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FLANKER: WALKER GILLETTE, Richmond, 6 ft. 5 in., 205 lbs. The pros began to take serious notice of this lanky receiver when he caught 20 passes against Ohio University in the Tangerine Bowl last year, and nothing he has done this year (57 receptions, 11 TDs) has diminished their interest. A hurdler on the track team, Gillette has speed, superb balance, and more moves than Joe Namath at a cocktail party. "He's tall, thin as a reed," says one dossier, "yet he can take a beating. He's got a long, effortless stride—satin-smooth." All that, plus an exceptionally good pair of hands, make the scouts report that "he's got the kind of assets that set coaches drooling."
ENDS: JIM MANDICH, Michigan, 6 ft. 3 in., 225 lbs.; and KEN BURROUGHS, Texas Southern, 6 ft. 5 in., 215 lbs. "Mandich is the kind of rugged tight end who can block like a demon for three quarters, then break the game open with a spectacular catch in the fourth," says one scout. The pros mark him as a savage blocker, and are particularly impressed with the way he can "catch the ball in a crowd and carry three tacklers for five yards." On the whole, scouts were disappointed with the receivers this year, but many feel that Burroughs is a bright exception. "Burroughs not only has sticky hands," notes a scout, "he can run the 100 in 9.4 sec. He has all the qualifications of a top pro receiver. He could turn out to be another Homer Jones."
TACKLES: BOB McKAY, Texas, 6 ft. 6 in., 260 lbs.; and SID SMITH, Southern California, 6 ft. 5 in., 270 lbs. As one pro puts it, they are "just big, strong, physical guys who can grind you into the ground." McKay led the charge for the nation's No. 1 team, whose backfield averaged 363 yds. rushing per game; the scouts give him high marks for being at once a great blocker on quick openers and a ferocious pass protector. Smith, says one scout, "has everything it takes—he's powerful, has fine footwork, can pick up the loop and requires no additional growth"—and he can cover 40 yds. in an eye-catching 5 sec.
GUARDS: RON SAUL, Michigan State, 6 ft. 2 in., 245 lbs., and CHUCK HUTCHISON, Ohio State, 6 ft. 4 in., 242 lbs. Crack guards are always a scarce commodity on the college market; most of them are too light to make it in the pros. Not Saul. "A big, tough battering ram who will block and rise to block again," says a scouting report. Hutchison, one in Woody Hayes' long line of tough, power-blocking tackles, will probably be converted to guard because "he has great speed for a big man and the savvy to pull and protect on wide plays."
CENTER: KEN MENDENHALL, Oklahoma, 6 ft. 1 in., 235 lbs. For three years Mendenhall's specialty has been coming quickly off the ball to open a hole for Steve Owens' patented power dives. The scouts say that he will have to put on another 15-20 lbs. of muscle, but they admire the way he blasts out at linebackers. "He can make it on quickness alone," reports one pro.
DEFENSE