When he was eighteen, future NFL MVP and now Super Bowl LIV quarterback Patrick Mahomes faced the kind of decision most youth athletes dream about: Go pro in one sport or play for a Division 1 college in another. The year was 2014 and Mahomes was about to enter his freshmen year at Texas Tech where he was almost guaranteed a backup quarterback position. That summer, he was also ranked as the 419th best MLB prospect, and in the draft that year, Mahomes was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 37th round.
Mahomes’s father is Pat Mahomes, a now-retired MLB pitcher, and in the summer of 2014, it looked as if the young Mahomes would follow suit. (He had even played in the Little League World Series.)
Tim Grieve, a scout for the Tigers, told MLB.com that Mahomes was “one of the better athletes I’ve covered in East Texas in my 15 years.” But Mahomes was always transparent about his sport of choice. “He was very up-front about football. That pushed him down the board,” said Grieve, explaining why the Tigers didn’t draft him higher.
Mahomes could apparently throw in the mid 90s and was a promising prospect, but he opted to attend Texas Tech rather than compete for the Tiger’s roster–a result that was far from guaranteed, even after a draft.
Grieves noted the similarity in throwing motion between Mahomes’s pitch and his pig-skin toss. It’s quirk to his football game that has surprisingly done the opposite of hurt Mahomes. His ability to throw across his body and from awkward arm angles – not unlike a shortstop turning two–allows for a speedy release after the snap, as well as crazy accuracy on the run outside the pocket.
Seems like Mahomes made the right choice, while keeping all the right skills. Here’s what an eighteen-year-old Mahomes told The Dallas Morning News about going to Texas:
“It’s really appealing. It’s probably the best situation you could possibly have coming into college, being a backup quarterback. I’ll get a lot of reps and be able to compete every day. That is appealing, and I do like that.”
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