These past several months have been full of excitement for all of us. Mickey’s hard work and great efforts at his Pro Day gave all of us hope that he would rise up on some team’s draft board and fulfill a dream of his to be drafted into the NFL. The whole process from Mickey’s last game in a Penn State uniform to the phone call he got on April 24 was both exhilarating and exhausting.
Beginning January 4 until the draft every moment of Mickey’s time was accounted for. Two and a half months were spent vigorously training for Pro Day. An outstanding performance at Pro Day led to criss-crossing the country to visit those teams who were in the market for a tight end. Mickey had visits with the Jets, Seahawks, Bengals, and the Saints and he also worked out for the Ravens. In addition he fielded calls from almost all of the other teams in the NFL requesting his phone number for draft day.
Through all this excitement we still had no way of knowing where he would be going to play or if he would be drafted because outside of the first pick overall in the draft, no one knows what team they will end up playing for. For Mickey, the only contact he had with the Vikings was after Proday when they requested his medical information. So prior to the draft, if I had to speculate where I thought he might have gone, I would have said the Seattle Seahawks.
But at 3:34 p.m. on Saturday April 24, 2010, our house phone rang, and the caller ID said Minnesota Vikings! At that moment the balloon of emotions we were feeling was about to burst. Lots of thoughts went through my head in that second before Mickey answered the phone. One was why were they calling on the house phone (everyone else had called on his cell), and were they the call that would end the hours of suspense?
The Wait...
Since before 10:00 a.m. our family and the “82 crew” had gathered in our home to sit, wait and watch the draft on television with Mickey. Eventually about fifty plus people stopped by in hopes of being part of the start of Mickey’s journey into the NFL, and the realization that a life long dream was about to come to true.
At first it was fun watching the picks in the earlier rounds, especially by the time the fourth round was finished, and nine tight ends had already been selected. We weren’t worried yet because the crop of tight ends this year was particularly deep so during the fifth and sixth rounds, we were all glued to the television.
As seven more tight ends got picked through these rounds, everyone was getting an uneasy feeling (kind of like being in the labor room waiting and everyone else’s baby is born, but yours). I got up and decided that was it for me, I couldn’t watch anymore. Mickey’s Pap got up from his chair and said maybe that would change our luck.
Everyone in the room who had just hours earlier been talking, laughing and full of excitement now were very quiet, and looking apprehensive, not knowing how to act.
Midway through the sixth round, Mickey, Mick, Mickey’s girlfriend Jill and I went into our home office to get away from everyone and start discussing the possibility that Mickey would become a free agent. His agent had told him he was getting phone calls from the Falcons and Chiefs wanting to sign him as a free agent if he didn’t get drafted. Mickey had also gotten phone calls from the Jets and Seahawks offering the same thing.
We had several team’s rosters up on the computer to look at what tight ends these teams already had, and who they had taken in this draft to help us make an informed decision of where would be the best fit for Mickey. This was a decision none of us wanted to make, but always knew it was a possibility. Then Mickey’s cell phone rang. For me, each time his phone rang I think I stopped breathing for a second waiting to see his reaction to what ever was said from the other end. But again false alarm, it was his agent calling to discuss all the calls he was fielding regarding free agency for Mickey.
While Mickey was on his cell phone with his agent, our home phone rang for the first time that day. Mickey looked at it and the ID said Minnesota Vikings. It didn’t take long for him to snatch up the house phone, and as I held my breath, I heard him say, “Yes I would!” (In response to the question, “would you like to become a Minnesota Viking?”)
A dream comes true for Mickey!
I opened the office door and about ten people were standing there. I announced that the baby had come! (That is what it felt like to me.) Everyone was talking at the same time and they wanted to know where he was going. I directed them back to the television to see it announced. It wasn’t hard to figure out which team had selected him because the Vikings were on the clock and beside their name it said, “ Pick is in.”
Then, “Mickey Shuler, TE/ Penn State”, popped up beside the Vikings name. Our house rocked with celebration and cheers. Mickey wasn’t even in the room at that time because he was still talking to the Vikings. When he came out of the office, he was met with many hugs, congratulations and best wishes. I am sure he will never forget this day. Just like the birth of a baby leaves everyone with a sense of awe and hope for the future this moment felt similar for me watching my son live his dreams.
The Celebration!
The rest of the evening was filled with phone calls from friends who saw Mickey’s name on television and doing interviews with our local television stations, channel 8 and 27, who stopped by our house on their way home from Penn State’s annual Blue - White spring football scrimmage.
During the interviews, both sportscasters said they were amazed at the amount of Vikings merchandise everyone was already sporting. They asked if we bought out all the Vikings stuff in the area? The answer to that question was “probably”, because immediately following the Vikings selection of Mickey, his friends went on an excursion to the local sporting goods store. They came back with bags full of Vikings merchandise. Imagine that…. since we live in Steeler, Eagle, and Ravens country!
Another friend of ours went to his home and came back with a metal Vikings helmet. He just happened to have one because his son got it to wear to hat day at school, but got sent home because the horns on it are considered weapons. (Hear that Packers and Saints?) This friend also a few weeks before the draft had called Mickey and jokingly asked for Brett Farve. Coincidence or was God just answering prayers? There were a number of other coincidences including the NFL Draft shirts Mickey’s sister Karah had made prior to the draft in the color… purple!
To say we were all proud and excited that Mickey would have the opportunity to play for an outstanding team like the Vikings wouldn’t adequately describe our feelings. But because Mick Sr. has been down this same road, we have no delusions that it will be easy. That said, we are thrilled at the prospect of Mickey wearing a purple jersey this fall and we know, as in the past, he will make the most of this opportunity to continue to make us all proud!
So as a mom, if I had to use one word to sum up not just draft day, but also this whole journey thus far, I’d say, “inspiring”!
The Future...
I assume if all goes well by September 5, 2010 (the day the NFL rosters are finalized) the first words our family and the “82 crew” will cheer is “SKOL V-I-K-I-N-G-S”! Hopefully, we will be rooting for a Farve- driven offense that finished last season one game away from the Super Bowl.
And how cool would it be for Mickey to catch passes from the man that was a rookie Mickey’s dad’s last year in the NFL?
And how cool would it be for Mickey to catch passes from the man that was a rookie Mickey’s dad’s last year in the NFL?
The team stayed in Orlando at the Peabody Hotel. Besides the theme parks, all around the hotel and town were festivities relating to the bowl game.
'82 Crew' enjoyed New Year's Eve in the hotel lobby.
