Jonathan Shaw’s OT Article: “My Top Six”

Listed below is the “Overtime Six” written by Towson University’s Jonathan Shaw:

Brent Gromer – JMU

Brent Gromer - JMU
Brent Gromer – JMU

Simply put, Gromer is just an absolute force to be reckoned with. The man has a top 2 or 3 arm in the league, and he compliments it with a highly underrated ability to catch after he throws. I can’t really explain this adequately but if you’re on the sidelines, watch Brent’s eyes after he releases a throw. The time it takes him to survey the court is simply superior to the rest. Add all these factors up, and it is easy to see why Brent is one of my 6 OT picks.

Kevin Bailey – GVSU

Kevin Bailey - GVSU
Kevin Bailey – GVSU

When writing/creating this list I knew I was going to put 2 players on this team: 1 was the best player in the league, and the other was the best player on the best team. The nice thing in this case is that I get to kill two birds with one stone. Bailey is simply a master at his craft. The way Derek Jeter made it look easy at short, is the way Bailey makes it look easy on the court. A leader of his team, a throw with as much 12 to 6 dip as Tim Wakefield’s knuckleball, a pair of hands as clutch as Brandon Browner’s and much more, are reasons why Bailey is the best in the NCDA, which makes him an easy pick for my OT six.

Joey Cardella – JMU

Joey Cardella - JMU
Joey Cardella – JMU

There is a quote from the movie “The Legend of Bagger Vance” (great movie by the way), and it goes “He had a way of making the hard shots look easy, and the easy shots look even easier.” I feel like this quote is tailor-made for describing JMU’s Joey Cardellas’s ability to catch. Simply put, when it comes to catching he is the top of the top tier, and the elite of the elite. Joey has no fear in his ability to catch and nor should he. There is no other player I’ve seen who attacks an opponent’s throw like Cardella. While about 99% of players take a step back or put their weight on their heels when a throw is coming Joey takes the step forward, quickly drops to his knees, and moves his body towards the throw. If any of my other OT six players were eliminated I’d put all my money on Joey for the catch to get them back in.

Joe Tobin – TU

Joe Tobin - TU
Joe Tobin – TU

I’m going to go against Kevin Bailey’s strategy here and select a player from my team in my starting 6. This spot goes to my boy Joe Tobin who is still one of the most underrated players in the NCDA. Some people will ask how a man who made 1st team All-NCDA last year be underrated, let me explain. Probably to no fault except our own, Joe and Towson University only see about 5 or 6 teams in the regular season, and with JMU and UMD being the only mainstays we see consistently, it is understandable that most teams don’t know what this man is capable of. A throw that can hit in the low 70’s, combined with great court movement, and a superb ability to dodge, makes this man a scary sight from 25 to 30 feet away. Seeing an opponent scurry away at the sight of Joe winding up is an extremely amusing sight, and one I want from a player on my team in OT.

Colin O’Brien – MSU

Colin O'Brien - MSU
Colin O’Brien – MSU

In Towson University’s first AJP this year Sean Smith and I previewed how we thought the year would go in the NCDA. During that podcast MSU was mentioned at a certain point and Sean and I both agreed that they were serious contenders for a championship this year. Before we moved on to the next team I wanted to make sure this man’s name was mentioned. In that podcast I said something on the lines of “this man never gets the credit he deserves,” and oh how all that has changed. While I have not seen Colin play yet this year, the word around the league is that it is nothing short of first class. I’m hearing that time and time again O’Brien is stepping up with pin point accurate throws, clutch catches, and all around great teamwork. In the last 3 years MSU has played in a total of 5 OT games, which from my calculations ranks them second in the league during that span behind SVSU with 6. Not only does he have the skillset for an OT match, he has the experience to go along with it, which makes O’Brien an easy pick for my OT six.

Michael Riley – CMU

Michael Riley - CMU
Michael Riley – CMU

If you didn’t hear this name much last semester let me assure you all that is about to change. In my personal opinion Michael Riley is the best player on Central Michigan’s roster. Wes Peters, Brett Hadwin, Scott LaValley, and Jacob Leski are the names we are used to hearing for this team, but it’s time to add Riley to this elite list. Riley’s attitude on the court is one that is very intense and very serious. He plays with an absolute tremendous amount of passion, and little to no fear, and you know what, I absolutely freekin love it. I’ve said this before in past podcasts, but you need a guy on your squad with the ability to get a team fired up, and Riley is the man for the job. A commander on the court, Riley demands respect from his teammates and his opponents, and if you piss him off he’s coming for your head. Michael backs this all up with an extremely powerful throw that I’d say comes at you in the high 60’s, and tops it all off with an efficient pair of hands and impressive court awareness. Add all this up and you get Michael Riley who earns my wildcard OT pick.

 

Honorable Mention:

Noe Galaviz of MSU, is one of Shaw's honorable mention choices for the "Overtime Six".
Noe Galaviz of MSU is one of Shaw’s honorable mention choices for the “Overtime Six”.

Wes Peters – CMU

Jeff Starr – OSU

Trevor Nordberg – GVSU

Connor Ford – JMU

Brett Hadwin – CMU

Noe Galaviz – MSU

Dylan Fettig – GVSU

Niko Nodal – Depaul

Author: Kevin Bailey

Current NCDA Chief of Content. Former Captain for Grand Valley State University (#4).

3 thoughts on “Jonathan Shaw’s OT Article: “My Top Six””

  1. Shaw, it makes me very happy to see that Riley is getting some credit. He is a major player on this team and could very well be our best player. He is just now making his return back to us this semester and we are expecting big things out of this kid. He has a few years left in this league, its good to know I am not the only one that knows that he is going to make some noise in the near future.

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