On paper, it’s a match not exactly made in heaven.
Damon Jones, the talented tight end from Evanston Township High School and Southern Illinois with the checkered past, will be going to Jacksonville in the fifth round to play for drill-sergeant coach Tom Coughlin.
“There’s no denying there were some problems in the past,” Coughlin said. “But if we can make progress with his direction and focus, we’ll have an excellent player.”
Jones’ career began at Michigan. But after arrests for setting off an explosive in his dorm and a charge of shoplifting (for which he was later acquitted), Jones left for Carbondale, where he developed the reputation as a loafer.
Before the selection, Coughlin asked the 6-foot-5-inch, 287-pounder about his ability to stay focused. “He wanted to make sure I would come to work every day and not take a play off,” Jones said.
You can go home again: Notre Dame tight end Pete Chryplewicz hoped to go earlier than the fifth round, but he was happy to be picked by his hometown Detroit Lions.
“It’s an ideal situation,” Chryplewicz said. “Coach (Bobby) Ross likes the two-tight-end formation and it’s great to be home.”
One and only: Dennis Stallings was Illinois’ sole draft pick. The 6-foot, 235-pound linebacker was taken by Houston in the sixth round.
