Countdown Schmountdown: #54

The atomic clock actually says that we have just 54 days until the Ducks hit the blue turf (hard).

So, today we'll continue our countdown by briefly highlighting the Bronco player with the jersey number that corresponds with the number of days remaining till the opener. Sorry there isn't a more clear and concise way to explain that.

And we're off..

#54 Michael Ames, OT

Could the future of the Bronco O-line be in the hands of an unheralded 255 lb. local walk-on? ESPN analyst Bruce Feldman thinks it just may be. No one was more surprised than OBNUG, when Centennial High (Boise, ID) OT Michael Ames made Feldman's illustrious Spring breakout players list...you'd probably be hard pressed to find many in Bronco Nation who had ever even heard of the decidedly lanky tackle. Well, at 6'5", Ames is still quite good at keeping a low profile...he just up and skipped town for two years. Ok, Ames "skipping town" was actually serving a church mission, but two years is plenty long enough to throw Division 1 recruiters off your trail, so Ames did what any 6'5" 255 lb. return missionary would do—he walked on the Boise State football team as a tightend offensive tackle. Ames redshirted in 2008 and then exploded in Spring ball, making coaches, pundits and sports radio wags alike sing his praises. But will Ames really be a factor come Fall camp? I don't see why not (other than the small matter of him weighing 255 lbs...the buffet is thataway)

Michael Ames was a two-year letter winner at perennial powerhouse Centennial High School. He was named second team All-State and first team All-Conference as a senior and locked down honorable mention All-Conference honors as a junior. Not much more can be said of Ames prep career...he was a solid player, but not a world-beater...had good size, but not enough to gather scholarship offers. His last high school game was in 2004 and his playing time in Spring was heavily buffered by the injuries to Nate Potter and Kevin Sapien, but Ames got better every day of Spring ball and according to coaches has a work ethic that is off the charts. Ames could be the true sleeper in the race to solidify the 2009 O-line, dealing brains over brawn and working his way to the top of the depth chart. I, for one, am rooting for the kid (seems weird calling a 22 year old a "kid" when I've only got 6 years on him), it's been at least a few months since a walk-on story this good at Boise State.