Cardinal Scouting Staff Reorganized

[40yearfan]

Scouting staff reorganized; Jones on block

Kent Somers
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 13, 2003 12:00 AM


Cardinals Vice President Rod Graves has reorganized the team's college scouting department, creating a pyramid structure designed to allow additional evaluations of players.

There will be five area scouts, with two regional scouts over them. Graves and George Boone, currently a scout, will evaluate players nationwide.

Lonnie Young, a former NFL safety who spent 1985-90 with the Cardinals and later played for San Diego and the New York Jets, was hired to scout the Northeast.

The former scout in the Northeast, Bill Dekraker, is moving to the West. George Belu will move from the West to the Midwest, with Bob Mazie staying in the South. Jerry Hardaway, the former national scouting director, will scout the East Coast.

Steve Keim will supervise scouting in the Eastern states, and Jim Carmody will oversee the West.

 

[40yearfan]

Does anyone know if George Boone is related to Bob Boone?

 

[cardsfan473]

Isn't George Boone the guy that discovered Otis Anderson, but also Kelly Stouffer(?) ?

That could be a good thing, or a bad thing, depending on your perspective...

If I'm not mistaken, he's been around the Cardinal organization for many years, off/on.....

If anyone knows, help me out.. my memory is fuzzy on this...

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

Originally posted by 40yearfan
Does anyone know if George Boone is related to Bob Boone?

No, but he is a cousin to Pat Boone.

 

[Jim O]

Originally posted by Cardinals.Ken
No, but he is a cousin to Pat Boone.

...and Pat Boone lives next door to the Osbournes.

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

Originally posted by Jim Omohundro
...and Pat Boone lives next door to the Osbournes.

...and Ozzy Osbourne made a commerical with Florence Henderson.

 

[earthsci]

Originally posted by Cardinals.Ken
...and Ozzy Osbourne made a commerical with Florence Henderson.

...and Florence Henderson had sex with Barry Williams.

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

Originally posted by earthsci
...and Florence Henderson had sex with Barry Williams.

And Barry Williams was briefly on the soap-opera "General Hospital" at the same time as Richard Dean Anderson (McGyver).

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

We only have one more degree of separation to get to Kevin Bacon, so make it count!

 

[BuckeyeCardinal]

And

Kevin Bacons cousin is in Stargate with RDA.

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

Re: And

Originally posted by BuckeyeCardinal
Kevin Bacons cousin is in Stargate with RDA.

We have a winner!

Woo Whoo!

 

[Red Air Force]

Here is another article expanding on the reorganization a little bit more.

Cardinals report: Inside slant
June 16, 2003


Hoping to avoid repeat of several embarrassing and costly mistakes in recent drafts, Cardinals Vice President of Operations Rod Graves reorganized the college scouting department, demoting the national director to area scout and restoring power to a controversial figure from the team's past.
While the moves enable the Cardinals to say they've made change, they're essentially making the scouting department take the fall for such picks as defensive tackle Wendell Bryant, the 2002 first-round pick who is showing alarming signs of being their latest high-round bust; and running back Thomas Jones, the 2000 first-round pick who is on the trade block and likely will be cut before camp if no deal is worked.

While scouts prepare reports, they're not the ones pulling the trigger on draft decisions, and the team's higher ups always have had final "cross check" duty on prospects rated highly by the scouting department.

Graves and George, a former general manager who was run off in the mid-1900s when Cardinals' drafts were no more effective than their recent ones, and Graves will be at the top of the pyramid with final cross-check authority on all players.

They will function essentially as co national directors of the department.

Overseeing the East is Steve Keim, a former area scout. He will supervise area scouts Lonnie Young, just hired to scout the Northeast; Bob Mazie in the South, and Jerry Hardaway, the former national director, who becomes East Coast area scout.

Veteran scout Jim Carmody is the new supervisor of the West, overseeing area scouts Bill Dekraker in the West, George Belu in the Midwest, and Bob Mazie staying in the South.

When an organization operates as secretly the Cardinals do, it is difficult to assess who should take responsibility for the long-standing malfeasance that predates both Graves and Boone.

The Cardinals have been one of the worst franchises in pro sports for more than two decades.

While it is true that decisions are made on players based on evaluations by scouts, ultimately those pulling the trigger on moves have to accept responsibility for them.

There has been plenty of blame to go around for the Cardinals, who are among a multitude of teams mulling whether to pull out of the national scouting combine services. The Cardinals belong to National. The other major service is BLESTO.

This reorganization could enable them to function effectively in that new environment, in which they clearly would have no one to blame but themselves for draft-day decisions.

Recently, the Cardinals have seemed to miss the boat not only on first-round picks Bryant and Jones but also first-day selections of cornerback Michael Stone (Round 2, 2002), defensive tackle Darwin Walker (Round 3, 2000), linebacker Johnny Rutledge (Round 2, 1999), defensive end Thomas Burke (Round 3, 1999), cornerback Tom Knight (Round 1, 1997), cornerback Ty Howard (Round 3, 1997), running back Leeland McElroy (Round 2, 1996), tight end Johnny McWilliams (Round 3, 1996), and quarterback Stoney Case (Round 3, 1995).

Copyright (C) 2003 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.

 

[brews]

That last article sure doesn't make me feel good about this year's draft.

 

[40yearfan]

'Thanks CaliforniaCard. I find it hard to believe Boone is still with the Cards and will now help to make decisions on future draft choices. Long time fans like myself remember the Cards being the laughing stock of the NFL when Boone headed up the scouting dept. last time and some of the goofy picks he precipitated. Did he learn a lesson from those unforunate choices? I guess we'll find out in the next draft.

 

[JeffGollin]

Isn't George Boone the guy that discovered Otis Anderson, but also Kelly Stouffer(?)
40 Year Fan speaks the truth. Those of us who remember would rather that Boone and the Cardinals remain several continents and light years away from one another forever. That Boone is b-a-a-c-k and ascending power once again makes the hairs on my back stand on end.

I don't remember when Boone arrived on the scene (or when he left the first time), but many of the busts below ocurred during the meat of The Boone Era. A buddy of mine at TSN once observed that the chronic problem with the Cardinals was that "their roster was loaded with too many Boone Guys."

There are exceptions (Bobby Moore, JV Cain, OJ Anderson, EJ Junior, Neil Lomax, Ken Harvey etc.) but the thing that leaps out at you are the number of years where if one top pick was decent, the other one sucked. (i.e. for every Dan Dierdorf there was a Norm Thompson. For every Ken Harvey there was a Tony Jefferey). And then, of course, there were some years where both top picks bit the big one.

A record of first and second picks from 1970 thru 1991 (Swann) is as follows:

1970 (1) Larry Stegent (2) Jim Corrigall
1971 (1) Norm Thompson (2) Dan Dierdorf
1972 (1) Amad Rashad (2) Mark Arneson
1973 (1) Dave Butz (2) Gary Keithley
1974 (1) JV Cain (2) Greg Kindle
1975 (1) Tim Gray (2) Jim Germany
1976 (1) Mike Dawson (2) To Buffalo (Patulski?)
1977 (1) Steve Pisarkiewicz (2) George Frankin
1978 (1) Steve Little (2) Ken Greene
1979 (1) OJ Anderson (2) Theotis Brown
1980 (1) Curt Greer (2) Doug Marsh
1981 (1) EJ Junior (2) Neil Lomax
1982 (1) Luis Sharpe (2) David Galloway
1983 (1) Leonard Smith (2) Cedric Mack
1984 (1) Clyde Duncan (2) Doug Dawson
1985 (1) Freddie Joe Nunn (2) Scott Bergold
1986 (1) Anthony Bell (2) John Lee
1987 (1) Kelly Stouffer (2) Tim McDonald
1988 (1) Ken Harvey (2) Tony Jeffery
1989 (1) Eric Hill (2) Joe (Ole!) Wolf
1990 (1) Timm Rosenbach (suppl) (2) Anthony Thompson
1991 (1) Eric Swann (2) Mike Jones

 

[hoopcoach]

when i think of george boone...i think clyde duncan..now excuse me while i go puke.
-hoop coach