By
Richard Cirminiello
Yes, there are
quarterbacks other than Notre Dame’s Brady Quinn and LSU’s JaMarcus
Russell eligible and preparing for April’s NFL Draft. Former BYU Cougar
John Beck is one of them. He’s a little smaller and a little older than
scouts deem ideal, but his feel for the position, fundamentals and
maturity are off the charts, making him very attractive to scouts and
general managers. At worst, Beck is the perfect NFL backup in the mold
of a Ty Detmer with more upside potential.
Beck graduated from high school nearly eight years ago, spent two years
in Portugal on his Mormon mission and the last four steadily climbing
into the pantheon of all-time great BYU quarterbacks. The next leg of
this unorthodox journey toward fulfilling a boyhood dream won’t be as
memorable, but will be just as vital from an athletic perspective. From
the combine to the draft itself, Beck will be providing a blow-by-blow
peek into the unique world of a soon-to-be NFL Draft choice.
John Beck, QB BYU
April 26, 2007
The
last entry I made here was right after my pro day here at BYU so it's
time to get caught up from there. Since my pro day, I have done private
workouts for a number of teams. One of the most interesting visits was
with a head coach and a general manager form a specific team. All of the
other workouts were done with quarterback coaches and offensive
coordinators. With this team, however, I had a film session in the
morning followed by a throwing session going over many specific throws
that the team uses. Of all my personal workouts, this was the one I
enjoyed the most because I felt it was the most thorough.
I
spent all of last week visiting teams. I flew to three teams, the
Saints, Ravens, and Lions. Each of the teams did their visits a little
different, but the purpose was the same. It was an opportunity for them
to get to know me a little more in depth. Now that all of my workouts
and visits are over with the only thing I can do is wait for draft day.
With draft day right around the corner, my main focus is to prepare for
a rookie camp then mini camp. All of the players from my team this year
at BYU and I continue to throw four times a week and train so when we
enter a team's rookie camp we can do well.
This month for me has been a very exciting one. Not only because of the
NFL Draft but also because my wife and I welcomed a new little baby boy
into our lives. He is our first child and he was born on Easter at a
healthy 8 lbs. 6 oz. and 21 inches. It has been awesome to have him
here and next week we'll startworking on his dropbacks.
Well, only a few more days now until the draft. It has been a very
exciting time for me and my family. I'm anxious to find out what team
I'll be playing for. As far as who I think that will be…your guess is
as good as mine.
March 23, 2007
Since the combine, it has been all work to
prepare for my Pro Day. I spent a week after the combine continuing my
training in Arizona. I then returned to Provo, Utah to prepare for my
workout with my teammates. We spent each afternoon going over all of
the routes that we would throw for the pro day workout. During that
time, there were some teams that visited me here in Provo for private
workouts. Usually those private workouts consisted of a throwing session
with the coaches, setting up specific drills and throws that they wanted
me to do. The private sessions also had a period of film review where we
watched my game tape from last season and they asked questions regarding
plays or schemes. These sessions were also used as a more in-depth
interview in comparison to those held at the combine.
Wednesday was our Pro Day at BYU. We had about 20 teams represented
with some quarterback coaches there also. I did not participate in any
of the running drills, choosing instead to stand on all of my combine
numbers. After my teammates had done all of their testing, we did our
throwing session. The throwing session consisted of about 65 throws
which ranged from straight drop-back passes to play-action and rollout
throws. All the throws went well and I was happy with how my Pro Day
went. One thing of note that I think the readers would see as very
impressive is what my left tackle, Eddie Keele, did for his bench press.
He did the 225 bench test 43 times. He missed out on the combine
because of an injury he suffered in our third game of the season which
caused him to miss the rest of the season. Had he been at the combine,
it would have been the top bench press of this year.
Now that my Pro Day is over, I have some more private workouts with
teams around the league. I have enjoyed every minute of the preparation
that has gone into the combine and Pro Day and the chance to perform in
front of NFL personnel. I look forward to the other opportunities I
have to perform for teams. Just 37 days left until draft day...it's
almost here.
March 4, 2007
It
looks as if it's time to report on my combine experience. I would have
to say that the last four years of watching the combine on the NFL
Network did help prepare me for all the on-field drills, but it came up
short in preparing me for some of the other aspects, mainly that of a
lack of sleep.
I left Phoenix on Thursday morning and arrived in Indianapolis that
afternoon. We got checked into our rooms and were immediately taken to
our Cybex testing, which measures the strength ratios of your quads and
hamstrings. After the test, we were taken to the hospital where we did
blood tests, x-rays, vision tests and were questioned on our injury
history. Our group was the last one of the night to the hospital, and
unluckily, we were the first group up the next morning for drug testing.
My roommate and I decided we would beat the 5 AM rush, so we went at
4:30 AM, the first of our many nights with little sleep. The following
days were filled with more medical exams by team doctors and other
intelligence and personality tests. At one point during one of my
medical exams, I was lying on a table with one doctor examining my left
ankle and knee, another doctor examining my right ankle and knee and
another doctor checking my right shoulder. I had heard from other
friends that had been to the combine in previous years that, at times,
you could have multiple doctors checking you at the same time. However,
thinking about what it could be like doesn't compare at all to the
reality of it. To be frank, it's kind of weird.
Each night was filled with interviews, usually from about 7 PM to 11 PM.
I met with quarterback coaches from teams around the league and in
their team rooms where usually the head coach and other coaches from the
organization were present. This portion of the combine I really enjoyed
because it was a great opportunity for the coaches to get to know you a
little better as a player and for you to get to know the coaches. As I
was around the team rooms, I still found myself like a kid being wowed
by the people I was meeting. I'll have to say it is a pretty cool
environment to be walking around and see every NFL coach that you watch
on Sundays. The final day was workout day, the one we had all been
waiting for. Once again, the group I was in was the first to go so that
meant another early wakeup. On-field drills started with the 40-yard
dash, and then the quarterbacks jumped right into throwing drills. This
is where the NFL Network came in handy. I'm sure I wasn’t the only QB
that had seen all the drills from the last couple of years about a
hundred times. After throwing drills, we did the vertical jump, the
standing broad jump, and our agility drills for time before calling it a
day.
I don't know if much more could have been crammed into those four days,
however, I did find time to take a two-hour nap one afternoon and it
felt like Christmas. I felt the combine was exactly what all of us
players were looking forward to. It was a chance to meet and interview
with teams so they could get a feel for who we are as players, then to
step out on the field and workout side-by-side so teams could see us all
at once.
Now that the combine is done, I'm right back to working out, running and
throwing every day to prepare for my pro day. It's crazy to think that
the combine has come and gone and now it’s on to the next step in this
process, but, hey, that's why we all chose this...it's what we love to
do.
February 21, 2007
Since this is my first entry, I thought I would just catch up on a short
version of what has been taking place since my bowl game up to this
point. Since I am from the Phoenix area, I knew I would be coming here
to do all my combine training. Directly after the Las Vegas Bowl, I
packed up and moved back to Arizona. I have been with the same training
facility since I graduated high school, and combine training has always
been one of their specialties over the years. When I would come home for
the holiday season, I would spend a few days training with them and they
would always have their group of combine prep guys… now the difference
is that I am one of them.
I
was able to work out for a few weeks before I left for the East-West
Shrine All-Star game in Houston. The entire week was a great experience
as it was filled with practices, interviews with NFL scouts and service
activities involving the Shriners Hospitals. The East-West Shrine game
is such a unique experience because of the Shriners and the chance that
we get to see what they do and to interact with the children at the
hospital.
Upon return from that game and up to this point has been all combine
prep. Each day, we start with about an hour to an hour and a half of
running drills and speed work. We jump right into our throwing session,
which lasts about an hour. After a lunch break and a little rest, we
are in the weight room for an extensive workout.
As
I'm writing this, my preparation for the combine is done. I pack my bags
today and I'm on a plane for Indy tomorrow morning. Since I'll be
adding some more entries throughout the next couple of months leading up
to the draft, I will be filling everyone in on what I'm up to. I can't
leave out one of the biggest things happening to me, and probably THE
biggest ever. In April, my wife will be giving birth to our little son
Ty ( yep, we already got his name picked out). So not only will I be
anxious for the draft come April, but also to be a dad. My life is
pretty busy right now. Anyway, I'm off to the combine tomorrow and I'll
be sure to share my experiences with you when I get back.