West Virginia NFL draft bio: Owen Schmitt

By Darrell Laurant  |   Friday, January 18, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

West Virginia Mountaineers
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Owen Schmitt started his West Virginia University football career by walking on. He ended it by going off.

The 6-foot-2, 260-pound senior fullback ignited the Mountaineer offense with a school bowl-record 57-yard run as his team hammered favored Oklahoma, 48-28, in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. He also put on his usual blocking clinic to clear the way for Pat White and Noel Devine. And now, the NFL scouts are even more intrigued.

The question centers around what to do with this guy. Schmitt is strong as a water buffalo (he holds most of the school's weightlifting records), tough as leather, and blocks, as one writer put it, "like Hellboy tackling a demon from another dimension."

If you've watched WVU play, either in person or on TV, you've probably seen this sign in the stands: "Schmitt Happens."

So the Fairfax, Va., product, who was not recruited out of high school, would seem a perfect fit for a fullback slot in the pros. After all, he is credited with breaking 10 face masks as a college player.

Except that putting him there might be wasting him. Schmitt has run a sub-4.6 40, according to nfldraftscout.com, and his lengthy gallop against Oklahoma demonstrated that he actually has breakaway speed. He also has good hands, which might make him a plausible tight end.

With NFL offenses becoming more imaginative as time goes on, a guy like Schmitt has to be
a hot topic in war-room discussions. Having him on your team could be like acquiring three players -- a tight end, fullback and running back -- in one. And Schmitt on special teams is a scary thought.

With his Mohawk and his wild-eyed on-field demeanor, Schmitt also has the attitude that the pros are looking for -- on-the-field zeal without any off-the-field baggage.

This time, unlike high school, Schmitt will not go unrecruited. The question is: How high might he go in the draft?

Normally, teams wouldn't think of taking a fullback prototype in the first three rounds. But neither do they want Owen Schmitt playing against them.
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