More Football Rankings and "Trent Talk"

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Perhaps the most comprehensive preseason publication available is unveiling its Preseason Top 25 (team-by-team), and BYU has been ranked 17th by "Phil Steele's 2008 College Football Preview."

The five "major" preseason publications are ranking BYU as follows:

Athlon: 14th

Lindy's: 12th

Phil Steele: 17th

Sporting News (now published by Street and Smith's): to be released in late June

Sports Illustrated: to be released in August

The Cougars are poised to make it a "clean sweep"--appearing in every major Preseason Top 25 ranking. The ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll and Associated Press Poll are due out in mid- to late-August.

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I am hopeful of speaking with Trent Plaisted this week, to get his Pre-Draft Camp thoughts. If and when we get together, his interview will be posted here. Stay tuned.

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ESPN.com's Chad Ford attended the camp, and what he saw did not get Trent into his mock 1st Round of the NBA Draft. He projects Plaisted as the 7th pick of the 2nd Round, 37th overall.

Ford's summary of Plaisted looks like this:

Positives: Athletic big man. Is an explosive jumper and plays aggressively. Lefty. Long arms make him bigger than he's listed. Good scorer around the basket. Quick for a big guy. Runs the floor well. Improving rebounder.

Negatives: Needs to improve his shot-blocking. Needs to gain consistency. He could play more physical. Terrible free throw shooter.

Summary: After a stellar freshman season and a so-so sophomore campaign, he improved as a junior. However scouts still wonder about his inconsistency. His combo of size and athleticism make him a legit first round prospect. But his lack of production has raised plenty of red flags. Right now he's on the first round bubble. He'll need strong workouts to get him in.

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