Posts tagged Houston Texans

Johnny Adams (CB) - Houston Texans

Anthony Rashad White (DT) - Pittsburgh Steelers

According to MSU Football’s twitter, Mitchell White (CB) and Larry Caper (RB) got picked up by the Oakland Raiders.

The refs never blew a whistle. So the players are taught to keep playing until you hear a whistle. The play would have been reviewed IF Jim Schwartz wouldn’t have thrown that challenge flag. But it is illegal to throw a challenge flag on a play that is automatically reviewed (like a touchdown). So because the refs called it a touchdown and couldn’t review it, it stays as a touchdown. It is a weird rule, but it wasn’t a bad call.

Five years ago, Keshawn Martin was a teenager, a Lions fan and a long-overlooked receiver prospect who was finally starting to get some notice from major colleges.

“I was in high school, playing basketball, going to class,” said Martin, a 2008 graduate of Westland Glenn. “And now I’m in the NFL.”

And he’s not just in it, he’s making moves. The former Michigan State standout and Houston Texans rookie is coming off his first NFL touchdown — and a punt return that could have been his second — entering today’s Thanksgiving game at Ford Field.

“He’s been coming on,” Texans coach Gary Kubiak said of Martin. “I think it’s something we’ve been seeing in practice. Those rookies hit a wall (in) Week 7 or 8. It’s a lot of football. After the bye, I’ve seen him come back a little fresher. He’s practiced well and makes a big play in the game (Sunday).”

Martin caught a 9-yard touchdown pass in a 43-37 overtime win over Jacksonville and took a punt back 71 yards before he was run down by the punter.

His friends in East Lansing were excited for him. They also took the opportunity to rib him, of course.

“He got caught by that punter, so there’s a lot of jokes that have been tweeted his way,” MSU receivers coach Terry Samuel said.

MSU sophomore receiver Tony Lippett, one of Martin’s closest friends remaining on the team, had to call Martin and give him some guff for an awkward spike after his touchdown catch.

“I was like, ‘That was terrible,’ ” Lippett said.

Martin figures to get the chance to outrun more punters and improve his end-zone celebrations. His role with the Texans is increasing now that he’s returning punts and kickoffs.

At MSU, Martin had two punt returns for touchdowns and one kick return for a touchdown. That was a big part of his appeal when the Texans picked him in the fourth round in April.

And his departure clearly has been part of the reason for MSU’s offensive struggles in 2012. In Martin and B.J. Cunningham, the Spartans had four-year playmakers.

“I see the progress,” Samuel said of his receivers this season. “But still, we’ve got a long way to go. You appreciate what Keshawn and B.J. were at the end of their career. They made a lot of plays.”

Martin has been able to watch every MSU game this season and has been just as dismayed as the Spartans and their fans.

“It’s been tough,” he said. “The games we lost have been close games. We just couldn’t finish those close games off. Next year I feel we’ll have a way better season.”

And a major area of growth, he said, should be the receiving corps. He talks to friends such as Lippett and Bennie Fowler and reminds them of how far he came in his MSU career.

“He just told me to just go out there and play freely,” Lippett said. “Watch film and know the defense (but) basically go out there and have fun. Play like you were playing in high school, stuff like that. Don’t be afraid to make the play.”

As a true freshman in 2008, Martin made plays despite knowing little about running routes. Like Lippett, he was a high school quarterback.

A year earlier, Martin got fall offers from MSU and Illinois, with Michigan making a late push. He didn’t attend camps like most prospects and managed to stay mostly off the grid until coaches started watching his senior film.

And now he’s a pro, set to play today in front of a large group of family and friends against the team he grew up supporting.

“I was,” Martin said, admitting his Lions fandom. “That’s the home team. You’ve got to have a little love for the home team.”

(Source: freep.com)