Fall Camp opens tomorrow. Put that in your pipes and smoke it—figuratively, of course.
We've got 27 days till kickoff...so today, we'll be highlighting #27 on the Bronco roster--Jay Ajayi
#27, Jay Ajayi, RS Freshman, RB
Stats
Height: 6’0"
Weight: 219 lbs
High School: Frisco Liberty High School, Plano, Texas
How’d he get to the Blue?
Ajayi was a rushing machine at Frisco Liberty High school where he rushed for an unreal 2,240 yards on 225 carries and 35 touchdowns as a senior. For those of us bad at math, that is 9.5 yards a carry, His breakout senior season saw him named 2nd team all-state and the Collin County Player of the Year. As a junior Ajayi rushed for 1,627 yards on 209 carries (7.7 YPC average) and 20 TDs. Despite making the roster for the 2011 Parade All-America team, Ajayi only received offers from, Minnesota, Tulane, Wyoming, and New Mexico State. He chose the team that wins a lot.
Nickname
"AJ"
These aren't his initials...in fact, just the opposite...but I think this would be a nice tongue-twister to keep people on their toes.
Look Alike
Actor Djimon Hounsou (it helps to picture him with dreads)
Career Highlights
Named second team all state as a Senior, first team all conference as a junior and senior, and made roster of Parade All-American high school football in 2011.
2012 Prospectus
Having a #27 in the Bronco backfield will seem familiar to Bronco fans, but it certainly won't look familiar. Jeremy Avery and Jay Ajayi share numbers and initials, but little else. Avery was a tiny and elusive scatback—Ajayi, while still elusive, is a large and powerful RB with long strides and excellent vision. At 6'0" and nearly 220, Jay still isn't a huge running back, but when you look at the typical running back that Boise State recruits, he's an absolute giant. Most (rightly) thought we'd see the impressive Texan last season as a true frosh—in fact, he made the travel squad and looked like he may be on the verge of at least some carries in mop-up duty, but a knee injury made the coaches decision for them and he ended up redshirting.
This season, with what I presume is a fully-healed knee, Ajayi should be a near lock to be a part of the Broncos' RB stable—a stable that lost Doug Martin, and needs quality depth and changes-of-pace to stock its cupboard. The only hiccups I can see would be if he's still in the doghouse after a big no-no last season, or if his knee rehab has hit any snags. We didn't really get a chance to see him this Spring, so when camp opens tomorrow (yay) we'll certainly know whether he'll be in a dogfight with Drew Wright for the 2-spot throughout camp. I'd say that barring the aforementioned knee regression, Ajayi will be a regular contributor during the season, most likely starting early on. I still think that an insurance back in the form of one of the two true freshman (Jack Fields and Devan Demas) will also get some snaps this season—both for depth and to gain the necessary experience that will be needed for 2013, when the inevitable departures of DJ Harper and Drew Wright are realized. I don't want to jinx things for Ajayi by throwing out stat predictions or otherwise, but I do think he plays this year and is fully capable of being our #2 back...just how much PT he winds up with is entirely up to him and his ACL.
Completely made up fact
Ajayi's rebuilt knee ran well under six million dollars, making him a steal compared to what OSI paid for that prima donna Steve Austin.