2009 NFL Draft

[Rammer]

One week ago I had never heard of Clay Matthews.

I started to look at the linebacker draft rankings and noticed that there was a story about how Matthews only weighed 160 lbs when he was a junior in high school. As a former athlete who has lifted weights my entire life - my suspicions were immediately raised. A linebacker going from 160 lbs to 240 lbs in only 5 years??? We're talking muscle, not fat. Yeah, you can eat your way to an 80 pound weight increase in 5 years, but not muscle. To make matters more doubtful, he had been a walk-on at USC! So I google 'Matthews' and 'steroids'. A multitude of rumor stories involving Matthews and the Texans 1st draft pick, Brian Cushing, fill my computer screen.

Let me cut to the chase....Clay Matthews is/was a steroid user. He will eventually be caught.

I don't know anything about Cushing, but Matthews is a steroid user.

Bet.

Are the Texans rolling the dice with Cushing?

[N Judah]

USC is a garbage school. These stories don't surprise me anymore.

[20thStDad]

Damn I think UConn might have the most picks in the first 2 rounds. Wouldn't have seen that coming.

[brijonmang]

I saw the stuff about Cushing a while ago...if you compare pictures of him from his freshman year at USC to this past year....'nuff said.

[Rammer]

I saw the stuff about Cushing a while ago...if you compare pictures of him from his freshman year at USC to this past year....'nuff said.

In the Chronicle today:

'After he went from being a 165-pound freshman to a 225-pound terror and the top linebacker in the country at Bergen Catholic (Park Ridge, N.J.), students at rival high schools taunted Cushing with steroids-based chants.'

The only question now is when will he fail his drug/steroid test?

He will go from being a 'great' pick to a 'stupid' pick overnight.

[fatesdisastr]

i just think cushing needs a damn haircut

[20thStDad]

In the Chronicle today:

'After he went from being a 165-pound freshman to a 225-pound terror and the top linebacker in the country at Bergen Catholic (Park Ridge, N.J.), students at rival high schools taunted Cushing with steroids-based chants.'

The only question now is when will he fail his drug/steroid test?

He will go from being a 'great' pick to a 'stupid' pick overnight.

Most high school football players are going to gain a lot of weight from freshman to senior year. I'm not saying he didn't use anything, but gaining 60 pounds of muscle from age 14 to 18 isn't very hard to do if you never worked out before.

[Rammer]

You can find photos of Cushing where it is believed he stopped taking steroids for a time during an injury. He developed a case of gynecomastia - which is the development of abnormally large mammary glands in males resulting in breast enlargement(pecs turn into mammaries).

It is a classic sign of previous steroid use.

[sowanome]

One week ago I had never heard of Clay Matthews.

I started to look at the linebacker draft rankings and noticed that there was a story about how Matthews only weighed 160 lbs when he was a junior in high school. As a former athlete who has lifted weights my entire life.

Wow, where and how long did you play sports? Did you Ever play on the professional level? Maybe your body or your diet did not allow for the weight gain..

Let me cut to the chase....Clay Matthews is/was a steroid user. He will eventually be caught.

I don't know anything about Cushing, but Matthews is a steroid user.

Bet.

It's not fair to call someone a steroid user...I was 175lbs as a junior in high school and just before the combine (6 yr's later)...I was 244lbs and never took steroids and never knew anyone who took steriods...so go figure. It's funny, bc I eventually reached 252lbs w/o any supplements and I was never over 13% body fat..

[Rammer]

Wow, where and how long did you play sports? Did you Ever play on the professional level? Maybe your body or your diet did not allow for the weight gain..

It's not fair to call someone a steroid user...I was 175lbs as a junior in high school and just before the combine (6 yr's later)...I was 244lbs and never took steroids and never knew anyone who took steriods...so go figure. It's funny, bc I eventually reached 252lbs w/o any supplements and I was never over 13% body fat..

I'm 6'2", 210 lb., and never really wanted to be any bigger/bulkier than that(receiver).

I consider Andre Johnson the largest naturally lean muscled athlete 6'3", 225 lb, that I've seen.

Anything heavier than that and we are venturing into either fat or muscle boundness(for that height).

Schwarzenegger dropped from 260 lbs to 215 lbs after steroids ruined his aortic heart valve.

Jose Conseco's body is now unable to produce testosterone on it's own.

You're right, it is somewhat unfair to judge Cushing(10% fat) at this point.

Only time and testing will tell. Or a liver, kidney, or heart valve problem.

[sowanome]

I understand your drift, but there are many guys who are naturally toned and meant to be thin. Once these guys are able to add muscle the sky is the limit in regards to how much muscle mass they can add to their frames...

For example, andre is not truly 6'3 and I've seen a # of guys (esp. outside linebackers and rush ends) @ 6'3 or 6'4 235 to 250 who are just as lean, but they tend to have lankier frames that are almost similar to basketball players.