Dan Connor, 2008 NFL Draft Prospect

Linebacker 6' 2" 231 lbs. Speed: 4.67 Senior

They have called Penn State “Linebacker U” for quite some time and with Dan Connor’s entry into the 2008 NFL Draft, that nick-name isn’t going away any time soon.

But today I am highlighting senior Penn State linebacker Dan Connor, who should emerge as a top linebacker selected in the 2008 NFL Draft. He is a possible Butkus Award winner, an All-Big Ten selection and an All-America candidate for the 2007 season. Conner is a talented tackling machine with decent size (6’ 3” 230 lbs), and he even outplayed teammate and 2007 NFL Draftee Paul Posluszny for much of the 2006 season.

Two years ago (2006) Connor started all 13 games and finished with 113 tackles, 9 tackles for a loss, 5 sacks and 2 interceptions. He has great range in pass coverage and comes up to fill the hole with reckless abandon. He has very strong hands and when he gets a hold of the ball carrier he rarely misses a tackle.

As a sophomore in 2005, Connor moved into the starting lineup for their big win over Ohio State, and then continued to start the last seven games, recording 76 tackles. He also proved to be very disruptive to opposing offenses as he knifed through to record 5.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks. He was also ranked third on the team with eight pass breakups.

As a true freshman in 2004, Connor ranked second on the team and ninth in the Big Ten with 85 tackles (50 solo) in just four starts.  He burst onto the national scene when he was named a Freshman All-American by The Sporting News, the Football Writers Association of America and Scripps. Connor proved to be very versatile by playing outside linebacker for most of the season, but because of injury he played the last three games at inside linebacker. Conner played in every game as a freshman and recorded 4.5 tackles for loss (minus-12 yards), one sack and one interception, for a defense that ranked among the top 10 in the nation in four categories and was the only team in Division I to not allow more than 21 points in a game.

Connor was much a decorated recruit coming out of high school. He was a consensus prep All-American at Strath Haven high school for Coach Kevin Clancy. As a four-year starter, he was selected as the nation’s top prep linebacker by Parade and earned first-team All-America accolades from USA Today, SuperPrep and almost every scouting service in existence.  He was also the 2003 Associated Press Big School Player-of-the-Year.  Connor was also named to the first-team all-state team three times. He also lettered in basketball and track, where he participated in the high jump, javelin, discus and shot put.

Update: Connor is definitely still in my 2008 NFL Mock Draft, but just barely, he didn't do anything wrong, but hasn't knocked anyone socks off in the post season and Tennessee's younger, faster, Jerod Mayo is rising up the boards.  But Connor is a blue collar player and is still a fantastic prospect. He (Connor) was a consensus 2007 All American, he played fantastic once again at the middle linebacker position and was the recipient of the Bednarik Award (top defensive player), he was a finalist for the Butkus Award and set the Penn State school record with 419 career tackles. His 145 tackles in 2007 led the Big Ten Conference and ranked seventh in the nation. On March 18th at Penn State's Pro Day, Connor (6-2 5/8, 231): Ran the 40 in 4.67 and 4.71, had a 35-inch vertical jump, 9-foot, 7-inch long jump, 4.25 short shuttle, 6.78 cone drill, 21 reps in the bench press, ran position drills.