HARKER HEIGHTS, Texas — Five years and a lot of miles and hits later, Academy's Philip Redwine is hopeful he'll get an opportunity at playing professional football.
Redwine, a 2015 graduate of Academy High School, played at Oklahoma State as a linebacker and on special teams and said his friends and family around town were excited as he prepared for the 2020 NFL Draft.
"They're like, 'You're just making big moves, don't forget about the little people,'" Redwine said. "I was like, 'I was just like y'all literally four or five years ago, there's no way I'd forget my people, my family."
After finishing his final season at the Texas Bowl in December, Redwine turned his attention to the Draft, even working out at five different positions at OSU's Pro Day last month.
"Fullback, linebacker, long snapper," Redwine said. "Then I had to run routes, tight end routes, with my quarterback to get him looks for the pro's."
Redwine said one of the assistant coaches at OSU recommended he try fullback in front of the NFL scouts in Stillwater on March 10th.
But, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic forced Redwin to change the way he prepared for draft weekend. Normally, he could work out and lift weights under renowned Oklahoma State strength coach Rob Glass.
After Pro Day, though, the Stillwater campus closed down.
"I'm out there in my back yard with a bar and two buckets of sand, just trying to do squats," Redwine said. "Just trying to make do with what I have."
Now, not caring about what position or team calls him, Redwine said he's taking the same mindset as when he first stepped on to the OSU campus in the summer of 2015.
"That walk-on mindset," Redwine said. "It doesn't matter where I am, it only matters where I wind up."
Redwine went undrafted as Oklahoma State did not have any players selected in the draft for the first time since 2008. As of Saturday night, he had not signed with a team as an undrafted free agent, yet.
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