'13 TE Mike Heuerman

[Jr]

Time to crank these up again and get some rating in. 1st up is Mike Heuerman. He's a 6'4, 205 lb TE out of Naples. His brother currently plays at Ohio State.



Pros:
-Plays physical and mean
-Sustains blocks well
-VERY fast and for a TE
-Quick in the open field and can make guys miss
-Tall and long with a good frame, can add some clean weight
-Creates mismatches as a pass catcher
-Knowledge of various routes
-Plays with good leverage as a blocker
-Shows ability to be split out wide at times
-Adjusts well to the ball in the air
-More polished than what I expected
-Incredibly smart player, knows where to be on the field, helps his QB by coming back to the ball, finds soft spots in zones, etc. He just instinctively gets things that most kids his age still haven't figured out.

Cons:
-Very skinny at the moment and will need to bulk up
-Strength looks average
-Hands aren't natural. Fights the ball at times

Needless to say I was SHOCKED at just how good this kid looks after seeing his tape. Possibly the best TE recruit Ive seen us target in the past 5 years if not longer. He's a complete mismatch as a pass catcher not matter who you try to cover him with. He's one of the most mentally advanced TE recruits I've seen. He just "get it" when it comes to small little details like cutting off routes on broken plays, coming back to the ball, etc. He's basically a complete safety valve for his QB on every play while still offering a top end play making ability as a TE and even being a capable blocker and versatile to boot.

He's not a traditional TE although he is capable of being used in that role at times but he brings a lot to the table for OC's to use and has some good upside to him as well.

From a recruiting standpoint he currently has offers from us, Notre Dame, USF, and South Carolina. He seems pretty high on us but well have to battle for him. He already attended JR day and plans to come back to see us again at some point. He's also planning trips to Clemson, South Carolina, Purdue and Notre Dame for their spring game.

He's an upper tier 4* for me. I loved what I saw of his tape.

[CaneLB]

I'm debating between 5.9 and 6.0. Big fan of him and have been for a while. He's not really an Urban Meyer TE so I think we have a good chance.

[CaneLB]

The biggest con imo is fluidity. He's not as natural as our past top TEs coming out of breaks and making sharp cuts. He makes up for it in other ways though. He compares favorably to Tyler Eifert, but he's a better and more physical blocker.

[brittle757]

So with his brother playing at OSU, does that make them the early favorites?

[CaneLB]

Add FSU to his list of offers.

[Bob Gibson]

So with his brother playing at OSU, does that make them the early favorites?

yes.

[a1ND]

The biggest con imo is fluidity. He's not as natural as our past top TEs coming out of breaks and making sharp cuts. He makes up for it in other ways though. He compares favorably to Tyler Eifert, but he's a better and more physical blocker.

it's not hard to be that ;-) although to be fair to the guy, he's had SERIOUS back issues almost to the point where some thought he would not get to play football again after his first year...i think the injury took away from his weight training and limits quite a few things he can do including adding the necessary bulk to get up to the 260 lbs monster that Kyle Rudolph was physically

but as a pure pass catcher and speed guy, TE > KR

[a1ND]

I love that his first few plays on the highlite reel are blocking plays

he plays means but is lacking some serious strength right now...he still has a WR body. you can tell he loves to block but his lack of strength limits his effectiveness in this area still

as a pass catcher, was quite impressed. he knows how to get open and make himself available to the QB

i'd take him over any TE in the 2012 class outside of Kent Taylor but he's a 5.8 for me as of now till we can see how he develops physically

from a ND perspective, i believe we will take 2 TEs this recruiting cycle (if the right ones want to come) and this kid was offered several months ago and i know we are very high on the list...he has called us his leader to multiple sites in the past but obviously it's early and there is still a long way to go. will be visiting for the spring game though and that's prolly the make or break it trip for him and ND

[Jr]

I actually immediately thought Kent Taylor when I viewed this tape because they both fit the mold of top end pass catching options that create mismatches.

Taylor offers more upside, size and is a better downfield threat but I actually prefer Heuerman because he's a more well rounded player, with better football instincts and better overall smarts of his position. Taylor is going to be a guy that can make plays and kill defenses deep and in the seams but I think Heuerman is going to offer more in just about every other area and he doesn't have as far to go to get there as Taylor does.

[CaneLB]

it's not hard to be that ;-) although to be fair to the guy, he's had SERIOUS back issues almost to the point where some thought he would not get to play football again after his first year...i think the injury took away from his weight training and limits quite a few things he can do including adding the necessary bulk to get up to the 260 lbs monster that Kyle Rudolph was physically

but as a pure pass catcher and speed guy, TE > KR

Eifert bends at the waist too much and has awkward posture, which explains the back issues.