Cowboys’ Sleeper Prospects: OG Blaize Foltz TCU
By cowgirlcas
Every year I do my “The Guys No One Is Talking About” series. Recently I posted my recap of last years group. If you haven’t seen it click here. This is the profile of my 1st candidate for the 2013 season.
Mandatory Credit www.sportsfanpromotions.com
Lets face it, the Dallas Cowboys roster looks like Swiss Cheese right now. With all of the current free agents, the switch to the Tampa 2 defense, the injury prone players, and the cap hell Jerry Jones has this team in, most of the holes need to be filled in the draft. There is no cap room to go out in to free agency and sign proven veterans. In order to fill all of the needs, the Cowboys need to hit on some late round picks and undrafted rookie free agents. This is where my guys come in. They are not all going to be Pro Bowl players. I wont hit on all of them; however, there is always the chance of finding that diamond in the rough player who makes a huge impact in the NFL. One of the recent standouts from my series is Henry Hynosky, the full back for the New York Giants. He went undrafted in 2011 and in 2012 was among the top 10 ranked players from the entire 2011 draft class. Not too bad for “A Guy No One Was Talking About”! He has made an impact as a starter in in New York, (considered a top 5 fullback in the NFL as a 2nd year player). when I consider the job he is doing there, compared to Chapas whom JJ dropped a draft pick on (didn’t even make the team) and Lawrence Vickers, who he signed as a free agent from Houston, it tends to ruffle my feathers a bit. Two of the other guys I covered in this series, Ronnell Scott and Levy Adcock have also found homes with the New York Giants. It pains me to see my players end up with a division rival.
Dec 1, 2012; Ft. Worth, TX, USA; Texas Christian Horned Frogs guard Blaize Foltz (66) in action against the Oklahoma Sooners at Amon G Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Blaize Foltz, OG
Height/Weight: 6-3 329
School: TCU | Conference: BIG12
College Experience: Senior | Hometown: Rose Hill, KS
The first thing I look for in an interior lineman is power. Elite upper and lower body strength can’t be taught. Footwork and technique can. Foltz has the prototypical frame to be an OG at the next level. He plays with extreme power at the point of attack and isn’t happy just sustaining his block. He likes to continue punching through the whistle literally mauling his opponent. He is a little slow off the snap at times and has a tendency to stop moving his feet and rely on his upper body strength. He isn’t the quick athletic type (Like Cooper) you want to use in a zone blocking scheme. He is the Nate Newton Erick Williams type who just blazes a path for the RB to follow. He runs a 5.32 40 so he doesn’t have the elite speed for getting to the 2nd level. However, he plays with the same kind of nasty as Chance Warmack. Warmack also lacks that elite athleticism and plays with power. These are the kind of guys I want in the trenches. Too many times scouts fall in love with the athleticism, but once those players get to the next level they don’t have the power to drive NFL defensive tackles back on the goal line to make a hole. Foltz needs to work on his technique and footwork moving laterally, but as a late round to undrafted guy, there is more upside than any late round OG I have studied so far. This guy could be that diamond in the rough the Cowboys need to add some depth to a depleted offensive line unit. I don’t see him as a day one starter, but considering who the Cowboys have on the OL now, he may just win a job by mid season. All he needs is a little fine tuning and he will be a beast.
According to CBS: Starting all 12 games at right guard, Foltz earned First Team All-Mountain West honors and was recognized by CBSSports.com’s Bruce Feldman as one of this year’s “Freak” athletes due to his incredible weight-room strength.
Foltz is credited with a bench press of 580 pounds, an 800 pound squat, an incline bench of 530 pounds and a 430 pound clean and jerk.
"“Honestly, we’ve gotten to a point where we stop him now for safety sake,” TCU offensive line coach Eddie Williamson told Feldman. “He could probably do even more than what those numbers indicate if we didn’t."
College Career:
Sep 17, 2011; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Texas Christian Horned Frogs guard Blaize Foltz (66) blocks against the Louisiana Monroe Warhawks linebacker Jason edwards (54) at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
2012: Started all 13 games at right guard … selected to the All-Big 12 Second Team and AP All-Big 12 Second Team … honored as an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection for Offensive Lineman of the Year … paved the way for TCU to accumulate 1,977 yards rushing and 13 rushing touchdowns … TCU had three runners with at least 417 yards rushing … helped TCU control the ball as it led the Big 12 in time of possession and ranked eighth nationally at 32:44 minutes per game.
November 3, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; TCU Horned Frogs wide receiver Josh Boyce (82) and guard Blaize Foltz (66) celebrate after defeating the West Virginia Mountaineers in two overtimes at Milan Puskar Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
High School:
First-team 4A All-State and All-Metro on both the offensive and defensive lines as a junior and senior … named his league’s Defensive Most Valuable Player his senior year … recorded 48 tackles and two sacks … a Kansas Shrine Bowl selection … a member of the Wichita Eagle and Topeka Capital-Journal Top 22 … All-Class Top 11 and Rivals.com Top 15 … named a Greater Wichita Student-Athlete of the Month by KAKE-TV … Team Captain and MVP as a senior … totaled 64 stops and five sacks his junior year in being selected Rose Hill’s Defensive Most Valuable Player … added 47 pancake blocks on offense … named his team’s Rookie of the Year in 2005 … the first player in the history of Rose Hill High School to sign with a Division I football program.
Personal:
Earned his TCU degree in communications with a minor in social work … playing the 2012 season as a graduate student.
(Courtesy of TCU football)
Foltz reminds me of another under the radar converted defensive lineman, Mark Tuinei of the Dallas Cowboys. As I have said many times before, I don’t pay much attention to media projections. Personally I like this player and would hope that the Cowboys at least bring him in for a look on Dallas Day. If not, I am certain he will find a home elsewhere in the NFL. The potential ceiling more than outweighs the risk.