Julian Edelman: My first college game was against Minnesota and we lost

BleedGopher

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per Souhan:

The Gophers football team began the 2006 season with a trip to Kent, Ohio. On Aug. 31, the Gophers played Kent State, and freshman Eric Decker, who would become a star receiver in the NFL, made his first college catch.

Another future NFL star made an uncelebrated debut on that warm Thursday night. This one, an undersized high school quarterback from Woodside High in northern California, had failed to attract big-school scholarships and had played a season at the College of San Mateo.

Still short and skinny, the kid gave up on his dream of playing for a major-conference power and enrolled at Kent State for his final three seasons. He told the incumbent quarterback that he would be taking over immediately. And he did.

In his first game, against the Gophers, the kid completed seven of 13 passes for 150 yards and ran 14 times for 31 yards. He threw three interceptions and the Gophers won 44-0.

Sunday night, that skinny quarterback who got swamped by the Gophers was named the Most Valuable Player of the Super Bowl. Julian Edelman remembers every step that led to every catch.

“My first game was against Minnesota,” Edelman said late Sunday night. “And we lost.”

Did he foresee an NFL career as a receiver? “At that time, I didn’t,” he said. “I was just trying to go out and help Kent State win some ballgames.”

This is how the Patriots win Super Bowls. They find smart, tough, adaptable, overlooked athletes, and if they bend a rule, they don’t dwell on it.

“I’m getting to live out a dream, so it’s pretty surreal,” Edelman said. “I think everything happens for a reason. I was always taught as a young boy that you had to work hard, put in the extra time and we’ll see where it goes. Worry about what you’ve got on your plate at that time. That’s what I’ve tried to do.”

The Gophers didn’t know it on Aug. 31, 2006, but they were sharing Kent State’s modest stadium with a future Super Bowl MVP.

http://www.startribune.com/super-bo...es-what-the-patriots-are-all-about/505293382/

Go Gophers!!
 






"I was always taught as a young boy that you had to work hard, put in the extra time and we’ll see where it goes."

And if that isn't enough for you to achieve your dreams, shoot up as many 'roids as it takes.
 

Is Souhan suggesting that Minnesota "bend the rules" the way Belichek and the Patriots do?

Of course, and then he can throw a fit about it. And if someone else throws a fit about it he'll make some lazy effort to throw a fit the other way and so on.
 





I remember staining my deck that evening and listening to the game on the radio. It was a beautiful night.
 

per Sid:

Mason on Edelman

Former Gophers football coach Glen Mason recalled that when the team went to play at Kent State in 2006, he was excited because his first job as a head football coach was at Kent State in 1986. He was aware the Golden Flashes had an athletic quarterback by the name of Julian Edelman.

“We totally dominated the game [winning 44-0], as I remember,” Mason said. “We played well defensively and shut them out.”

Mason said the Gophers ran the ball at will against Kent State, with Alex Daniels rushing 24 times for 155 yards and Amir Pinnix 15 times for 114 yards. They outgained Kent State 468-282.

Edelman, who was in his second season at Kent State, completed seven of 13 passes for 150 yards and no touchdowns. He also ran the ball 14 times for 31 yards.

“Edelman was a young kid,” Mason said. “We could tell he was an awfully good athlete. We intercepted him three times. I don’t think he was that prolific of a passer, and that is probably why he ended up playing where he did in pro football.”

Edelman, now a wide receiver, was named Super Bowl MVP on Sunday in the Patriots’ 13-3 victory over the Rams in Atlanta. He caught 10 passes for 141 yards in the game, and now has the second-most postseason receptions in NFL history with 115, trailing only Jerry Rice (151).

The Patriots and coach Bill Belichick were the only team to take a flier on Edelman, selecting him in the seventh round of the 2009 draft at No. 232 overall. He caught 37 passes for 359 yards in his rookie year.

When asked if he thought Edelman could have this kind of pro career, Mason said he does see a pattern of how the Patriots draft athletic players and turn them into possession receivers.

“[Edelman] seems to fit the mold of guys that Bill Belichick of the Patriots seems to be able to pick up, those guys that are awfully good athletes,” Mason said. “He reminds me of Wes Welker and that [Chris] Hogan kid, great possession receivers that are really smart and thrive in an offense and a passing attack that utilizes all of those short possession passes and don’t go deep very much.”

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...s-frustrated-by-first-year-results/505539802/

Go Gophers!!
 




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