Louis Murphy Scouting Report

Murphy projects extremely well to the next level and there is every reason to think that he will have a better career as a pro than as a Florida Gator. That's not to say, however, that his time in college has been a bust. Murphy hauled in 37 passes for 548 yards and five touchdowns as a junior in 2007. In his Florida swansong he had 38 receptions for 655 yards and seven touchdowns, including the game-clinching score against Oklahoma in the BCS National Championship. The wide receiver is a significant home-run threat (as seen in his yards-per-catch average) and he will thrive on any NFL team that has a quarterback who loves throwing the deep ball. Florida, however, used a lot of gadget plays with Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin and rarely went deep, so Murphy was a bit overshadowed. With a rare blend of size (6'2'' and 205 pounds) and speed (around 4.3 in the 40-yard dash), Murphy can burn cornerbacks down the field or go over them if they happen to stay with him stride for stride. He has first-round talent, but he won't be able to overpower cornerbacks who jam him at the line of scrimmage and his hands are simply adequate, but not flawless. Right now Murphy looks like he'll be off the board before the end of the second round in this month's draft.