the Rice Thresher

Issue date: 5/15/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Rice Sports Information Former Rice tight end James Casey, seen here speaking to the press about his intentions to enter the 2009 NFL Draft earlier this year, was selected in the fifth round by the Houston Texans, despite being projected by some as high as a second-round pick.

Those familiar with tight end James Casey recognized the congenial, hardworking football player that sat before the Houston press on the afternoon of April 26 at the Houston Texans' facility.

But from his description of the previous 24 hours, there was no doubt that a much more fearful and concerned man sat with family glued to the television just moments before.

The concern did not arise from a questioning of his talents; rather, it came from the mistakes of pundits everywhere who believed he would be taken ahead of wide receiver Jarett Dillard.

With the eighth pick in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft, 144th overall, the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Dillard, who was expecting to be picked somewhere around the fourth or fifth round. Dillard could never have expected to be that first player, ahead of the highly-touted Casey, who some had going as high as the second round. Instead, Casey fell eight spots below Dillard, selected by the team whose home games are only a few miles from the Rice campus.

But the mere chance to play in the NFL is the culmination of a life's worth of unrelenting hard work from both of these players, and despite the hectic rollercoaster ride, neither one spent too much time focusing on anything other than the future.

"I was expecting third or fourth round and hoping maybe possibly someone would take a shot at me in the second round," Casey said. "But it didn't work out that way. I like to see it, of course, that the Texans got a steal at this pick. ... It's a great opportunity that way and for all those teams that passed on me, it's another thing that motivates me. Stuff that has motivated me my whole life is when people doubt me."

Among the tight ends that were rated below Casey by most scouting reports was Anthony Hill from North Carolina State University, who the Texans picked in the fourth round. His acquisition towards the end of the fourth round made it even more surprising when Casey's phone rang for the 16th pick of the fifth round.

Continued...

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