web, that is).

 

[strength]

His local media says Billy is "Still Undecided".
Translation: The RB with great measurables, who had the greatest single season in WPIAL history, and is also a star DB, couldn't get a D1 scholarship.
I'm still keeping track of the situation. I'll report any news on his college choice just as soon as it's available (available on the web, that is).

 

[strength]

Billy Bair has excepted an offer from Duquesne University, a D1 AA college in his home town of Pittsburgh Pa..............................

 

[Riddlewire]

Congrats to Billy. I'm glad he'll get to continue his football career in college.
</optimism>

As part of my recruiting tournament thread, I've seen every single high school runningback in the country who got a scholarship to play Division 1A football. I know their stats, their measurables, and the competition they played against. There is no way around it. Billy is the victim of "structural racism" (to steal from Michelle Obama's ridiculous thesis). There are a handful of 5'9", 180lb black RBs who run a 4.6+ and averaged ~1,000 yards per season in high school and played against competition no better than Billy. Yet they had as many D1A scholarship offers as they could stuff in their mailboxes. Billy got none. His story, along with a handful of other fantastic white runningbacks from this year, should be remembered always.

 

[Van_Slyke_CF]

Riddlewire: I agree with you 100%.


A few potential positives fromBilly`s choice of Duquesne U.:


1) The local media won`t be able to ignore him in football-mad western Pennsylvania. If he performs to our expectations, there will be plenty to talk about in years to come.


2)Because Pittdidn`t showsincere interest in him-like they would have to a black running back with a similar pedigree-he probably is better of at Duquesne.


Good luck, Billy Bair! We`ll be cheering for you every step of the way.

 

[Don Wassall]

At a I-AA program like Duquesne, Bair has zero chance of making the NFL. If he has pro aspirations he would have been better off as a walk-on at a major program, where he would have maybe a one percent chance of making the NFL. All in all another truly sickening travesty of justice.

 

[Van_Slyke_CF]

I`m sure it was a tough decision for Billy Bair. If he had decided to walk on at a school like Pitt, he almost certainly wouldn`t have gotten a chance to play RB-hence his choice of Duquesne, just like McCaffrey chose I-AA Portland State. Jordan Roberts is an invited walk-on at WVU. It will be interesting to come back to their respective careers 4 years from now and reexamine what happened and why.

 

[whiteCB]

Billy Bair has excepted an offer from Duquesne University, a D1 AA college in his home town of Pittsburgh Pa..............................

Was it a full ride like Cory McCaffery or just a partial or half scholarship? If it wasn't a full ride Bair is an idiot and should have just walked on to a D1 school; where at least there would have been a chance to earn a full ride.

 

[rice1817]

Duquesne plays 1AA non-scholarship football. However, that is not to say that Bair did not get a substantial amount of aid...Duquesne is a rather expensive school, with an excellent academic reputation. He may not get an NFL career out of Duquesne, but if he sticks it out he will be set for a produtive future. If he goes to a football factory, then his choice in majors is limited if he wants to play football, and chances are if he were among the less than 50% who did graduate it would be with a useless degree.

Bair may have gotten the bone, but he and others like him will have the last laugh.

 

[z4chsnyder]

I played in the same section as Billy Bair. He was a great player but no Terrelle Pryor.

Terrelle Pryor is treated by the media in this area like a combination of Michael Vick and Michael Jordan, while Billy Bair is all but unknown. Same old same old.

Terrelle Pryor is the best high school athlete in the USA as of this year. Here's to give you an idea: his FRESHMAN YEAR, he WON the 100 and 200m dash at STATES. He then never did track again



Billy Bair is a great athlete. We faced them in the WPIAL Track Championship this year (and wooped them), but I believe Billy's PR in the 100 is 11.1, if I remember correctly. He's a cool guy too I was talking to him for a little.


Note- Mars was AA Bair's senior year. Only the following year will they be going to AAA.

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

Well 11.1 is certainly fast enough to play football in Division IA with his statistical accomplishments and highlight films. Do you not agree z4chsnyder?

I'd say your average "starting" NFL tailback runs about a 10.9-10.8. Lendale White starts in the NFL and I don't think could crack 11.2 in the 100 meter. Football speed IMO is about your 10, 20 and 30 yard speed. Eddie George in a 10,000 yard career had 2 40+ yard runs his entire career. Speedster Reggie Bush has a career long run of 23 yards so far. "Electrifying" Speed demon of the NFL Devin Hester ran a PB wind aided 10.42 100 meter dash in college slower than Jake Sharp's 10.4 flat in H.S. You have to look at the big picture (production, highlight film along with the athletic measurables.)

Darren McFadden runs only a 10.8 100 Meter, but a 4.33 40 yard dash. Sam McGuffie runs a 4.32 40 yard dash, but only a 10.86 100 meter. etc etc. Bair runs a 40 time of 4.5 according to Rivals and that is about the median time for a "starting" NFL tailback. If you don't believe me just join nfldraftscout.com and check the Combine and Pro Day times of starting NFL RBs and then the ones like Lendale White and others who refused to run because they knew they wouldn't crack 4.6 in the 40 yard.

Billy Bair is a Division IA caliber player that was screwed for no other reason than being white. And z4chsnyder I will tell you that this is not a racist board, unfortunately we have some racist posts, but the overall message is not racist! So why are you hear, do you agree that there is a pro-black caste system in football or not?

 

[Riddlewire]

Terrelle Pryor is the best high school athlete in the USA as of this year.

Welcome to Rivals.com!
Check your brain at the door.

 

[z4chsnyder]

ToughJ.Riggins, I was saying he had an 11.1 (I THINK) to back up the fact that he's a great athlete. I was on your side.

Riddlewire:

Terrelle Pryor ... his FRESHMAN YEAR</span>, he WON the 100 and 200m dash at STATES.

I have seen Pryor play live. My school and his are about half an hour apart. He is phenomenal. I've never seen anyone better than him live.

Some Pryor facts:

-Terrelle Pryor put 2 kids in the hospital his senior year via stiff-arm (this is not a joke), and one other just from hitting him.

-Terrelle Pryor never played the second half his senior year. Imagine his stats had his coach let him go into the 3rd or even 4th quarter.

-Terrelle Pryor won the 100m and 200m his freshman year in track (that would mean a 15 year old boy beating 17-18 year old men)



I agree with you guys that white athletes get shafted often, but what I'm trying to say is that Terrelle is where he is because he IS as good as the hype.

 

[Don Wassall]

ToughJ.Riggins, I was saying he had an 11.1 (I THINK) to back up the fact that he's a great athlete. I was on your side.

I agree with you guys that white athletes get shafted often, but what I'm trying to say is that Terrelle is where he is because he IS as good as the hype.

Well, I can remember Steve Breaston getting the same kind of hype a few years ago when he was in high school in Western PAand he didn't live up to it at Michigan or so far in the NFL. We shall see if Pryor is as good as advertised.


But I'm glad you have good words for Billy. He should have been recruited by a I-A school to play tailback, just as Brad Mueller from Mars should have before him. That's the issue and that's the problem. The media is always quick to jump on the bandwagon of a talented black athlete, but deserving white athletes at RB, WR and most defensive positions are blatantly ignored by recruiters and recruiting services and there's never any sympathy for their plight from the media.

 

[z4chsnyder]

Yea Bill's a cool kid &amp; a great athlete. He's not only fast but he has a lot of power. I'll see if I can get ahold of some highlight tapes for you guys, or at least just a few plays if that's the best I can do.

 

[Van_Slyke_CF]

z4chsnyder: We know Terrelle Pryor is an excellent athlete and football prospect for Ohio State.

But on this thread we really want to talk about Billy Bair. He shouldn`t be playing at Duquesne. He should be playing at a 1A school. A black player coming out of HS with a similar skill set and pedigree would be at a 1A school. Period.

By the way, I don`t think someone`s 100m dash time is really relevant to how well they can play football.

You can`t produce at the level Billy Bair did in western PA football without tremendous athletic ability and the necessary skills to play top level college football. Unfortunately, he was not given the chance.

If Danny Woodhead makes it in the NFL, and Bair puts up huge numbers at Duquesne, it just might be possible for him to get some serious looks from the NFL a few years down the road. Probably not, but let`s at least hope that he has a good career with the Dukes.