For most NFL wanna-bes, the journey to the league starts with a scholarship to a Division-I school and continues with the annual league draft.
For a few individuals at St. Thomas, however, a much different path is forged. It’s a long shot that starts at a small school with little hope of playing professionally, and one that could come screeching to a halt before earning a paycheck for playing.
For four St. Thomas students, their journey came to a climax in Eden Prairie.
The Combine
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. – The sound of two large air filters provided most of the noise. Though indoors, the facility was slightly chilly, most likely due to poor insulation. The turf was worn, which made walking hard on the ankles and generally unpleasant.
Winter Park was eerily quiet the morning of March 4. No one talked above a whisper. Very few talked at all.
Perhaps it was weariness; 7 a.m. check-in times have that effect on people. Perhaps it was because no one really knew each other. Perhaps it was focus. Perhaps it was due to the sheer enormity of the events in which they were about to participate.
Whatever it was, the NFL Regional Combine was an odd sight to behold. More than 180 men, each at the height of his respective athletic career, were competing against each other for a prize that may not even come to anyone.
Each player faced a gauntlet of five skills tests and several position-specific drills that would determine whether they would be deemed good enough by scouts to have a chance to make the NFL and sign with a team.
The tests seemed simple enough: Jump as high and as far as you can; run as fast as you can; build up speed and change direction as quickly as you can; pose for a few pictures and act professionally for five hours. The skills tests, too, seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary.
These players had done these events – or something similar to them – countless times throughout their careers. Each player was in action for maybe a minute during the drills; the rest of his time was spent waiting and preparing. It seemed as though it should have been a low-pressure morning.
But Saturday was different.
Every time one of the 183 lined up to participate in an event, all eyes fell to him. Event staff judged every single move he made, every word he said and every interaction he had with other people. The pressure was on; this was their one chance to show that they could make it.
One linebacker made a small mistake during a drill and let an expletive slip rather loudly. Before he regained composure and finished the drill, panic flashed on his face for a split second. It was too late to take it back.
At the regional combines, even the slightest of slip-ups – physical or mental – could cost someone a contract and their dream.
NFL prospects at the Division I level are afforded more leeway when it comes to the way they carry themselves. Their athletic ability and projected on-the-field contributions, in the eyes of many NFL general managers, will make up for some off-the-field-antics.
The prospects who go to regional combines aren’t afforded the same luxury. They played at the D-II and D-III levels, and because of this it becomes easy for scouts to overlook any success with the excuse that these players only played so well because they faced less-than-stellar competition.
These are the guys who didn’t, and still don’t, command the same media attention that D-I competitors do. They still have to prove themselves, to show that they have what it takes to make it at the NFL level.
St. Thomas at the Combine
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Four of the 183, quarterback Alex Fenske, wide receiver Joe Reed, linebacker Anthony King-Foreman and long snapper Michael Blume, played their final collegiate season last year at St. Thomas.
Fenske was one of the better-performing participants at the combine. There weren’t any major mistakes, and the few scouts in attendance nodded in approval every once in a while after he completed a drill.
“Logistically, (he has) tremendous stature … pocket presence and a fantastic arm,” St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso said. “His arm strength is something that I would certainly compare against other guys who have had a shot at the next level.”
Fenske said he felt good about his performance in Eden Prairie.
“After my final throw (of the combine), the coach running the offensive portion of the combine yelled out, ‘Hey, St. Thomas! Way to show them that you deserve a chance,’” Fenske said. “It gave me a great boost of confidence leaving the combine that day.”
Despite this and an impressive senior year under center for the Tommies, Fenske most likely won’t be drafted, which is something he knew going into the combine.
“(Teams) are spending their time now scouting and working out players who they have high on their draft boards,” he said. “I haven’t heard from any teams yet. Being that I won’t be drafted, teams aren’t going to contact me until close to or right after the draft.”
It’s a long shot for Fenske, and any of the other 183, to make it to the NFL. It’ll be an even longer shot to make the final 53-man roster of any team. Most of the available preseason roster spots on teams will go to the D-I athletes and veteran free agents. While each NFL team has a practice squad on which they can retain eight players, thousands of players will be vying for those spots.
It’s a long and brutal road where very little, if anything, is guaranteed. Most D-III athletes will see their dreams end before they begin.
Despite this, the four Tommies have put themselves in as good of a position to succeed as they possibly can.
Ask almost any football coach and they’ll say that, most of the time, a well-coached player with good technique will outperform a player relying solely on raw athletic ability.
Caruso said the St. Thomas football program is perennially successful because it doesn’t focus on creating just good athletes, but hard-working individuals who approach every aspect of life with tenacity.
“Our goal is to make sure we’re appropriately positioned so that we’re going to be able to handle everything life throws at us,” Caruso said. “The way the program is set up and the culture that our players have built is to make sure that we’re prepared for those others things and life. That’s the sole reason why we’re here.”
Now, not only has the Tommie athletes’ faith in the system provided success throughout their college careers, but it provides them the best shot at making the NFL and an opportunity, albeit a small one, to thrive in it.
The waiting game
The NFL combines, both regional and national, and the NFL Draft are separated by nearly two months. When the draft starts Thursday, the wait will be coming to a close for many of the top-tier players in the nation. However, the wait to hear from a team could drag on much longer for players like Fenske.
There is no deadline by which free agents in the NFL must be signed to a team. Many players don’t get their chance until late July into August when training camp starts and regulars get injured.
While potentially playing in the NFL is a great opportunity, it isn’t the only one for which Fenske has been preparing.
“I’ve been substitute teaching in the St. Paul School District, which has been a wonderful experience,” he said. “It’s great to know I have more than one opportunity in the future, whether it’s football or teaching and coaching.”
Still, Fenske acknowledged the waiting has been tough.
“The wait is long, but staying busy with the training and substitute teaching helps,” he said. “I know it’s all a part of the process, so I don’t get too overwhelmed by it at all.”
For Caruso, this isn’t the first time one of his players has the opportunity to be signed by an NFL team, but he still empathizes with Fenske.
“I always feel anxiety for our players just because I love them so much,” Caruso said. “Alex is a pretty even-keeled guy. If he’s stressed out, he’s certainly not showing it.”
As for where Fenske might sign, if he signs at all, neither he nor his coach are sure of when or where that might happen.
“I really have no idea simply because I have no idea what happens in the NFL,” Caruso said. “Any opportunity he would get would be a blessing. I wish he gets that opportunity.”
All Fenske can do for right now, though, is wait.
Noah Brown can be reached at brow7736@stthomas.edu