Guard Herbig declares for NFL draft
Stanford guard Nate Herbig is entering the NFL draft with a year of eligibility left, but is that a good idea?
The 6-foot-4, 334-pound junior from Hawaii was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection this season after being a firstteamer last year.
He played only seven games in 2018 because of injuries, and Stanford’s ground game deteriorated badly. The creases that used to be plentiful in the Cardinal’s normally ground-oriented attack were few and far between.
The Cardinal’s 3.7 yards per rushing play were the worst in the Pac-12 and 101st in the country. Stanford averaged just 108.3 rushing yards per game, 11th in the conference and 122nd in the country out of 129 teams.
Former NFL scout Dan Shonka studied Herbig’s play in three games and was not impressed.
“What bothered me was his contact balance,” said Shonka of Ourlads NFL Scouting Services. “He was on the ground a lot, especially when pulling. In his base-blocking, he lunges. He didn’t have an anchor to stick his foot in the ground. I saw him flat get knocked over. ... He’s a big man who doesn’t play big.”
In announcing his decision on Twitter, Herbig thanked the Stanford coaches, including former offensive-line coach Mike Bloomgren, now head coach at Rice, and the training staff.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Stanford University,” he said. “This is a special place and I am humbled to have called it home for the past three years.”
Herbig, nicknamed “Big Island” for his size and Hawaiian roots, thanked his family, too. “Being across the ocean from you wasn’t easy, but your love and support has meant the world to me.”
Head coach David Shaw said Monday night that Herbig would not play in the Sun Bowl against Pittsburgh in El Paso, Texas, on Dec. 31, and that his health was not the reason. He wouldn’t elaborate, obviously preferring that Herbig make the announcement himself.
Herbig probably won’t be the only Cardinal player turning pro with eligibility left. Redshirt junior wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside is expected to end his college career with the bowl game. He has 14 touchdown catches this year; one more in El Paso would break James Lofton’s 41-year-old school record.
There’s even a chance that quarterback K.J. Costello, a redshirt sophomore, could turn pro. On Wednesday’s national signing day, Shaw said he hoped Costello would be back. But the crop of quarterbacks for the 2019 draft is not a strong one, even if Oregon’s Justin Herbert and Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins skip their final years of eligibility.
Shonka said he thought Costello would benefit from another year at Stanford. Tom FitzGerald is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tfitzgerald@ sfchronicle.com Twitter: @tomg fitzgerald