Steven M. Sipple: Keller faces long odds in NFL
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Once upon a time, he was regarded as the savior. He would ride into town from the Southwest and rescue Nebraska football. He would revitalize Bill Callahan’s career. We know how all that turned out.
But there always would be the NFL. Sam Keller looked like an NFL quarterback ought to look — tall and strong and composed. He was perfect to run Callahan’s NFL offense, right? Never mind the awkward throwing motion and heavy feet. The NFL Draft would come and everybody close to Keller would celebrate his big day.
So, those close to Keller gathered for a draft party last weekend at his father’s home near Las Vegas — his parents, grandma, sisters, a bunch of friends, Sam’s girlfriend and her family. They were primed and ready, even though Sam tried to warn them.
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“Hey, I’m probably not going to get drafted,” he told them.
Of course, he was right. You see, a funny thing happened to Keller at the NFL combine in February. Actually, it’s what didn’t happen that was most telling. Keller spoke to representatives of several NFL teams at the combine, but he didn’t get invited to any of those scheduled in-depth meetings with team officials — you know, the behind-closed-doors sessions during which rookie prospects are absolutely grilled about everything from X’s and O’s to their deepest, darkest secrets.
No invites at all? That was a bad sign. What’s more, Keller’s agent told him what teams were saying about the QB, and it wasn’t always flattering.
“I was just surprised with how much teams didn’t like me,” Keller said earlier this week. “I was surprised with how much I heard that teams don’t like my (throwing) release. They continued to question the Arizona State situation no matter what I said. …
“Character and release. It just kept coming back that teams didn’t like those things about me. It’s just something I continue to have to battle.”
The Keller story continues, and hope remains. Keller today is competing in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ rookie minicamp, having traveled to Tampa, Fla., this week as an unsigned free agent. In other words, he’s an extreme long shot to make the squad. Let’s say 90-to-1. Yes, it would be one heck of a chapter if he beats those odds. It would feel a lot different than Sunday’s chapter, to be sure.
“You feel these different emotions,” Keller said. “For me, last weekend was a feeling of being lost and kind of embarrassed. You have these expectations, and you find out other people have expectations for you — your family, friends, people around you. You just kind of feel like you’re out there flopping in the breeze. It’s kind of like, ‘God, I’m so sorry.’ You wish you could have brought more joy to the day.
“It all came to a head Sunday, but it got better. I have my chance. You just kind of move on.”
Maybe there’s a lesson in all this. Maybe the media won’t be so quick to heap hype on the next “can’t-miss” transfer. Yes, I’m extremely culpable. So much of the past four years of Husker football was about hype.
The thing is, it was easy to heap hype on the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Keller. He posted big numbers at Arizona State. In 2005, he torched Bo Pelini’s Louisiana State defense to the tune of 461 yards and four touchdowns. He had been groomed since the eighth grade to be a big-time QB. He had “the look.”
Nebraska fans so desperately wanted him to be a savior that he was immediately held in that regard in many corners of Huskerville, whether he was equipped for the role or not.
Maybe what the NFL Draft confirms is that Keller was a nice college quarterback, nothing more. He was good, not great. And there’s nothing wrong with that, nothing at all, unless you were expecting him to be a savior.
There’s another lesson in all this. Keller’s situation — as well as those of Maurice Purify and Carl Nicks — reminds current Nebraska players beyond a shadow of a doubt that character indeed matters in the NFL. Some Huskers players don’t comprehend this line of thinking until they see it first-hand. Believe me, they understand now.
Keller said several NFL teams asked him about an incident in March of 2007 in which he allegedly threw a paper cup at a woman’s car after she beat him to a parking spot on campus. Charges were eventually dropped. It’s almost embarrassing for me to bring up the matter at this point, except to illustrate that these seemingly minor incidents can be harmful to players on draft day.
“Teams really thought I threw a whole cup of coffee on the girl,” Keller said as he packed for his trip to Tampa.
He admitted he was nervous about his big chance. Nervous and excited. He wants to stay around football. He describes himself as a “field rat,” much like a gym rat. That’s why he’d gladly head to the Arena League if things don’t work out with the Bucs.
“I’m going down there (to Tampa) to play some football for three days, and I’m going to do the best I can,” he said. Which, of course, is all you can ever ask of a player, savior or not.
Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
