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LGHL Patriots' Nate Ebner is chasing an Olympic dream in his father's memory

  • Thread starter Harry Lyles Jr.
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Harry Lyles Jr.

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Patriots' Nate Ebner is chasing an Olympic dream in his father's memory
Harry Lyles Jr.
via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


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And Cincinnati Bengals work out former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones.

Nate Ebner was one month from his 20th birthday when his father was killed. The two were supposed to play rugby together that weekend."

- Arash Markazi, ESPN.com


Former Ohio State Buckeye Nate Ebner is fulfilling his rugby dreams, that are mostly fueled by the memory of his father. The last conversation Ebner had with his father revolved around his dad expressing his wishes for him to not throw away his rugby career just to play football at Ohio State. Ebner told his dad he wanted to play for the Buckeyes, and eventually become an NFL player. That was the last conversation that they had, according to ESPN's Arash Markazi. Ebner's father Jeff was killed on November 13, 2008 after being beaten to death during a robbery attempt at an auto salvage shop.

Ebner went on to participate in Buckeye football tryouts in January of 2009, and was the only one who made the team. Ebner then went on to be drafted in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. He's been with the team ever since, and won a Super Bowl with the team in 2015. Despite playing football, he didn't give up on rugby. He played with the Tiger Rugby club in Columbus during the NFL offseason, and is now trying to earn a full-time spot on the USA Rugby team. The deadline for the roster to be announced is July 15, and we sure hope to hear Ebner's name called.


.@NFL @Patriots @Natebner34 looking pretty good back in a rugby jersey. https://t.co/MvfTsz8ApZ

— USA Sevens Rugby (@USASevensRugby) April 6, 2016

"Cincinnati recently worked out Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones, according to NFL Media's Rand Getlin."


- Dan Parr, NFL.com


Cardale Jones was highly regarded last year after leading the Ohio State Buckeyes to the first ever College Football Playoff national championship. He opted to stay in school, and while some might have believed that it hurt his stock, his name is certainly still flying around the NFL. Most recently, Jones worked out with the Cincinnati Bengals. They already have their franchise quarterback (depending on who you ask) in Andy Dalton, as well as a solid back up in A.J. McCarron. McCarron is set to be a free agent in 2018, which is enticing for the Bengals to draft another quarterback, in case McCarron puts up enough of a display to get a better contract elsewhere.

McCarron didn't do terribly when he stepped in for Andy Dalton last season. As Parr reports, Marvin Lewis said that the team would not be dealing McCarron, but owner Mike Brown didn't rule out the possibility. Jones would be a good backup, and possibly future starter for the Bengals. He has great size, and is best known for his rocket arm. A strong group of receivers, most notably A.J. Green would be nice for Jones, if he's ever needed to come in the game. He's been projected to go as early as the second round, and he could certainly land in worse spots than Cincinnati.

"Kiper now has both Fuller and Nkemdiche dropping out of the first round and the (Eli) Apple now falling to the Seahawks."

- Bob Condotta, Seattle Times


According to Bob Condotta, Mel Kiper has the Seattle Seahawks taking former Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple with the 26th overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. Apple is one of the better corners in the draft, and landing in Seattle with the Legion of Boom wouldn't be a terrible place to start your career. Condotta notes that Kiper is impressed with Apple's physicality as a corner with great length, fitting in perfectly with the fearless Legion of Boom. If the Seahawks feel that Apple is the best player available at that spot, the likelihood that they take him only increases.

Despite being set at corner with Richard Sherman and Jeremy Lane, Apple could really learn a thing or two from those guys, who have been on one of the better defenses in NFL history. Picking Apple at the 26th spot wouldn't be a small deal for Seattle, though. Under Pete Carroll, the Seahawks haven't taken a corner in the first three rounds. While Lane is good in his own right and under contract for a couple of more seasons, you'd have to think Apple would be competing for an important role there.

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