Eric Ghiaciuc

[alleycat]

I remeber Mel saying Maurice Mann was an excellent pick for us last year in the 5th round. But he didnt even make the team.

I'm not defending Mel, just questioning the accusation that he was simply filling airtime when they went out of their way last night to talk about him still being available.

[skyline]

We needed a center, and the coaches got one. They must have seen something in him they liked, and I'll trust their decision.

[jjakq27]

Per Alexander from Bengals.com.,

http://www.bengals.com/press/news.asp?iCur...=0&news_id=2866

"Ghiaciuc, a durable sort who has the valuable moves of the Michigan prep heavyweight champion as a high school senior, never missed a game in his last three seasons....

Alexander loves Ghiaciuc's smarts (a 3.6 grade point average in industrial education) and thinks he'll be ready fairly quickly. They think he could be ready to contribute this year. One of the observations Alexander made during the scouting process is, "He's more ready than you think."

"He just has to play with the big boys every day," Alexander said. "

[jjakq27]

http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2005/ghiaciuc_eric

Prospect Profiles

Eric Ghiaciuc

Position: Center

College: Central Michigan

Height: 6-4

Weight: 302

Hometown: Oxford, Mich.

OVERVIEW

Ghiaciuc is an unheralded athlete whose athletic ability, size and mobility forced pro scouts to take notice of him during his senior year. The three-year letter-winner started the final 35 games of his career. The industrial education major provided stellar blocking for a 1,000-yard rusher all three years as a starter with the Chippewas.

Ghiaciuc redshirted in 2000 at Central Michigan. He saw limited action in 2002 then took over the center duties in 2002. He went on to start the next 37 games for the Chippewas, with the offense generating 105 touchdowns during his three years in the lineup.

ANALYSIS

Positives: Has broad shoulders, thick arms, good upper-body muscle development, good chest thickness, wide hips, thick thighs and calves with a frame that can carry additional bulk … Easily handles the mental part of the game and makes all the right line calls … Has good playing speed and developing athletic ability for the position … Uses quickness rather than power to come off the ball, but has the ability to drive defenders … Makes good reads and shows awareness to adjust to stunts and blitzes … Has the ability to get to the second level and make good adjustments on the move … Shows the ability to come off double teams and get to his blocks and sustain … Will deliver adequate pop and explosion coming off the snap … Shows decent lateral movement and kick slide in his pass set … Uses his long arms effectively to wall off and sustain … Has the acceleration to get out and locate linebackers in the second level, showing good awareness to adjust to the moving target.

Negatives: Gets a good burst coming off the snap to get into his man, but needs to add more bulk and lower-body strength … Shows good hand placement and some hand punch, but does more catching than punching in pass protection … Even with his acceleration, he's more of a waist-bender and looks a bit tight in the hips … Will get out quickly on screens and pulls, but his knees will buckle, causing him to lose proper sustaining position and lose explosion … For all of his speed, he struggles to stay on his feet when asked to pull. His in-line quickness allows him to block down, scope and reach block, but he needs to deliver his hand punch with more force … Struggles with a good anchor on contact from stunts … Can sustain blocks on the move, but needs more strength to be effective doing this at the next level … Will revert to bending at the waist rather than his hips. He has a good pass set and quick hands to get on the defenders with proper hand placement, but will catch rather than punch most of the time. He does display good slide ability and recovery ability … Will come off stunts and help the guards, but also needs help himself vs. the more powerful bull rushers (can be walked back) … Needs to add more lower-body strength to combine with his great quickness … Even though he knows his assignments, he can easily be drawn offside and his balance problems resulted in a high amount of false-start penalties in 2004 (see Kent State and Buffalo games).

INJURY REPORT

No injuries reported.

AGILITY

CAMPUS: 4.98 in the 40-yard dash … 420-pound bench press … 630-pound squat … 345-pound hang clean … Right-handed.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Oxford (Mich.) High School, playing football for coach Bud Rowely … Three-sport standout, earning all-state honors in football while winning the state heavyweight wrestling title … Earned three letters each in football, track, and wrestling … In football, he was all-league, all-county, all-metro and ranked No. 43 by the Detroit Free Press and No. 37 by the Detroit News.

PERSONAL

Industrial Education major … Nicknamed "Chuck" … Had a 3.63 grade-point average in the spring to raise his cumulative GPA to 3.29 … Son of Tony Ghiaciuc and Cathy Griffith … Born May 28, 1981 … Resides in Oxford, Mich.

[TJJackson]

Ghiaciuc is a solidly good C who has what it takes to start for the Bengals by the end of the 2005 season, and so I do like this pick.

I could argue that other players were available who would have upgraded their position more, but felt a Center was a MUST at this pick

I could argue that there were other Centers who were marginally better in some way available at this pick, but that'd be a minor quibble.

Will be very interested in seeing where Wilkerson ends up

[Scottishbengal]

He's a project. He's ranked high as a prospect because of his upside, not his readiness.

To be a project is not a bad thing.

Not a bad thing unless your 35 year old centre starts losing the pace of the game or picks up an injury ........ and then what are you left with?

[membengal]

He's a project.  He's ranked high as a prospect because of his upside, not his readiness.

To be a project is not a bad thing.

Not a bad thing unless your 35 year old centre starts losing the pace of the game or picks up an injury ........ and then what are you left with?

Larry Moore. A fine back-up, and back from injury by all accounts as off-season workouts continue.

[TJJackson]

Don't worry, Eric Ghiaciuc will be ready to start by end of year, and Moore (or maybe Fontenot) can handle transitional duty if Braham can't go

[HairOnFire]

I think it's pretty hard to pimp or pound a draft pick I've never seen play save for a few cutouts shown in draft shows. That said, this is a guy I've seen show up on several sleeper lists and he was an early favorite of the combine coverage shown on the NFL Network do to the way he lifted weights. Plenty of reps and energy despite using a funky grip that was supposed to limit the number of reps possible. Good movement skills during the later drills too.

As for value, I thought it was interesting how many centers have been drafted and the unusual order they were picked in. Most of the 2nd level of supposedly big name guys went far lower than projected...or not at all...as team after team drafted players that had me scrambling for the draft guides.

Typical stuff.

[Bobcat Bengal]

Marvin loves projects esp. S.Andrews who will prob be let go after training camp. Bad choice, should've gone Wilkerson or Brown.

You must be out your mind.

You say some left field s**t on the regular, like the pimping of Crowder, but there is NO WAY ANDREWS IS LEAVING.

Our team isn't squandering picks anymore.

Sean Brewer is gone.

[skyline]

The one thing I like about this guy the most is his intelligence. You need a smart guy under center to handle all the calls...

Also for what it's worth...Paul Alexander thinks he's capable of starting right away. That doesn't mean they plan to put him in that spot, but it's encouraging news for the future, I think.

[BersMrnsT]

This pick for me is a lot like Ratliff and Madieu were last year. When they made those picks I thought they were stupid, especially with Sean Jones and Derrick Strait still on the board. However, I gladly was humbled and learned my lesson from Keiwan and Madieu's solid play. It is the same situation here. If Wilkerson and Brown were off the board, then it would seem that they had to settle on Ghiaciuc. But because they picked him above the others, that bodes very well. I've definitely learned to trust Marvin & Co.'s evaluation abilities, you guys should too.

[chrishcovga]

I remeber Mel saying Maurice Mann was an excellent pick for us last year in the 5th round. But he didnt even make the team.

Maurice Mann did make the team. He was on the practice squad, but because NFL rules dictate that players on the Practice squad are " un-protected " he signed with the Carolina Panthers.

I don't mind the Ghiaciuc pick , but it was early for him I thought. The biggest thing I'll have to adjust to is his name..

Guy-Check.... I'm not gonna touch that one with a ten foot pole !!

[StripesNTn]

Centers came off the board pretty early, i know many were talking spencer in the second or third yet he was the first center taken in first round. Who knows? This guy looks like he is very athletic, quick, and smart. Now it is his teammate the tackel i wonder about that we drafted. Big but thats about it

[walshfan]

Well we can split hairs all day long disecting guycheck or whatever his name is.

We'll have to let it play out..

30 reps with long arms is pretty impressive on benches.

his smarts help too.

Ben Wilkerson must have some serious injury problems to not be drafted at all..

[cincykent]

Obviously, Marvin Lewis has no clue what he is doing.

[ArmyBengal]

I like this pick as well... Yeah he's big, yeah he was a wrestler, but the one thing that I'm sure was looked at, was his intelligence. You can't be a dumbass and play Center. I could go on and on, but won't. I like the pick !!!

WHODEY !!!

[membengal]

Obviously, Marvin Lewis has no clue what he is doing.

Exactly. And every single other team in the NFL doesn't know what anything either, how else to explain Wilkerson going completely undrafted when he is SO CLEARLY a hall of famer. Shazor too. I mean, sweet god, how incompetent can the entire NFL be? (please read with the sarcastic tone in which this was intended)

[TJJackson]

Whatever.

The way I see it, Wilkerson has to be thinking this is the place to come, since we need a C who can start by the end of this year. We sign him to a UFA contract, he keep him on the opening roster, then if he is still injured we put him on IR so that he can have another 6 weeks to heal

James Butler I hope also sees this as a great place to come in and get a great shot at starting within 2 years at the other S spot.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

If he's such a question mark in the 4th, then why did Kiper praise the pick? The ESPN guys never shy away from ripping on the Bengals. So if we reached for Ghiaciuc, I'm sure they would have let us know!

Kiper had he ranked as better than the other guys available, and prior to our pick pointed out that two of the guys he thought were the best guys on the board were Gooey and Kieft. We got both guys. Next year, we will swear Ghiaciuc was our first rounder as he backs up Braham and learns and becomes our starter next season.

[jjakq27]

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art.../504250357/1066

Monday, April 25, 2005

Central Michigan's Ghiaciuc provides youth at center spot

By Kevin Kelly

Enquirer staff writer

Bengals' fourth-round pick, Central Michigan's Ghiaciuc

Acquired: Fourth round, 119th overall

Height/Weight: 6-feet-4, 302

Age: 23

Hometown: Oxford, Mich.

2004 stats: Started all 11 games for the Chippewas.

2005 projection: Could see playing time at center.

Personal: Industrial education major with a 3.29 GPA.

The question appears on Paul Alexander's pre-draft questionnaires.

How ready is he to play?

In regards to Central Michigan center Eric Ghiaciuc, Alexander's response was succinct.

"The answer I wrote was, 'More ready than you think,' " the Bengals offensive line coach recalled Sunday. "I think he'll go pretty quick."

Looking to get younger at the center position, Cincinnati drafted Ghiaciuc with its fourth-round pick (119th overall) in the NFL draft Sunday.

Ghiaciuc - the last name is of Romanian origin and pronounced GUY-check -started his final 35 games for the Chippewas.

"I know I can play there," said Ghiaciuc, who is listed at 6-feet-4, 302 pounds. "It's just a matter of working hard every day. I don't think there's any big thing I'll have to do differently besides maybe adjusting my technique.

"As long as I work my tail off every day, I think I'll be fine."

Ghiaciuc, an industrial education major, is Central Michigan's highest draft pick in 21 years. With their fifth round pick, the Bengals picked Ghiaciuc's linemate Adam Kieft.

"He's very quick, a very smart player," Kieft said. "He's going to do a good job at the next level. He's got some size to him."

Ghiaciuc, 23, is a former state heavyweight-wrestling champion.

That background seems to serve him well on the offensive line.

"It just really helps your balance because you have to realize where your body is at, and where your weight is distributed," he said.

The center position was an area of some emphasis for the Bengals entering this draft.

"We needed a center," said Alexander, who was the offensive line coach at Central Michigan from 1987-1991. "He fits us pretty well."

Starter Rich Braham, 35, missed six games last season with knee injuries. An unrestricted free agent, the 11-year veteran is expected to sign a one-year deal.

"Nothing has really changed with Rich on that front," Lewis said. "We'll see. Hopefully things will work out."

The Bengals signed veteran Larry Moore before last season to back up Braham, but much of Moore's playing time came as a backup at left guard.

Jerry Fontenot started six games at center, but it's unlikely the Bengals will re-sign the unrestricted free agent.

"(Ghiaciuc) is really a fine player," Lewis said. "He plays very physical and I think has a lot of athleticism and upside to come in, learn the NFL game and continue to prosper and get better."

[membengal]

BUMP.

I love going back and reading threads like this, particularly since the rookie C may be getting his first snaps this week...