Of the three players the Jets selected in the Draft, Matt Slauson had by far the lowest name-recognition. To help fans get a better idea of the player and the person the Jets selected in the sixth round, I asked SB Nation's Nebraska athletics blog Corn Nation five questions about Slauson.
1. Could you provide a little background on Slauson's time in Lincoln? What does his bio look like?
Matt Slauson arrived on campus in Bill Callahan’s second season. After years of running the football, Callahan brought the West Coast offense which featured more passing, something that Husker fans weren’t accustomed to. It should be noted that the Husker offense flourished under Callahan, that wasn’t the reason for his failure at Nebraska. (I’ll spare your fans a long detailed description, if they’re interested, they can comment at Corn Nation.) Slauson spent his last year under Bo Pelini, and the offense continued to flourish. So, in his time at Nebraska, Slauson went through a lot of changes, yet remained steady and dependable throughout.
Slauson was one of few who played his freshman year. His sophomore year he missed a couple games due to a leg injury. As a junior he played in every game, then as a senior he started all 13 games at right guard. Totaled, he made 35 starts in his college career, a pretty impressive total for a lineman.
2. Slauson seems like a colorful character with the war paint he put on and some of the quotes he made regarding opponents. Did this seem like the kind of thing his teammates enjoyed, or were they irked by these antics?
I don’t recall anything that Slauson did ever getting under the skin of his teammates, nor the fans for that matter. That’s a pretty strong statement considering that 2007 was the worst year of football in around 40 years at Nebraska.
Slauson has a stuttering problem when he speaks, but he also has a wonderful sense of humor. Normally the face paint thing wouldn’t go over very well at Nebraska - fans aren’t too high on players calling attention to themselves in that way. But Slauson had the ability to not take himself too seriously and people warmed to him.
I loved Slauson as a player. He had a lot of passion for the game, and I’ll miss him at Nebraska. I’ll even miss the face paint.
3. He played three positions in college. At which do you think he was strongest?
Slauson played at both tackle positions and right guard. He was strongest at the right guard at which he finished his college career.
4. What kind of blocking scheme do you see him as strongest in?
Zone blocking. Slauson’s main liability is a lack of speed off the ball when drive or run blocking. In pass protection at the guard position, he should do pretty well.
5. Which past or present Nebraska NFL lineman do you think he resembles best?
That’s a really hard question because of the changes that occurred in Husker football as Slauson came on board. I’m not sure he resembles any other Nebraska lineman. Perhaps that makes him even more unique!
Thanks to the folks at Corn Nation for taking the time to answer these questions!