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PETER JACKEL: Oldenburg waits for one last call
StoryDiscussionPETER JACKEL [email protected] | Posted: Monday, April 12, 2010 9:48 pm | No Comments Posted
http://www.journaltimes.com/sports/article_4cfcfb28-46a7-11df-a1e6-001cc4c03286.html
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efault font sizeLarger font sizeThe first phone call in a possible trio of calls in his personal saga came in his La Crosse apartment the afternoon of Nov. 9, 2009, when his doctor told him it was all over.
After sustaining a neck injury two days earlier and undergoing tests that morning, Reid Oldenburg was informed he would have to sit out the UW-La Crosse football team's season-ending game that Saturday. The reality was his breakout season as the Eagles' go to running back, not to mention his entire football career, appeared to be over.
"When I got off the phone, I broke down," said Oldenburg, the 2004 All-Racine County Player of the Year for Burlington High School. "There were tears in my eyes over the realization I was going to be done playing football for the rest of my life."
The second phone call in this saga came March 24, when Oldenburg was student teaching physical education classes at Milwaukee Riverside High School. Actually, Oldenburg's cell phone vibrated in his pocket a number of times that day, but he was not allowed to answer until school let out that afternoon.
"I was thinking, ‘What the heck is going on?' " he said.
As an unsuspecting Oldenburg would discover, the number showing up in his phone belonged to Shaun Herock, Assistant Director of College Scouting for the Green Bay Packers. Herock was calling to set up a workout time at La Crosse for Oldenburg and teammate Matt Winney, a cornerback.
The two went on to showcase their skills March 31 during a workout that was also attended by a representative of the Baltimore Ravens. Herock and his counterpart, both cordial but distant, recorded their data during the two-hour session and were on their way.
That brings us to the third phone call, which Oldenburg realizes may never come. That impossible dream call would happen after the NFL Draft concludes April 24, if some team calls and invites Oldenburg to its camp on a make good basis.
To say the least, it's an enormous long shot, but why not dream a little? Tony Romo, who graduated from Burlington two years prior to when Oldenburg was a freshman at the school, was signed as an undrafted free agent quarterback out of Eastern Illinois by the Dallas Cowboys in 2003 and has been to three Pro Bowls.
One year earlier, former Park High School All-State tackle Kevin Barry was signed by the Packers as an undrafted free agent out of Arizona and was a ferocious blocker for four seasons in the team's "U-71" scheme that was named after Barry's uniform number.
So, could lightning strike a third time for a former county standout? That question remains to be answered, but at least the Packers were intrigued enough to request a personal workout.
There was good reason for that. After gaining a total of 601 yards in his first three seasons at La Crosse, Oldenberg was promoted to featured back last fall and responded with 975 yards and 15 touchdowns on 171 carries - an average of 5.5 yards per attempt.
Had the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Oldenburg not missed more than three games with a pulled left hamstring and then that season-ending neck injury, his numbers would have been even more impressive.
"He's got great determination, he's got great vision, great speed and he's a great finisher," La Crosse coach Larry Terry said. "You have to bring him down. He loves the sport. He loves to run with the football."
Nevertheless, the gap between NCAA Division III football and the NFL is immense and success stories are few. Oldenburg realizes this and isn't exactly planning on putting aside his teaching career before it even begins - especially after what he considered to be a poor workout.
"I thought I did not do very good at all," he said. "I'm probably my hardest critic, but I wasn't really preparing for it and it caught me off guard. I did good in some areas and not so good in other areas. I felt my starts were kind of sluggish."
So maybe that call will come and maybe it won't.
Oldenburg's passion for football has been piqued to an extent that he will be genuinely disappointed if his cell phone remains silent after the draft. But he also is realistic enough to know there's a good chance his phone will, indeed, remain silent.
"It's always been a dream of mine to play in the NFL, but I think I have gone about my life pretty realistically," he said. "I know that making the NFL is a stretch for any player and I'm going about my life as if I'm not going to make it."
Peter Jackel is a reporter for The Journal Times. You may contact Peter at (262) 634-3322, Ext. 323 or by e-mail at [email protected]
Posted in Sports on Monday, April 12, 2010 9:48 pm | Tags: Peter Jackel, Reid Oldenburg
StoryDiscussionPETER JACKEL [email protected] | Posted: Monday, April 12, 2010 9:48 pm | No Comments Posted
http://www.journaltimes.com/sports/article_4cfcfb28-46a7-11df-a1e6-001cc4c03286.html
Font Size
efault font sizeLarger font sizeThe first phone call in a possible trio of calls in his personal saga came in his La Crosse apartment the afternoon of Nov. 9, 2009, when his doctor told him it was all over.After sustaining a neck injury two days earlier and undergoing tests that morning, Reid Oldenburg was informed he would have to sit out the UW-La Crosse football team's season-ending game that Saturday. The reality was his breakout season as the Eagles' go to running back, not to mention his entire football career, appeared to be over.
"When I got off the phone, I broke down," said Oldenburg, the 2004 All-Racine County Player of the Year for Burlington High School. "There were tears in my eyes over the realization I was going to be done playing football for the rest of my life."
The second phone call in this saga came March 24, when Oldenburg was student teaching physical education classes at Milwaukee Riverside High School. Actually, Oldenburg's cell phone vibrated in his pocket a number of times that day, but he was not allowed to answer until school let out that afternoon.
"I was thinking, ‘What the heck is going on?' " he said.
As an unsuspecting Oldenburg would discover, the number showing up in his phone belonged to Shaun Herock, Assistant Director of College Scouting for the Green Bay Packers. Herock was calling to set up a workout time at La Crosse for Oldenburg and teammate Matt Winney, a cornerback.
The two went on to showcase their skills March 31 during a workout that was also attended by a representative of the Baltimore Ravens. Herock and his counterpart, both cordial but distant, recorded their data during the two-hour session and were on their way.
That brings us to the third phone call, which Oldenburg realizes may never come. That impossible dream call would happen after the NFL Draft concludes April 24, if some team calls and invites Oldenburg to its camp on a make good basis.
To say the least, it's an enormous long shot, but why not dream a little? Tony Romo, who graduated from Burlington two years prior to when Oldenburg was a freshman at the school, was signed as an undrafted free agent quarterback out of Eastern Illinois by the Dallas Cowboys in 2003 and has been to three Pro Bowls.
One year earlier, former Park High School All-State tackle Kevin Barry was signed by the Packers as an undrafted free agent out of Arizona and was a ferocious blocker for four seasons in the team's "U-71" scheme that was named after Barry's uniform number.
So, could lightning strike a third time for a former county standout? That question remains to be answered, but at least the Packers were intrigued enough to request a personal workout.
There was good reason for that. After gaining a total of 601 yards in his first three seasons at La Crosse, Oldenberg was promoted to featured back last fall and responded with 975 yards and 15 touchdowns on 171 carries - an average of 5.5 yards per attempt.
Had the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Oldenburg not missed more than three games with a pulled left hamstring and then that season-ending neck injury, his numbers would have been even more impressive.
"He's got great determination, he's got great vision, great speed and he's a great finisher," La Crosse coach Larry Terry said. "You have to bring him down. He loves the sport. He loves to run with the football."
Nevertheless, the gap between NCAA Division III football and the NFL is immense and success stories are few. Oldenburg realizes this and isn't exactly planning on putting aside his teaching career before it even begins - especially after what he considered to be a poor workout.
"I thought I did not do very good at all," he said. "I'm probably my hardest critic, but I wasn't really preparing for it and it caught me off guard. I did good in some areas and not so good in other areas. I felt my starts were kind of sluggish."
So maybe that call will come and maybe it won't.
Oldenburg's passion for football has been piqued to an extent that he will be genuinely disappointed if his cell phone remains silent after the draft. But he also is realistic enough to know there's a good chance his phone will, indeed, remain silent.
"It's always been a dream of mine to play in the NFL, but I think I have gone about my life pretty realistically," he said. "I know that making the NFL is a stretch for any player and I'm going about my life as if I'm not going to make it."
Peter Jackel is a reporter for The Journal Times. You may contact Peter at (262) 634-3322, Ext. 323 or by e-mail at [email protected]
Posted in Sports on Monday, April 12, 2010 9:48 pm | Tags: Peter Jackel, Reid Oldenburg
DAL @ GB
