7th Pick: pick 232, Baron Batch, Texas Tech, RB 5'10" 210 lbs.
Pro Day 40 Time: 4.50.
Benchx225: 24. Vertical: 39. Broad: 10-6.
"My Identity is not found in what the world says I should be. My Identity is found in Christ."
- Baron Batch
They say you save the best for last, and that is exactly what the Steelers did with this pick. Talk about a nice inspirational story. This young man is a very high character guy who also has a very good head on his shoulders. I guess it doesn't hurt matters any when you consider the fact that he is pretty darn good RB as well.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S17t6-YQ7T0[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_12hKW2-j3M&NR=1[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjPnTSzrNfE[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZpNXNhJNII&NR=1&feature=fvwp[/youtube]
Baron Batch rushed for 884 yards on a 5.3 YPC. What's more impressive is that he caught 57 passes for 395 more yards in 2009. In 2010, his production was down a bit, but not much, he rushed for 816 yards on 4.6 YPC, and he caught 32 passes for 226 yards (He had a new coach with a new system in his senior season). Big Ben has himself a new 3rd down back in long yardage situations. The Steelers now have 4 quality RB's. Mendenhall, Dwyer, "Red Zone" Redman and now Baron Batch, that pretty much covers every style of back and all 4 will make the team! Can't wait!
Baron Batch Conference CallRe: Texas Tech offense preparation for the professional league:
It got me really well rounded. Playing at Tech I had to pick up the blitz, run the ball and also catch. So I think it polished me really well for the NFL.
Re: Strengths as a running back and role with the Steelers:
I think I’m physical and that’s my number one trait. If you watch me play, you see that I run extremely hard and I’m physical on contact. I think that’s one of my biggest traits.
Re: Potential start as third-down back:
I see myself as a third-down back, a special teams back, or whatever they want me to do.
Re: Off-the-field activities:
Well, I write. For about eight months, since the start of my senior year, I wrote an article one a week for two different papers. I wrote for the Midland paper, my hometown, and for the Lubbock paper. I do a lot of humanitarian stuff. I worked in Haiti and did a lot of stuff down there. But, I just like to help people. I like to use my platform to affect people in a positive way.
Re: Challenges for being a late-round guy:
I have the same mentality I would if I would have gotten picked mid-round or early on. I’m going to have to come in and prove myself and more importantly I’m going to have to better myself and better whatever team I’m on and the people around me.
http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/ ... 20aa97705a