Former Army quarterback Trent Steelman is hoping to make the NFL draft for the second time this weekend after his military duties kept him from playing with the Baltimore Ravens two years ago.
The 25-year-old Bowling Green, Kentucky native, joined the military to pursue his NFL dreams. After graduating high school, West Point was the only Division 1-A school to offer Mr. Steelman a position on the team. He accepted and joined the armed forces to get one step closer to the NFL, ABC News reported Thursday.
Mr. Steelman started at quarterback for Army for his entire four years at West Point, breaking several records and finishing in the top 15 all time for rushing yards for a quarterback in NCAA history. But he decided to change positions in order to get the NFL’s attention.
“If I wanted to continue to pursue football, I knew it wasn’t going to be as a six-foot option quarterback playing in the NFL,” Mr. Steelman told ABC. “So I looked to the next best thing that fit my skill set and that was to transition to a little slot receiver.”
After the 2013 NFL Draft, Mr. Steelman was offered a contract as a free agent with the Baltimore Ravens.
“That was probably the highest moment in my life,” he told ABC.
But he had to turn down the offer when he couldn’t get out of his five-year commitment to the military.
“It was difficult,” Mr. Steelman said, ABC reported. “Knowing that my dream was right there at my fingertips, only ot be taken away or slip away, was something that kept me up at night. It was hard.”
Mr. Steelman returned to the Army to serve out his commitment. Two years later while stationed at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, he got an unexpected call from the Army telling him he was free to pursue his NFL dream.
Mr. Steelman moved back to Bowling Green and began intense training. He was invited to participate in the first-ever NFL veteran combine in March and hopes to sign with a team after the draft ends Saturday.
“Only a few people have taken this path, and, for me, there’s been a lot of ups and downs,” Mr Steelman said, ABC reported. “It’s been tough. There’s been a lot of times where I wanted to call it quits, where I wanted to walk away from the game. I haven’t. I’ve stuck with it, I’m pursuing my dream and, hopefully, my dream comes true soon.”
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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