MrElectric29 brought this player within the last 24 hours and I added Pierre-Paul to my top 50 last week. This article was just as the season got underway this fall. Pierre-Paul had 6 sacks and numerous pressures and has a huge upside. Drafting Pierre-Paul he would be a work in progress, but has all the tools to be special. The guy is hungry and wants to get better. Has contacted the NFL advisory board for his draft status this April. Wasn't even on anyone's radar going into this year. An unbelievable athlete that makes plays. Has shown he can get after the QB and make plays in the backfield. Backflip in full pads....crazy shit. Great Kid , with an awesome attitude Pierre-Paul scratching surface of prodigious talent September, 30, 2009 Sep 3010:51AM ETEmail Print Share Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett South Florida defensive line coach Kevin Patrick was on a recruiting trip to see Jason Pierre-Paul last year when the prized prospect surprised him. "Hey, coach, look at this," Pierre-Paul yelled to Patrick after practice. Then the 6-foot-6, 260-pounder pulled off a standing backflip -- in full pads and helmet. "It was," Patrick says now, "the most impressive thing I've ever seen in my life." Cliff Welch/Icon SMI Jason Pierre-Paul is proving to be a fast learner on the football field. Pierre-Paul is impressing a lot of people these days with his unique blend of skills. In just his fourth Division I game, the junior-college transfer won Big East defensive player of the week honors by recording a sack, a forced fumble and three tackles for loss in a 17-7 win at Florida State. What's amazing -- and scary for future opponents -- is that Pierre-Paul is like a newborn in a grown man's body. Right now, he's getting by on pure athletic ability, of which he has plenty in reserve. "I'm not even near to playing good football yet," Pierre-Paul said. "I'm still learning the whole system right now. I'm still out there thinking, 'What if I make a big mistake?'" You'd never guess it by the way he played in Tallahassee, but this whole football thing is still sort of new to him. Pierre-Paul's parents, Jean and Marie, emigrated to Florida from Haiti 26 years ago. Jean Pierre-Paul went blind when Jason was still an infant. The only football his family knew was soccer. Pierre-Paul never played the sport until joining his Deerfield Beach (Fla.) High School team for a playoff game his junior year. Before that, he had played basketball, but he broke his leg three different times growing up -- the last time dunking a basketball. Neither he nor his mother were thrilled about him playing football. "There was a lot of pressure on him to play, and I don't think he liked being in pain," said his sister, Nadie Pierre-Paul. Pierre-Paul nearly quit before deciding to play his senior year, then signed with Central Florida. But his grades weren't in order, so he wound up going to two junior colleges, piling up nearly 25 sacks in two seasons. Along the way, his enthusiasm for the sport grew. During one game at Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College, Pierre-Paul injured his neck while making a hit and was taken to the hospital. Even as the technicians cut off his helmet and put him through an MRI, Pierre-Paul kept asking if he could go back and play. After he cleared all the tests, he got a ride to the stadium, showed the medical paperwork to his coaches and talked his way back into the game. His list of college suitors read like a who's who of college football: Florida, LSU, Georgia, Nebraska, Arkansas, among others. Most schools, though, wanted him to spend another semester in junior college to shore up his grades. South Florida said he could play this year if he finished his requirements, and his sister urged him to come back home. Pierre-Paul had to complete 18 hours of coursework during the summer to get eligible, taking the final two classes online at home. He missed the first two weeks of South Florida training camp. "It took me a good minute to get back into shape," he said. "It was tough, because everybody else knew all the plays." South Florida coach Jim Leavitt told people in the preseason that it would probably take about five games before Pierre-Paul was ready to contribute in a serious way. Instead, he got his first start in Week 3 against Charleston Southern. "The best thing about Jason is his attitude and demeanor and the way he approached all of it," Leavitt said. "More so than I would have expected." Combine that attitude with Pierre-Paul's astounding physical gifts, and the Bulls really have something. He runs like a linebacker and has a wing span of 6 feet, nine inches. "Just the span from his elbow to the tips of his fingers is longer than my arm," Patrick said. "He was kind of raw and all over the place when he got here. But now he's sharpening his tools. He's starting to execute without so much of a spastic motion." And as Pierre-Paul continues to improve, that makes life difficult for opposing offensive lines. That's because two-time All-American defensive end George Selvie waits on the other side and can't be so easily double-teamed any more. In the Florida State game, Patrick said he was surprised to see the Seminoles actually using an extra blocker to chip Pierre-Paul instead of Selvie. "What a complement it is for George to have Jason, and for Jason to have George," Patrick said. Pierre-Paul isn't embracing any compliments this week, despite his big game and Big East award. The breakout performance just showed him what he was capable of doing once he learns the finer points of the game. "I just know now that I've got to be better," he said, "and show everybody what I can do."
JPP also has a 80-plus inch wingspan. This kid's going to shoot up boards like Demarcus Ware. It's awesome to see a hard working, forgotten recruit make it. I have a ton of respect for guys that have to go the Junior College route and realize that it's now or never. He worked his ass off and look where he is now.
Just like WW said, it's too early to tell. If JPP has an excellent combine, there's no way in hell he'll fall into the 20s. The draft could fall a certain way - crazy shit happens.
I called him the forgotten man a few weeks ago. He's just been terribly unproductive the past two seasons...
What is sad, with Pierre-Paul this season, Selvie didn't take advantage of the opportunity. Selvie was a one year wonder. Still may be a decent selection as a mid-round pick.
interesting, I remember reading an article about him a few years back about how all of his coaches were just making him eat shitloads of food to gain weight. Maybe it caught up with him
Selvie's only like 245 standing at around 6'4 to 6'5...I think he's almost too light now, and he's being overpowered. Here's an interesting fact: George Selvie was recruited to play center.
I will say this about Selvie and JPP, I've seen them play a couple times, but the most telling to me was when I watched them in person vs RU. Selvie still got most of the attention from the RU line, and JPP couldn't get much of anything going. He's still a WAYS away from being ready to contribute to an NFL team, and I'm not sure he's the right fit. The Jets need a passrusher immediately, and I really don't love the idea of another player that's going to require heavy development in a draft loaded with passrushing talent.
I beleive I posted in another thread JPP isn't a finished product. JPP only played 1 year of H.S. ball and some JUCO and 1 year of Big Time College Football, the kid is very raw. He has all the athletic ability and desire to become a very good NFL player. The little I've seen from him at USF, he is on the way to becoming a force.
JPP had 6 tackles and 2 sacks against Rutgers - I don't know if the sacks came in garbage time though? Was Anthony Davis matched up against him? *** As a developmental prospect, Pierre-Paul has to be at the top of the list. I'd be willing to draft a guy with his potential late in the first round. ***EDIT I just watched USF/Rutgers highlights and it looks like Davis blocked Pierre-Paul for most of the game. Another thing I noticed, most of JPP's big plays game out of the 3-4 - where he was lined up at linebacker.
Anyone who has watched a lot of USF this year can see that Selvie still gets most of the attention on that defense. He's double teamed almost all the time. I like JPP, but I do think he's overrated. Selvie would be a really nice 2nd round pick. I see him being a much better pro than college player.
George Selvie does get doubled a lot, but great players can handle that. Selvie has been almost invisible this season. There's no doubt that Pierre-Paul benefits from playing opposite Selvie, but JPP is more versatile and he's more physically gifted - making him a better prospect.
JPP has the makings of the next Julius Peppers.... Now this is the big decision here if it came down to DE or DT who would we Select? I say go with DE because a guy of his stature demands a double team and creates the edge rush we need and we could send anybody off the edge. and Pouha is doing a good job rotating in with a half health Jenkins next season.. Plus Shaun Ellis is getting up there in age and mileage and we will need a new fresh guy soon
