NFL Teams Lining Up to Draft The Cornell 7
ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell University announced Thursday that seven of its students had been selected in the NFL Draft, a development league officials called historic and university officials called clarifying.
None of the seven has appeared to ever play in a Cornell football game. The university does not currently field a varsity football program in any sense that would explain the picks. Alumni president Ray Ping said this had not dampened the mood. “We have not been this proud since Ed Marinaro went in the second round in 1972,” he said. “And we have seven first-rounders. What’s crazy is, I don’t even think we have a football program. Top this, Ohio State.”
Commissioner Roger Goodell welcomed the class at a briefing in New York. “When one door closes, another opens,” he said. He added that prior experience in the sport was “preferable, but not, at this point, disqualifying.” Asked what the seven had been evaluated on, a league spokesman said “intangibles.”
Scouts project the group as holders or backup quarterbacks. “Whoever gets these fine young men will not be sorry,” Goodell said. “They are fine examples of the class and sportsmanship the NFL demands. It doesn’t matter that they are frat guys. These fine young men represent the best of the best of our league.”
The players are expected to report in time for the league’s October slate, during which clubs wear pink to honor women. Ping said he had already ordered a jersey. “These heroes represent what the NFL stands for,” he said. “I can’t wait to get our hero’s name on the back. Besides, I really need another 69.”
Cornell’s athletic department declined to comment on the selections, noting that it had not been consulted. The NFL said the paperwork was in order. Training camp opens in July. The league has not yet announced which team will supply the footballs.
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