Who's Talking Bull? Tragedy in Ohio and the NFL Draft

First the important stuff, please put some time into your prayers for the family and friends of Marcellis Williamson

Former Ohio Defensive Tackle Marcellis Williamson Dies Wednesday Night - Hustle Belt
Just a horrific story coming out of Athens, via their campus newspaper: Ohio University defensive tackle Marcellis Williamson, (clarification: who played his senior year last season), passed away on Wednesday. So far there've been no details as to what the cause of death is, and we don't even speculate. (Update: One of his friends on Twitter said he died of an apparent heart attack Wednesday morning.) There's been a fury of tweets saying RIP Marcellis Williamson, and that's really all we know at this point.

NFL Draft:

FalconBlog--Triumphs and Trials in the BGSU Falcon Nation: MAC Draft Preview
The other player I am fairly sure will be drafted is Josh Thomas of Buffalo. This is, in a sense, kind of surprising to me, because he didn't get much notice in the MAC. In fact, he wasn't All-MAC first, second, or third team, and yet he could be drafted? His numbers are not eye-popping, but he also ran track, which has to get the NFL excited. But, at the same time, you'd have to think a guy who was good enough to get this kind of notice would be All-MAC.

The Mac Daily - Major coverage for a major conference.
Muhammad Wilkerson was a defensive force for Temple this past season, helping the Owls finish 8-4 in Al Golden's final season in Philadelphia. After a 70-tackle season with 9.5 sacks, the junior decided to make an early jump to the NFL, despite playing in a conference that doesn't see many players leave early and with the NFL facing the possibility of a lockout.

Final 2011 NFL Mock Draft: Ryan Mallett Sneaks Into Round One - Mocking The Draft
This is it. Less than 24 hours until Roger Godell heads to the podium to announce the first pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. It's been a wild offseason. The draft is before free agency, and there is still no definitive answer on whether or not we will have football next season. For now, the draft is all we have. Enjoy it. Luckily for fans, the 2011 NFL Draft is going to be a wild one. The top ten is as muddled as I have ever seen it. No pick is set in stone, and there are a handful of trade possibilities, making the first ten selections nearly impossible to predict. I'll do my best, just for you guys. Here goes.

A look at MAC draft numbers - Campus Watch - The Buffalo News
UB had four draft picks since 2000 in Drew Haddad (2000), Trevor Scott (2008), Jamey Richard (2008) and Niagara Falls native James Starks (2010). CB Josh Thomas is expected to be drafted on the third day of this week’s draft. I re-arranged Rivals MAC chart to show in order of number of draftees:

Great read from the Spectrum on Warde Manual

The Warde – Manual - The Spectrum - Sports
Manuel is the athletic director at the University at Buffalo and was hired at a time when UB Athletics was in shambles. In his time at UB, he has orchestrated the success six Mid-American Conference championship teams and has brought UB Athletics to a level of respectability.