LSU’s Claiborne Gets The Call Of A Lifetime

This is why we love sports.

Not only was the American football-loving public shocked when the Dallas Cowboys catapulted themselves eight spots up in the NFL draft (via trade), but the young man whom team owner Jerry Jones selected with the No. 6 overall pick was taken by surprise to the point of near-silence.

Morris Claiborne, the nation’s top-ranked cornerback out of LSU never even thought about the possibility of playing for the Cowboys, his family’s favorite team.  Why would he, as Claiborne expected to be drafted early in the first round while Dallas was nearly halfway down in the draft order with the  No. 14 pick overall. 

So when Claiborne answered his phone and realized Jerry Jones was unexpectedly on the line, (click on the video above to hear their conversation),  the 22-year-old Louisiana native was absolutely stunned. 

“I looked back at my family, and they were like, ‘Who is it?’ ” Claiborne told the press at Radio City Music Hall. “And I was like, ‘The Cowboys.’ Just to see the look on their face, it’s just melted me.”

The voice of his new bosses melted Claiborne too, as you can hear the Jim Thorpe Award winner break down in tears while trying to digest the moment he had likely dreamed about since childhood. 

Between twitter and the media leaking information about picks before they happen, this is quite a remarkable conversation as we rarely get to see true, raw emotion at the draft these days.  Congrats to Mr. Claiborne and to the Cowboys as well, who seem to have gambled on one grateful and hard-working young man. 

  • April 27
  • , 2012
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