re: Miles - Very matter of fact interview.

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I think some guys are looking forward to having great and long pro careers and some guys are trying to optimize a lower position in a draft spot and maximize the number of years they get to be there. It’s an interesting thing. All of these guys, each guy, has a goal to play in the NFL. Irrespective of whether you’re the style of guy that can go in the first 10 picks or you’re the style of guy that’s going to go mid rounds to late but it’s been the goal of mine to be an NFL player and you know what? A lot of our guys get a chance to play in that league.

I think there’s a smart and orderly direction to a quality decision that a lot of our guys have gone through. It’s difficult to put the right round to leave early for. Some guys think they may never be most optimally positioned for the NFL and this may be the best that they’ve got. It may be bad but they think it’s the best that they have. That being said, we’ve described their scenarios as best we can and it’s really their decision. It really is.

I don’t think there’s any question that irrespective of what happened to Ty that he was probably going to be out this year anyway. It just falls into that number. I make the point that a degree is awfully important and you give nothing up, you’re still going to have the same marketability to the NFL that you have this year plus you have your degree, especially those late-round guys.

I also say that frankly I don’t want to give a deal to the NFL. I think that certain guys that leave early take the opportunity this time as opposed to positioning yourself in the NFL draft at a higher level sometimes costs guys money sometimes taking the opportunity early costs them long-term financial reward, but it’s very difficult to explain to a guy that has the potential to earn $300,000 a year, $500,000 a year, $600,000 a year, very little guaranteed, it’s hard to explain to him that that’s not really good money. It’s hard to explain to those guys because I think it’s really good money and I would have liked to have made that in a year when I was coming out of college. Certainly I did not, but there’s an opportunity cost that to some guys I have been successful in displaying and some guys not.

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