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May 6, 2015
11:27:12am
The real reasons for why we don't put many players in the NFL
I'm tired of hearing all this complaining about the coaches and the program for not putting more players in the NFL. I'm not saying they aren't part of it, but they are not the main reason for our lack of draft picks.

People need to remember that BYU has never been an NFL factory. Do you know what Duke, NC State, Indiana, Northwestern, Kentucky, Boston College, and Tulsa all have in common? They all have more draft picks than BYU by a pretty large margin. Do you think these programs are better overall than BYU? Do you think coaches at these schools really put that much time and effort into trying to get their guys into the NFL while they are struggling to win games and keep their jobs? I doubt their "NFL prep" is any better than ours.

The fact of the matter is that the NFL drafts players based on what they can be, not what they are. It is all about measurables. Why do you think we have the combine? Does that at all represent what a player is able to do on the field? They are wearing shorts for goodness sake! The combine is all about finding out who the fastest, strongest, and most athletic potential draft picks are and then going from there. It is all about recognizing natural athleticism and once they do that, then they find out what you are able to do on the field.

We don't get elite athletes at BYU. We get some good football players, but rarely elite athletes. The majority of our players are white and let's face it, when it comes to athleticism, most white people seem to have a ceiling that no matter how much work or time they put in, can't seem to break through. Of the 139 players that BYU has had drafted in its history, 76 or 55% were drafted in the 6th round or higher. That shows that while we do have some potential NFL talent, we have marginal NFL talent.

Another thing to consider when looking at our players is their desire to play in the NFL. When the majority of our players are LDS and many are returned missionaries their goals in life are different than typical 21 year olds. While their goal in life may be to play in the NFL someday, I would suspect most would say that getting married and having a family would be their top goal. Now the two are not unobtainable together, but my point is the NFL is not all they are thinking about.

The necessity to make it in the NFL is also different for most BYU players. Most of our players come from well-to-do families and have many options for a good living outside of football. We've all seen the Sportscenter stories about the player who grew up poor with a single mother who is now trying to make it so that they can provide for their entire family. They have a lot more riding on making the NFL. We usually don't have this at BYU. For our players the NFL is a dream, but if that dream isn't realized it is not the end of the world.

Let's all stop acting like BYU coaches and the program in general are failing these kids. If a player is good enough to play in the NFL then he will get a shot. It's not based on coaching or the school you go to, it is based on the individual and if they are athletic enough to make it in the top league. Ziggy is exhibit A of this. It doesn't matter if you know the game or not, if you have the body and ability to play then the NFL will teach you how to play later. Unfortunately for BYU, most of our players don't have the measurables that the NFL is looking for.
boorad
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boorad
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