SteveOS
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http://cowboys.aolsportsblog.com/2006/09/24/who-is-this-hurd-guy/
Once the Cowboys returned from their California training camp to Valley Ranch, Sam Hurd knew he had his own locker. Sometimes he just couldn't get to it.
Conveniently located just to the left of the curtain separating the players' locker spaces from more public areas of the Cowboys' headquarters was Hurd's locker. But whenever the media were allowed in the locker room, Hurd and his space were overrun.
Those people weren't looking for interviews from the undrafted rookie from San Antonio. They were all there for The T.O. Show. Because the second locker from the entrance, the locker next to Hurd's, belongs to Terrell Owens.
By the time Week 3 rolled around, though, a few reporters and cameras were finding their way to Hurd. Owens wasn't there. He wasn't practicing (again). And the word was he might be out as long as four weeks after having a metal plate and seven pins inserted into Owens' right hand. (Medical information supplied by T.O. on his radio show with Dan LebRetard.)
Hurd was feeling a small part of that spotlight that shines on Owens, but with a lot less glare. He had talked with me about that very topic a few days earlier, saying, "One day I want to be in that spotlight and get that attention.
"I made the team, now I want to keep going. It's a real big step just to get the chance to be here. I thank the Lord for blessing me."
Hurd said he was a Michael Irvin fan when he was a youngster, but hasn't yet met his boyhood idol. "It will be a big deal if I do meet him one day."
One person who could introduce Hurd to Irvin is in the locker next door. Hurd didn't seem to think it would be a problem for him to ask Owens for that favor. "He helps me out all the time. I can call him up and ask him questions.
"I didn't expect nothing when I knew he'd be my teammate. I'm finding out he's a decent guy. The guy is friendly. I never expected him to be so helpful. He's like a big brother, him and Terry Glenn. They've done something to be here for 10 or 11 years when the average life span in the NFL is three or four years."
After starring at Breckenridge High School, Hurd played at Northern Illinois and caught 143 passes in four years, so he has some credentials.
He made his NFL debut in Week 2, and made an impression on his first play by racing downfield to made a hard tackle on the kickoff. "That's every receiver's dream," he said, "to go out and tackle somebody. As wide receivers, we're usually the ones getting hit. Hurd replaced Owens after his broken hand knocked him out of the game, but at that stage of a comfortable win over Washington the Cowboys primarily were running the ball. As Hurd said, "You've got to earn your right to catch the ball."
He's behind Owens on the depth chart at split end, and Hurd said during the bye-week practices he split time at the position with Glenn.
Hurd might not get a chance for his first NFL start, or even much playing time, next week at Tennessee. Both Bill Parcells and Owens said he could return to the field by that time instead of the up to four weeks that were the subject of speculation.
In any event, Sam Hurd would be ready. He just might not be able to get to his locker with T.O. back.
Once the Cowboys returned from their California training camp to Valley Ranch, Sam Hurd knew he had his own locker. Sometimes he just couldn't get to it.
Conveniently located just to the left of the curtain separating the players' locker spaces from more public areas of the Cowboys' headquarters was Hurd's locker. But whenever the media were allowed in the locker room, Hurd and his space were overrun.
Those people weren't looking for interviews from the undrafted rookie from San Antonio. They were all there for The T.O. Show. Because the second locker from the entrance, the locker next to Hurd's, belongs to Terrell Owens.
By the time Week 3 rolled around, though, a few reporters and cameras were finding their way to Hurd. Owens wasn't there. He wasn't practicing (again). And the word was he might be out as long as four weeks after having a metal plate and seven pins inserted into Owens' right hand. (Medical information supplied by T.O. on his radio show with Dan LebRetard.)
Hurd was feeling a small part of that spotlight that shines on Owens, but with a lot less glare. He had talked with me about that very topic a few days earlier, saying, "One day I want to be in that spotlight and get that attention.
"I made the team, now I want to keep going. It's a real big step just to get the chance to be here. I thank the Lord for blessing me."
Hurd said he was a Michael Irvin fan when he was a youngster, but hasn't yet met his boyhood idol. "It will be a big deal if I do meet him one day."
One person who could introduce Hurd to Irvin is in the locker next door. Hurd didn't seem to think it would be a problem for him to ask Owens for that favor. "He helps me out all the time. I can call him up and ask him questions.
"I didn't expect nothing when I knew he'd be my teammate. I'm finding out he's a decent guy. The guy is friendly. I never expected him to be so helpful. He's like a big brother, him and Terry Glenn. They've done something to be here for 10 or 11 years when the average life span in the NFL is three or four years."
After starring at Breckenridge High School, Hurd played at Northern Illinois and caught 143 passes in four years, so he has some credentials.
He made his NFL debut in Week 2, and made an impression on his first play by racing downfield to made a hard tackle on the kickoff. "That's every receiver's dream," he said, "to go out and tackle somebody. As wide receivers, we're usually the ones getting hit. Hurd replaced Owens after his broken hand knocked him out of the game, but at that stage of a comfortable win over Washington the Cowboys primarily were running the ball. As Hurd said, "You've got to earn your right to catch the ball."
He's behind Owens on the depth chart at split end, and Hurd said during the bye-week practices he split time at the position with Glenn.
Hurd might not get a chance for his first NFL start, or even much playing time, next week at Tennessee. Both Bill Parcells and Owens said he could return to the field by that time instead of the up to four weeks that were the subject of speculation.
In any event, Sam Hurd would be ready. He just might not be able to get to his locker with T.O. back.