Meet the NFL draft darling who couldn't get a college scholarship
http://www.espn.com/college-footbal...h-allen-goes-unknown-no-1-pick-nfl-draft-buzz
Super long article. Click link to read full article, I edited some out and highlighted important to me.
On Nov. 20, 2014, near the end of Josh Allen's first season at junior college, he sent emails imploring someone -- anyone, really -- to give him a chance to be a Division I quarterback.
The recipient list included not only every FBS head coach, but also every offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and position coach from Alabama to Washington, more than 1,000 emails in total. They started with the same salutation and the same desperate plea from a kid in tiny Firebaugh, California: I want to be your quarterback.
His unsolicited emails went over like a loan request from a Nigerian prince. He received a handful of responses and only two --
Eastern Michigan and Wyoming-- eventually offered him a scholarship. (The Eagles actually withdrew their offer after he chose to visit Wyoming near the end of the early signing period for junior college transfers.)
"Yeah, I was disappointed," Allen said. "I couldn't believe it."
On the bright side, it was one more scholarship offer than Allen had coming out of Firebaugh High School the year before, when not a single FBS or FCS program called.
"I truly felt like I was a Division I quarterback, and I'd felt that way for a long time," Allen said. "I just wanted other people to see it."
No one else saw it, at least not back then. But after throwing for more than 3,000 yards and 28 touchdowns for Wyoming last season, the quarterback that nearly every FBS team (but two) ignored might very well end up being one of the first players selected in the 2018 NFL draft.
Allen's anonymity ended almost immediately after the final selection of the 2017 NFL draft was made on April 29, when ESPN reporter Adam Schefter said: "There was one personnel director who told me this week that you can put in the books, Josh Allen will be the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft next year."
Of course, most of the people watching ESPN's draft coverage that day probably wondered:
Who in the hell is Josh Allen?
"Probably 90 percent of America," Allen admitted. "That's kind of been my M.O. my entire football career."
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Wyoming coach Craig Bohl, who had guided the Cowboys to a 4-8 record in his first season in 2014 after winning three FCS national championships at North Dakota State,
was the only FBS coach who made the long trek to Allen Ranch.
"He looked me straight in the eye and said, '
We went all around the country and there's only one quarterback we want and that's your son. He's going to be the face of our program,'" Joel recalled.
Before Josh committed to Wyoming, however,
he made one last plea to Fresno State's coaches. The Bulldogs had just received a commitment from quarterback Chason Virgil, a 6-foot-1, 170-pound high school prospect from Mesquite, Texas. Virgil was shorter and lighter than Josh was during his senior year at Firebaugh High, when he said the Bulldogs told him he didn't fit the prototype of what they wanted in a quarterback.
After Virgil committed to Fresno State, Josh sent a terse email to an assistant coach: "6-1, 170?"
"Yeah, we got our guy," the assistant responded. "Good luck."
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On the night of Jan. 9, Allen watched Clemson defeat Alabama 35-31 in the College Football Playoff National Championship. He watched the Tigers' thrilling victory in his parents' living room, along with agent Tom Condon and his associates.
The next night, while dining at one of his favorite Mexican restaurants,
Allen told his parents, siblings, ... that he was turning pro.
But Allen couldn't sleep that night, and when Vigen called the next morning, he couldn't muster the courage to answer.
"I couldn't talk to him and tell him that I was declaring for the draft," Allen said.
"At that point, I knew there was something wrong with my decision. I'm a firm believer in your gut being undefeated."
Vigen was driving to the Denver airport to make a recruiting trip to Wisconsin. He called Joel Allen, who told him that Josh was having second thoughts about turning pro. When Vigen's plane landed, he immediately called Bohl, who told him that Josh had changed his mind and was staying in school.
"I asked him, 'Do you want to get drafted or do you want to have a career?'" Bohl said. "We think this next year is going to really give him a better shot to have a long-term career in the NFL. I mean, he barely shaves now."
Bohl wasn't the only one who offered Josh advice.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, who played for Bohl at North Dakota State,
also reached out to him when he was deciding what to do.
Wentz's advice to Allen was simple: Make sure you're ready for the NFL.
"He seems like a bright kid with a bright future," Wentz said. "I know he has a lot of talent and people are really high on him."
One thing that Wentz said especially struck a chord with Josh: "
He told me that I'd be stepping into a locker room full of 35-year-old men with families and children, who would be depending on me to win games and help secure their jobs."
For one more year, at least, Josh prefers a smaller stage. His goal is to lead the Cowboys to a MWC championship and a New Year's Six bowl game. Six months from now, he hopes everyone in America recognizes him.
"Everything happens for a reason," he said. "I think that kids who are at smaller schools or don't have offers from big schools can look at my story and continue to work hard. I preach to them that it doesn't matter where you come from, it matters how you play and how you apply yourself. If you want something, go get it."