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Trenchmen’s Corner: Brett Heggie, OL, University of Florida | Former CFL scout Dave Van Nett breaks down his game

Brett Heggie Florida Scouting Report
University of Florida offensive lineman Brett Heggie is climbing NFL draft boards because of his versatility and size. Check out this Scuting Report by former CFL scout Dave Van Nett.
  • Brett Heggie – University of Florida​
  • High School – Mt. Dora​
  • Hometown – Mt. Dora, Florida
  • Parents – Susan and Bruce/ 3 siblings
  • Jersey – 61
  • Position – OG/OC
  • Height – 6’4
  • Weight – 321
  • Reach – 33”
  • Hands – 10”

Overview:

​Brett has had a very successful career both in high school and college.  In high school Brett was the four year starting center.  In high school and before Florida he played in the 2016 Under Armour All-America Game in Orlando.   He participated in The Opening 2015 at the Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon. Brett was named 2015 Florida Class 4A First Team All-State, and named Class 5A First Team All-State as a junior in 2014.  

​At Florida his success continued being named SEC offensive lineman of the week.  He blocked for Heisman Trophy candidate Kyle Trask.  Brett spent his first four years splitting the time between right and left guard.  He saw 415 snaps at left guard and 351 snaps at right guard, before he moved to center as a redshirt senior.  As a center he has only been pressured 3 times in 121 snaps.  Brett was moved to center after Ethan White was injured.

​Brett is also on the SEC Academic Honor Roll for several years.  He also serves on the team’s leadership committee.

Personal:​

Brett is one of four children.  He has two brothers and one sister.  His parents are Susan and Bruce Heggie.  Brett’s parents are both educators in the Mt. Dora School system.   Brett is a college football legacy player, meaning that his father played at Florida State from 1983-1986 as a linebacker and his brother Bruce Jr. played at Notre Dame as a defensive lineman.  

Film Review:

​I have watched several films on Brett and I can tell you one thing about him, absolutely consistent.  I would rate Brett at a solid B+ pushing an A-.  This young man is an absolutely consistent in every aspect of his game.  So much so that he was nominated for the Rimington Award.  He is a team leader in every aspect, on and off the field.  I have watched both film from 2019 when he was playing both right and left guard and film from 2020 when he was moved to center and in both seasons Brett was very solid and very consistent in his abilities.  

Assessment:

2020 film – Center

​Brett has a very strong and balanced stance as a center.

His snaps are clean and crisp, mostly hitting right at the right hip of the quarterback.  He did have one slip that went slightly high to the left shoulder.

Post snap Brett is explosive off the line of scrimmage and is very strong in his run block as well as his pass protection.

He keeps his head on a swivel and is always looking for work.  This allows him to pick up blitzing defenders with ease. With that said, from time to time in pass protection he will try to assist one of his guards and will open his hips and fully engage with a defender leaving the zero gap open, instead of using one hand to help and maintain visual and protection in the zero gap.  This is most prevalent in the 2020 game against Georgia.

His zone protection is very strong as well.

When it is required of him to double team and get to the second level he is very aggressive and very accurate on his attack points.

Brett plays with controlled aggression.  He is not out of control at all.

Brett is very strong and uses his hands well.  I did not see a lot of hand fighting but what I did was excellent.  When attacking he attacks low and with his hands inside the shoulders hitting their targets very well.

His biggest attribute in my opinion is his consistency throughout the game.  Play in and play out, game in and game out you know what you are getting from him.

Out if 121 snaps at center he was only rushed 3 times.

2019 film – Guard

Brett spent his first three years as a Guard at Florida, before being moved to center his senior year.  

Brett has a very strong and balanced stance as a guard.

He is very explosive out of his stance showing his strength pushing around defensive linemen.

His zone work is very strong.  He double teams very well and when needed to get to the second level he does so aggressively and attacks his targets accurately.

His pass protection is solid and he keeps his head on a swivel always looking for work if not actively engaged with a defender.

He is a very strong puller and is very accurate hitting his attack points.

Brett took 767 snaps at both right and left guard.​

Injuries:  Season ending knee injury in 2017.

Prediction:

Brett is multi-position player and this only adds to his value. It has increased his game knowledge tenfold.  I rate Brett at a solid B+ to an A-.  Brett is absolutely one thing, CONSISTENT.  Being coached by three coaches in five seasons is very difficult and proves that he has the ability to adjust and learn in difficult situations.  This ability is going to make him very valuable to any NFL team.

I can see Brett going in the second to fourth round.  With that said if a team wanted a reliable consistent center he could go earlier than that and it would be considered an incredible gain for whichever team takes him.  Brett is going to have a long career and I see many pro bowl appearances in his career.  

About Dave:

David Van Nett is a 17-year football coach and former CFL scout. He was hired by Head Coach Chris Jones, 4 times Grey Bowl coach, to be the area scout in the Carolinas. David is an Army veteran and retired law enforcement officer as well. Make sure you follow him on Twitter @coach_vannett

Damond Talbot

NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com

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