Senior Bowl Snippets: Practice Stars and Dolphins History

After a week of practice, the actual Reese's Senior Bowl game will take place Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET (NFL Network).

Since the Miami Dolphins, as we'll examine a bit later, have selected at least one Senior Bowl participant every year in the past decade, it's likely that at least and very possibly more of the players in the game Saturday will start calling Hard Rock Stadium home later this year.

In the eyes of some scouts and analysts, the game itself actually takes a back seat to what transpired during the week of practice, which is why it's worth noting the practice-week awards that were handed out Friday night.

The biggest award went to North Dakota State offensive lineman Dillon Radunz, who was named the Overall Practice Player of the Week. The winner of the award last year was quarterback Justin Herbert, who of course ended up being selected by the Chargers with the sixth overall selection in the 2020 NFL draft, one spot after the Dolphins took Tua Tagovailoa.

The other winners were:

National team top QB: Ian Book, Notre Dame

American team top QB: Mac Jones, Alabama

National team top RB: Michael Carter, North Carolina

American team top RB: Kylin Hill, Mississippi State

American team top WR: Kadarius Toney, Florida

National team top TE: Hunter Long, Boston College

American team top TE: Tré McKitty, Georgia

National team top OL: Quinn Meinerz, Wisconsin-Whitewater

American team top OL: David Moore Jr., Grambling

National team top DL: Osa Odighizuwa, UCLA

American team top DL: Cam Sample, Tulane

National team top LB: Tony Fields, West Virginia

American team top LB: K.J. Britt, Auburn

American team top CB: Tre Brown, Oklahoma

American team top CB: D.J. Daniel, Georgia

National team top safety: Christian Uphoff, Illinois State

American team top safety: Richie Grant, UCF

National team top specialist: K Riley Patterson, Memphis

American team top specialist: P Max Duffy

Of those winners, the ones who stand out are Jones, Meinerz and Toney.

Jones stands out simply because he was the one who had the unenviable task of replacing the incomparable Tagovailoa at Alabama. Jones' performance at the Senior Bowl only enhanced the tremendous 2020 season he enjoyed when he helped lead the Crimson Tide to yet another national title and became a Heisman finalist.

Meinerz became a media sensation in Mobile not only because his practice jersey was short enough to expose his stomach but because he more than held his own as a Division III prospect going up against much better competition.

As for Toney, he needs to be mentioned because the Dolphins have a need for a big-play wide receiver, Toney was just that at Florida and now he only helped his draft stock with an impressive showing in Mobile.

DOLPHINS COACHING AT THE SENIOR BOWL

This is the fifth time the Dolphins have coached one of the two teams at the Senior Bowl and based on history, we can expect one of their second-round picks to be one of the players in Mobile this week.

That's because the Dolphins went 4-for-4 in selecting a Senior Bowl participant in the second round the four times they've coached in the game.

In 1977, they took DT Bob Baumhower from Alabama; in 1987, they took WR Scott Schwedes from Syracuse; in 1994, they took LB Aubrey Beavers from Oklahoma; and in 2010, they took LB Koa Misi from Utah.

We earlier examined the 2010 draft and the cautionary tale it provided in terms of not falling too much in love with prospects you get the opportunity to coach because that year the team's first four picks were defensive lineman Jared Odrick, Misi, guard John Jerry and linebacker A.J. Edds.

While Odrick was a very good defensive lineman, none of the four players ever made the Pro Bowl.

By trading down from 12th to 28th in the first round, the Dolphins ended up passing on the chance to draft either Earl Thomas, Jason Pierre-Paul, Maurkice Pouncey or Devin McCourty in Round 1; they took Misi in the second round ahead of Rob Gronkowski; they took Jerry in Round 3 ahead of Eric Decker or Jimmy Graham; and they took Edds in Round 4 one spot ahead of Geno Atkins.

THE DOLPHINS AND SENIOR BOWL PROSPECTS

While the Dolphins have continued selecting at least one Senior Bowl participant every year, they've slowed down tremendously after emphasizing seniors some 7-8 years back.

Between 2013 and 2014, the Dolphins took nine Senior Bowl prospects, but only one became a regular for the team.

That was tackle Ja'Wuan James, who was selected in the first round (19th overall) in 2014.

James is one of 16 Senior Bowl participants the Dolphins selected in the first round, though it's only happened five times since underclassmen became eligible for the NFL draft in 1990.

The five are tackle Richmond Webb in 1990, defensive tackle Daryl Gardener in 1996, running back John Avery in 1998, Odrick and James.

Here is the full list of Senior Bowl participants since 2010 who became Dolphins draft picks:

2020 — DE Jason Strowbridge, North Carolina, Round 5

2019 — G Michael Deiter, Wisconsin, Round 3

2018 — TE Mike Gesicki, Penn State, Round 2

TE Durham Smythe, Notre Dame, Round 4

RB Kalen Ballage, Arizona State, Round 4

2017 — G Isaac Asiata, Utah, Round 5

2016 — RB Kenyan Drake, Alabama, Round 3

WR Leonte Carroo, Rutgers, Round 3

2015 — G Jamil Douglas, Arizona State, Round 4

CB Tony Lippett, Michigan State, Round 5

2014 — T Ja'Wuan James, Tennessee, Round 1

G/T Billy Turner, North Dakota State, Round 3

DB Walt Aikens, Liberty, Round 4

TE Arthur Lynch, Georgia, Round 5

2013 — CB Jamar Taylor, Boise State, Round 2

G Dallas Thomas, Tennessee, Round 3

CB Will Davis, Utah State, Round 3

RB Mike Gillislee, Florida, Round 5

LB Jordan Tripp, Montana, Round 5

2012 — TE Michael Egnew, Missouri, Round 3

DT Kheeston Randall, Texas, Round 7

2011 — WR Edmond Gates, Abilene Christian, Round 4

TE Charles Clay, Tulsa, Round 6

2010 — DT Jared Odrick, Penn State, Round 1

LB Koa Misi, Utah, Round 2

G John Jerry, Mississippi, Round 3

LB A.J. Epps, Iowa, Round 4

SENIOR BOWL MVPs

Finally, we close with a quick note on Senior Bowl MVPs as they relate to the Dolphins.

The Dolphins have drafted two Senior Bowl MVPs in their history, with results that could not have become more polar opposites.

Dan Marino was co-Senior Bowl MVP in 1983 (along with Clemson DB Terry Kinard) before the Dolphins took him with the next-to-last pick of the first round.

In 2009, the MVP was West Virginia quarterback Pat White, who never panned out after the Dolphins selected him in the second round.

On another side note, newly hired quarterbacks coach Charlie Frye was the Senior Bowl MVP in 2005 when he was a quarterback at Akron. He ended up being a third-round pick of the Cleveland Browns that year.