NFL Combine..

A prospective-NFL player has to be invited to the combine. His college coach has to get in touch with college scouts so that he can get the right exposure. Also, guys get drafted without going to the combine.... usually they are second-day picks, but it happens. I know someone now who is in NFL Europe as a member of the New England Patriots and was not invited to the combine. Tell your friend to keep working, have his college coach contact NFL scouts, and be productive on the field. It also may help to seek a professional coach who can train him for potential combine-like activities. Let me know if I can be of any further assistance.

Buffness,

Having spent the last 11 years as a professional minor league head coach, and having elevated 31 players to the next level including the NFL, the Canadian League, the NFL Europe League from those teams, I feel qualified to help you with your question. As Lou mentioned, it is POSSIBLE for almost any scenario to take place to reach the NFL today. However, it is very UNLIKELY to happen unless you have had a very successful college career. THE SIZE OF THE SCHOOL DOES NOT MATTER. Whoever heard of MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE UNTIL A PLAYER BY THE NAME OF JERRY RICE JUST HAPPENED TO SPEND HIS COLLEGE CAREER THERE? The very first player that I got signed to an NFL contract was a player who had played one half of a season at lowly Savannah State college in Savannah, Ga. BUT, he was a super human athlete, benching 655 lbs and having the strength of a raging bull!!! He stood 6'4 and weighed in at 348 lbs. But, here again this is a real exception. He was signed by Buffalo Bills Head Scout BOB WINDISCH after putting on a clinic during the 1994 AFL pro Bowl game. But, to attend any other NFL combine other than a free agent open tryout, YOU MUST BE INVITED, just as Lou mentioned.

The one sure way of getting at least a tryout, is to have your friend retain a reputable agent! One that is known by the NFL scouts and that will be receptive to looking at your friend. One that all ready has some players that he represents in the NFL, but not one who is not hungry enough to push your buddy, as that is what it takes to get looked at. No matter what you hear, an NFL scout is only entitled to 4% of his client's income for the first year. If he negotiates him a lucrative shoe contract or whatever, that is usually a seperate agreement and they negotiate the commissions due the agent or whatever. I have an agent who represents NFL players and that is the way we work.

If your buddy was not drafted coming out of college and is not an invited prospect to the combine, he will not be going, count on it. What he can look forward to in his status that he is now classified (STREET FREE AGENT) if he can find a good agent who will take him as a client and get to work for him,he still has an outside shot at being successful in his quest. A STANDARD RULE OF THUMB FOR NFL PARTICIPATION IS: IF YOU HAVE BEEN OUT OF COLLEGE AT LEAST TWO YEARS AND NOT HAVING PLAYED IN THAT TIME, YOU WILL 99 TIMES OUT OF A 100 NOT BE SUCCESSFUL IN EVER MAKING AN NFL ROSTER. Here again, I have another exceptoin to that: My 1994 pro minor league team punter was a man named SCOTT PLAYER who played ihs college ball for BOBBY BOWDEN AND COMPANY AT FLORIDA STATE. My team had won the 1994 AFL Super Bowl and received quite extensive coverage from the media in the off season. The next spring, Scott approached me and wanted a workout for my team. My son had played for Clemson when Scott was at FSU and I was familiar with him. I give every punter candidate 30 balls to punt and evaluate them for hang time, distance, and directional punting skills. He had completed 3 kicks and I stopped him. I could not believe that he had not been picked up by somebody as he is a TREMENDOUS PUNTER. I signed him on the spot and he went on to average 47.3 yds per punt for us that year. HE HAD BEEN OUT OF COLLEGE FOR 3 YEARS WHEN I GOT HIM. He has been the starting Punter for the Arizona Cardinals and is now in his 9th season with them as the starter I believe. Here again, he was a super human man with a work ethic!!! He would not be denied!!!

When all is said and done, it is a tremendously hard road to hoe, but your never whipped until you quit!

Coach Easton

Dominance on the Division 3 level is very important... good 40 time, good vertical, and then it's all position-dependent. This player must compete in an all-star game against players from different levels, so that the scouts can see that he can play in the league.

wow, thanks for all the information!! As far as finding an agent, where would one start? Again, thank you guy's for taking the time out to answer my questions.

TO ENTERTAIN RETAINING AN AGENT OF THE CALIBER OF THE TWO THAT LOU MENTIONS IS PURE FOLLY.
THEY WILL NOT EVEN ACCEPT A PHONE CALL UNLESS YOU ARE A TOP RATED COLLEGE DRAFT CHOICE. THIS TOO, I TELL YOU FROM EXPERIENCE AND NOT HEARSAY. You see, coach, there are so many facets to getting a street free agent looked at, it is mind boggling. The average coach on the HS level doesn't have a clue as to what is really involved in the process, and that certainly is not a putdown of any kind, but rather just a statement of fact. It is nothing at all like the process of getting a HS player to college, it is much more involved! Lou offers sound advice when he tells you to have the college coach make some calls for your buddy. IF THE COACH IS WELL CONNECTED WITH SCOUTS FROM THE LEAGUE, IT IS A GOOD SHOT, BUT IF NOT, DON'T EXPECT RESULTS. In my experience, the best type of agent is the kind I outlined in my above post. One who is established, but is not A SUPERSTAR AGENT LIKE STEINBERG, and that will really push for a workout from as many teams as he can get to look at the prospect he is representing. It is not just a matter of going out and looking for an agent, in order to get the agent to represnt the prospect properly, he has to be sold on the players skills first!

Coach Easton

CellaFBall@aol.com

buffness,

I played at a DIII college and had a very successful career. I wasn't sure how far I could truly go to make football a career and wanted to find out. Obviously, I didn't get invited to "The Combine" in Indy so I had to find another venue to be evaluated. There is a lower level combine called Scout Camp Regional Combines. Many players have made the league by attending one of these combines (Wayne Chrebet is their poster child) and many DIII players attend these. The other positive is that scouts from all levels (CFL, Europe, Arena, etc) access this info. I received invitations from Arena and CFL teams to attend team tryouts b/c they accessed my info from this combine (I went to the one at Ohio St.). They do all of the combine tests and also run one-on-one drills. Everthing goes on the web. It is definitely worth your time to check out. Here's the website: www.combines.com/home.asp

I would have to say that I was in an entirely different place than Coach Easton's son. I had no expectations that my ability would be good enough to make the NFL so I didn't expect that exposure. I went to the combine to be tested and check out the possibilities of playing in leagues other than NFL and I felt that this combine offered that opportunity. As mentioned in earlier posts, if I had NFL expectations I would have looked for an agent or some other type of personal contact with teams in the league. Again, I was a DIII player and wanted to see where I stacked up. As Coach Easton stated, there were not many scouts at the combine I attended either and the teams that did contact me did so b/c of the results they accessed on the web. For me personally, I got my $150 worth. I also have been on this board long enough (although I don't post often) to know that Coach Easton's experience can be extremely valuable!

Coach,
I did not end up signing anywhere. I decided early on that if I couldn't play as a full-time job (no day or off-season jobs), I wanted to get into coaching. Nothing materialized except for some of the lower level Arena leagues so I went straight into high school coaching and haven't looked back. Doors open and close to get you where you are supposed to be and that is where I am. I can most definately see where the scout camp disappointed you and your son with empty promises.