Ethan Kilmer...I hope this guy gets a shot. If you guys watched the Orange Bowl he was the WR who made that amazing TD catch.
From Draftdaddy.com
Who was the best special teams coverage player in America in 2005?
Without a doubt, and we've been saying since October of 2005, it's former Penn State walk-on Ethan Kilmer, who recorded an eye-popping 25 tackles (19 solo) on special teams last season. We reported Kilmer's story a long time ago -- probably the only draft site on the Net to even mention his name -- and reported he was an absolute physical freak.
We have just gotten unofficial reports from Penn State's Pro Day today and it appears Kilmer stole the show, running a 4.35 in the 40 yard dash. We imagine his vertical was well over 40". As we said during the 2005 season, he's worth a draft pick on special teams ability alone, with upside at wide receiver. Kilmer, who has very little football experience, is a fascinating story.
Below, we will re-post a story we did on Kilmer several months ago in the blog:
Penn State senior wide receiver Ethan Kilmer, who had 6 huge receptions for 81 yards and 1 touchdown in the Orange Bowl, isn't your typical former walk-on. No, not by a long shot. Few walk-ons possess reported 4.4 40 speed and a Michael Jordan like vertical leap of over 40 inches, which is what Lions QB Michael Robinson claims the "freak of nature" Kilmer can do.
Watching Kilmer, who's been a backup at safety and wide receiver for the Lions, in limited chances this season, we are absolutely fascinated with his potential. He only had 15 receptions in 2005, but gained 238 yards (16 yard average) and 3 touchdowns on those plays. When Kilmer, who's solidly built at a bit over 5' 11" and 205 pounds, gets by defensive backs, it's "light's out", because few players in college football will catch him from behind. Also, perhaps more importantly, Kilmer is an absolute special teams demon -- 25 special teams tackles (19 solo) in 2005.
So, why was a player with his unique set of athletic skills a walk-on?
Well, much of that has to do with the fact that Kilmer had almost no football experience (played briefly as a freshman) in high school, instead opting to play basketball and run track (high jump). Also, he refused to play any sports at the start of his college career at tiny Shippensburg University, because he wanted to focus on academics. Eventually friends told Kilmer he was wasting his natural ability by not playing sports and he transferred to Penn State and tried out for Joe Paterno's team, which he had little problem making (played in 2004 and 2005 only).
At this point, it would be foolish of us to project Kilmer as a likely draft pick. But if his raw numbers are anywhere close to what the folks at Penn State believe, expect NFL teams to get an eyeful of him at Pro Day and then consider drafting him in the latter rounds or signing him as a priority free agent. Also, as we mentioned, he may be the best special teams coverage player in the nation, which is very significant.
As NFL legend Bill Parcells has stated, you draft for potential and look for players with either size or speed (or both). Kilmer seems to have the elite speed and athletic ability NFL teams look for, which may help make up for his lack of football experience. One NFL scout told a Pennsylvania paper Kilmer reminded him of Don Beebe, who was an obscure, small school star in the latter part of 1980's. Beebe literally came out of nowhere to have long and productive NFL career as special teamer and speed receiver.
