Two weeks ago, the Miami University RedHawks made a significant quarterback change, switching out redshirt senior Daniel Raudabaugh for redshirt freshman Zac Dysert. Raudabaugh, the starting quarterback for the RedHawks since 2007, was replaced after going 0-3 with 2 Touchdowns, 5 Interceptions and a 53% completion percentage.

It isn’t common for a senior to be benched for a freshman, especially at quarterback. But after starting 0-3 and not showing any signs of improvement, first year Head Coach Mike Haywood decided to build for the future by starting the young gunslinger. Since then, Miami is 0-2. On the plus side, Dysert completed 64% of his passes in those games with 2 TD’s and 4 INT’s, while also adding 99 yards on the ground.

Dysert isn’t lighting the world on fire, statistically, but from watching him play, you can see the potential is there for him to become the best quarterback at MU since Ben Roethlisberger. He is definitely a player to keep an eye on over the next several years.


Send Rob Engle and email to suggest a player that you think is a Player to Watch for… robby@draftbreakdown.com

A player that has been rising up many draft boards recently is UConn’s DE Lindsey Witten. Witten had 6 sacks over the first two weeks of the season and was consistently in the backfield of his opponents, Ohio and North Carolina.

Witten went up against Baylor this past weekend despite showing flu-like symptoms earlier in the week. He wasn’t able to get a sack on the elusive Robert Griffin, but he still had a couple of pressures and three tackles.

Witten was overshadowed by players like second-round pick Cody Brown last year, but he has come on really strong so far and his stock is on the rise. He has decent size at 6-4 and 250 pounds, good speed around the edge, and superb pass-rushing moves, so scouts could look at him as a possible 3-4 rush linebacker.

We will be keeping a close eye on Witten as the season progresses. He started out the season as a possible late round selection, but if he continues to impress he has top 100 potential (first three rounds).

Check back next week for another “Player on the Rise” feature.