NFL Draft: Mustakas’ intangibles set him apart

Thanks for nothing, Gus.

Redshirt senior Gus Mustakas doesn’t have the best stats… Thanks for nothing, Gus.

Redshirt senior Gus Mustakas doesn’t have the best stats and his name is rarely seen in the news, but the intangible contributions the defensive tackle makes might just get him into the NFL.

Greg Gattuso, Pitt’s defensive line coach, said he was impressed by Mustakas’ knowledge of the game when he first met him.

“He plays a lot on his brains,” Gattuso said, “but he can make some really athletic plays and suprise you.”

Mustakas said that he won’t always be the most athletic player on the field, but the difference between him and other players is preparation. Hours spent watching game film and studying what the offense does in a given situation helps immensely, he said.

“A lot of people don’t understand how important practice and preparation are,” Mustakas said.

Drew Smith, Mustakas’ agent, said that whereas the 6-foot-3 lineman is a little too small to play the inside of a four-man formation, his quick hands and knowledge of the game make him an ideal defensive end.

The defensive end in the four-man formation does “a lot of the dirty work,” Mustakas said.

He would be responsible for holding a gap on every play, sometimes holding off two offensive linemen at a time, while the defensive tackle would make many of the plays.

Gattuso feels confident in Mustakas’ ability, even though he might be undersized for the position.

“I’m sure he could learn either the inside or the outside,” Gattuso said.

Mustakas talks a lot with his hands. Sitting on a bench in the mostly-quiet first floor of the Cathedral of Learning, he talked about how he prepares for each game.

When the offense lines up, he watches closely for any “little hint” of what the offense might do. When a lineman leans a shoulder “just a few inches more” to the left or right, Mustakas tries to pick up on it, he said, and figure out where the offense will go.

Mustakas entered this year’s draft partly because of a knee injury his junior year that kept him out of all but two games in the 2007 season. He said that the injury hurt his draft chances in the past year.

“When they say ‘Gus Mustakas’ the first thing they think about is my knee,” Mustakas said.

Mustakas wanted to move past his knee injury this year, and so he made the All-Big East defensive second team, racking up 38 tackles — nine for a loss of yardage — and two fumble recoveries.

Knee injuries are serious for any player, Gattuso said, but the severity of the injury and the recovery time go up for the larger players.

“It can be devastating,” Gattuso said, “but by the second half of senior year, [Mustakas] was playing as well as he ever did.”

CBS Sports projected that Mustakas will go into free agency or short-term tryout contracts with a team rather than be selected in the draft. Smith said that there is a sharp drop-off in the amount of money awarded to free agents and tryout players.

Smith projected that Mustakas would be a late-round draft pick, or a free agent.

Mustakas said that signing as a free agent has its upside. He would be able to sign with whichever team he chooses and pick a team where he feels he would fit in well.

Smith said that Mustakas would fit in well with several teams, including the Miami Dolphins and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mustakas said he’d love to play in Pittsburgh, although he is originally from Florida, and “isn’t too happy with the winters.”

Gattuso thinks that Mustakas will really shine in the spring training sessions with whatever team he signs, even if he doesn’t get drafted. Mustakas works hard, Gattuso said, and learns quickly.

For this year’s senior class, it might be their last chance to play in the NFL.

“It’s every senior’s dream to go on to the NFL,” Smith said, “but the chances of getting drafted go down by about 25 percent each year. Missing a year of game time is a big deal.”

Smith said that although agents advise those who didn’t get drafted to check out other leagues, many “eventually have to give up the dream.”

Just having players enter the draft, Gattuso said, is a great thing for Pitt. They always try to get as many players into the NFL as possible, and it is “great for recruiting.”