I have a cousin that plays ball at the same level Bauman does. He and my uncle said that although he dominates at the lowest level of ball in MN, 1A, they think he would just be an avg/above avg player in 5A. They said he runs in the 4.6 range and he has a very short stride. I don't know if that meant he had short legs, or is just the way he runs. he has a distinct V shaped frame for those that wonder how he will fill out physically.
I don't know much, if anythinig, about projecting how someone should develop, Joel has some positives and negatives about his situation
1. He is physically superior to his competition and he basically won state for KMS. Kids his size play OL/DL at the 1A level. He's never played against a 6'2" 240 LB that runs faster and hits harder than he does.
2. Small school players can compete at a high level though. Do you guys remember a running back from RTR named Kyle Minett? He is playing excellent ball right now for South Dakota State 1AA. Probably a player the Gophers should have recruited harder.
3. Since he plays small ball in MN, the only schools that might be interested at the BCS level would be the locals. MN, WI, IA, IA st. maaaaaaaybe Nebraska. I know that NDSU, SDSU are all over this guy. He is really gonna have to dominate/set records and push his own recruiting hard next year for some of the schools he likes to offer him. I'm sorry, but the southern SEC, BIG-12, teams simply are not gonna offer a small school MN running back when they have 10-20 in-state options just like him.
Final thoughts on the young man.
I've never seen him play, but he DOMINATES at the level of football he plays in. If he comes to MN as a RB, I don't think he will ever see the field. I think MN should offer him for wrestling and he should walk on to the football team.