H.B. Blades
Height: 5-11
Weight: 237
Position: Inside Linebacker
College: Pittsburgh
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OVERVIEW
In the glory days of Miami Hurricanes football during the 1980s, the Blades family was college football's version of royalty, as brothers Bennie (safety) and Brian (receiver) starred on opposite sides of the ball. Younger brother, Al, a safety, later followed them in Miami folklore as all three would go on to play in the National Football League.
Bennie, who starred for the Detroit Lions from 1988-96 and Seattle Seahawks in 1997, earning All-Pro status, was hoping that his son would carry on the family tradition by playing for the Hurricanes, but the youngster wanted to create his own legacy, opting to enroll at Pittsburgh. There, he still has ties to his father's and uncles' glory days, as the Panthers' head coach is none other than Dave Wannstedt, who served on Miami's staff from 1986-88 as defensive coordinator and coached Bennie Blades at UM.
H.B. Blades earned four football letters and also lettered in track and field at Plantation High School, where he was also a three-year staff writer for the student newspaper. He earned first-team All-Florida Class 6A honors (largest classification) as a senior and was second- team All-Florida as a junior. He was selected one of 50 National Players of the Year by Old Spice "Red Zone" and was a two time first-team All-Broward County Athletic Association (BCAA) and All-Broward County choice.
Blades was selected to play in the Broward-Dade County All-Star Game. He was rated the nation's No. 17 linebacker by Tom Lemming and received Super Prep All-Dixie Team honors. He was rated one of Florida's top 100 prospects by Rivals100.com and picked up Prep Star All-Southeast Region.
A four-year starter at linebacker, Blades compiled 148 tackles, five forced fumbles, three interceptions and three quarterback sacks as a senior. He set Plantation records for tackles in a career (409), season (154) and game (21). His 49 career starts also established a school mark.
He led Plantation to the district championship his senior and freshman seasons, as the team produced an undefeated regular season (10-0) and 11-1 overall mark in 2002 to reach No. 20 in the USA Today national rankings.
Blades was thrust right into the action upon enrolling at Pittsburgh in 2003, playing in all 13 games at strongside outside linebacker. He started against Virginia in the Continental Bowl, finishing his rookie season with 57 tackles (41 solos), 4 ½ stops for losses, a blocked kick and a fumble recovery.
In 2004, Blades took over strongside linebacker duties, earning All-Big East Conference first-team and Panthers MVP honors. He started a string of three consecutive seasons in leading the team in tackles, piling up 108 (58 solos) with two sacks and 10 ½ stops behind the line of scrimmage. He caused and recovered a fumble and intercepted three passes while deflecting two others.
Blades was named team captain in 2005, as he moved to middle linebacker. He was again named first-team All-Big East, leading the conference with 121 tackles (67 solos). He also had one sack and 3 ½ stops for losses. He recovered two fumbles and caused another. He also batted away six passes while producing one interception for a touchdown.
In 2006, Blades was a first-team All-American, All-Big East and ECAC All-Star. He was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Year and was a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award and Butkus Award.
The Lott Trophy quarterfinalist was also chosen team MVP. He ranked fourth in the nation with 147 tackles (86 solos), adding a sack and 10 ½ stops behind the line of scrimmage. He blocked two kicks, intercepted two passes and deflected seven others. He also recovered two fumbles and had one forced fumble.
In 48 games at Pittsburgh, Blades started 36 times (23 at middle linebacker, 13 at strongside linebacker). He ranks third in school history with 433 tackles (252 solos), adding four sacks for minus-25 yards and 28 stops for losses totaling 85 yards. He recovered six fumbles, caused three others and blocked three kicks. He gained 54 yards on six interception returns (9.0 avg) with a touchdown and had 15 pass deflections.
ANALYSIS
Positives: Has a short, squat frame, but shows very good lower body thickness, especially in his calves and ankles to anchor firmly at the point of attack … Plays with a consistently high motor and compensates for a lack of ideal size with great effort and tenacity … Has the straight-line burst and low pad level to be a disruptive force taking on lead blockers in the inside rush lanes … Needs room to build up a head of steam, but once he gets going, he is a good collision tackler, but can also wrap-up with effectiveness, bringing his hands well to lock on and secure … Hits with good pop and explosion on contact … Does a good job of calling defensive assignments and making pre-snap adjustments … Vocal leader who plays until the whistle … Has a good feel for blocking schemes and looks very natural attacking the ball, locating it quickly and showing urgency making the play … Despite his small frame, he does a good job with gap control because of his ability to play off blocking schemes … Lacks the size to split double teams, but works hard to clog the rush lanes and will not hesitate to take on the lead blocker or offensive guard and use his hands to stack … Uses his hands efficiently to protect his feet on the move and it is hard for opponents to cut him, as he shows good balance and nimble feet to step over trash … Uses his hands adequately to play off blocks when working in-line, but can be overwhelmed by bigger linemen … Doesn't have the loose hips to easily flow to the ball, but makes every effort to get there … Able to run through the pile and bounce outside to makes some plays along the perimeter … Does a good job of keeping plays in front of him and compensates for a lack of blazing speed by taking proper angles to close … Uses his hands with force to reroute underneath receivers … Has experience to play on the outside on the strong side … Very good at anticipating the quarterback's actions and won't take false steps in misdirection or bite on pump fakes … Catches cleanly away from his frame, showing natural hands for the interception.
Negatives: Shorter than ideal and lacks the upper body strength needed to split double teams … Active with his hands, but has short arms which prevent him from countering reach blocks or disengaging when a bigger blocker latches on to his jersey … Will get blown off the line when trying to plug gaps (only when he gets too high in his stance, causing his base to narrow) … Good read-and-react type, but has struggled some in the classroom … Has hip stiffness that prevents him from coming out of his backpedal cleanly (hip problems also give him marginal flexibility, making him a liability dropping back in man coverage outside the short area) … Needs space and must keep plays in front of him in order to handle pass coverage assignments … Has limited range to play in space … Charges hard on the blitz, but generally needs a rolling start to get going, lacking the sudden burst to attack the gaps … Does not have the pass rush moves needed to apply consistent pocket pressure (needs to develop second moves and show more quickness in his attempts to get up field) … Slow to shed due to short arms and adequate upper body power.
Compares To: Keith Adams, Miami … Like Adams, Blades will play until the whistle and compensates for a lack of size and quickness with excellent field instincts and vision. He is a tenacious wrap-up tackler who is best when given room to move. He loves to mix it up in the trenches, but will get bounced around vs. double teams. He is a secure wrap-up tackler, but his stiff hips are evident as he struggles with his backpedal, making him a liability on passing plays.
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