Who's Your Pick to Click?

Put 'em on the board...... yyyyyyyyessss!

If you ever watch Chicago White Sox baseball broadcasts on WGN, (and you should for the comedy factor alone... the announcers are hillarious), you're familiar with the little "Who's Your Pick to Click?" segment they do before each game. It's a fun way to predict something either than who they think is going to win.

So much of this incoming freshmen class is a mystery as always. But I have about a half-dozen freshmen who are my "picks to click" by breaking into the starting lineup, making a huge impact, or both.

Last year, Columbia's top freshmen could be put in three catagories:

I. Major Impact/Starters

1. Andy Shalbrack
2. Austin Knowling
3. Justin Masorti

II. Big Contributors/Key Backups

1. Lou Miller
2. Taylor Joseph
3. Matt Bashaw

III. Liked What We Saw, Need More Data

1. M.A. Olawale
2. Pete Stoll
3. Ray Rangel

Even for a team without a lot of seniors, getting NINE freshmen to contribute as much as the guys named above did in 2006 was extraordinary. And now the word from the coaches is that this class is going to be even better.

Based on what I've read and seen so far, and considering Columbia's specific needs this season the following incoming freshmen are my "picks to click."

1) Marc Holloway, LB

Columbia needs lots of linebackers in the 3-5-3, and to stay fresh the Lions need to shuffle a lot more than 3 pure linebackers and 2 spurs in and out of the lineup a lot more than usual. Holloway is an all-star player from a top-notch Catholic league in Philadelphia, the same league that produced Shalbrack. He should fit very well into the Columbia system and could be this season's Justin Masorti. I also see him fitting into the mold of all-time Columbia great Rory Wilfork.

2) Calvin Otis, DB

This highly sought-after recruit may be coming to Columbia thanks to his mom, who got her MBA at CU. Whatever the reason, he has the perfect size and speed to be a shutdown corner and possibly fill in at some other positions. With two senior corners in JoJo Smith and Eugene Edwards needing to be replaced at the end of the year, I expect Coach Wilson to give Otis plenty of on-the-field training in game situations.

3) Nico Gutierrez, WR

Columbia desperately needs to find another wide receiver threat to compliment Austin Knowlin. Gutierrez needs to prove he's recovered from a bad injury, but he did return to track competition in the spring. Before he went down, he was a legitimate Division I prospect. If he teams with Knowlin, they would comprise an all-Connecticut receiving corps. That would make games at Yale pretty interesting.

4) Leon Ivery, RB

Ivery is another player whose stock fell a bit because of injury, but who has reportedly recovered. Ivery's stats are eye-popping, but he comes from a prep conference in Northern California that is hit-or-miss. I expect the coaches to give him a very good look in training camp.

5) Shane Kelly, QB

You don't go out and grab a Division I transfer and not see what he's got to offer. There's a very good chance starting QB Craig Hormann will need to sit out some portions of games this season either because of his injury or to protect him from re-aggravating it. Kelly is officially a sophomore, but he has two years of taking practice reps facing off against some sacry defensive players at Temple under his belt and should be ready to play.

6) Derek Lipscomb, LB

Lipscomb is not quite as much of a prospect on paper as Holloway, but he could make a big impact for the same reasons. He comes from a top-notch high school conference, and he fits into the pure linebacking role nicely. His height makes him a great choice for covering tight ends.

Hey, Where's My Kid?

I realize this list leaves out about 33 of the other incoming freshmen, any of whom could bust out as the star of the class. The reason I left a lot of the other most promising names out of my "picks to click" is because they were linemen or at some other position where the Lions are already strong. But even with my best reasoning, I'm sure I've missed a few "sure things."

The really good news is that when I look at the other Ivy schools and their incoming class, I'm hard pressed to find as many "picks to click" by the same standards. A lot of schools had one, or even two prospects who seemed like they were better than any of Columbia's freshmen. But that's usually where it ended. In a sport where you have 11 guys on the field at all times, quantity and quality can even out pretty quick. In other words, six second-team All Ivy players far outweigh the impact of one Bushnell Cup winner.

The best news is that we will soon be able to blow off all this guesswork; training camp begins in 42 days.