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Catching fire
Snub by Michigan set Jennings ablaze
By TODD ROSIAK
[email protected]
Posted: June 1, 2006
Green Bay - Greg Jennings has been everything the Green Bay Packers had hoped he'd be when they drafted him in the second round in April.
<!--Begin Sidebar--><!--End Sidebar--> Quick, strong, smart and in the mix as both a punt and kick returner, the 5-foot-11, 197-pounder from Western Michigan has shown no signs in his month with the team that the game in the National Football League is too big for him.
But there was a time when there were those who had their doubts about his ability to perform at even the Division I college level.
A native of Kalamazoo, Mich., Jennings earned second team all-state honors after his junior year at Kalamazoo Central and, as a result, a number of schools were expressing interest in his services.
Michigan State, Purdue and Wisconsin were among those calling but once Michigan entered the picture, his recruitment was over. A lifelong Wolverines fan, Jennings orally committed to Michigan without so much as taking a visit anywhere else.
"I went to every game, they were keeping in contact, calling me, 'Greg, are you coming up? We just wanted to know,' " Jennings recalled Thursday. "I was no longer on recruiting visits (to Ann Arbor)."
That all changed, though, by the end of Jennings' senior year.
For reasons unbeknown to him, coach Lloyd Carr and his staff began distancing themselves from Jennings.
"I never had to call them. They just stopped calling me," he said. "Then I called them and they were kind of standoffish, like, 'Well, you can come up, but . . .' and I was, like, 'But? I've never heard that before. Where is that coming from?' "
Eventually, with less than a month to go before national signing day, Jennings took the hint and started looking elsewhere. Problem was, none of the other Big Ten schools that had pursued him had room for him.
"I burned my bridges," he said. "I called Michigan State and couldn't get in up there. They had already used up all their scholarships. Wisconsin had already used all theirs. Purdue was the only one who kind of had one half-scholarship left but I didn't want a half-scholarship. Then it was, like, 'OK, forget it. Let's go to the (Mid-American Conference).' "
Jennings' first visit was to Eastern Michigan, and that's where he expected to sign. But after reconsidering he visited and signed with Western Michigan, his hometown university.
"I literally did not want to be there on my visit. It was home for me," Jennings said. "Then the next morning I woke up and all of a sudden I wanted to go to Western. It was crazy."
And over the course of four seasons, all Jennings did was rewrite Western Michigan's record books.
After redshirting in 2001 and missing four games in 2002 with a broken left ankle, Jennings went on to set all-time records for the Broncos with 238 catches, 3,539 yards, 39 touchdowns and 5,093 all-purpose yards.
Jennings also became just the 11th player in NCAA Division I history to record three 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
"(Michigan's snub) drove me. And looking back on it I wouldn't do it any differently, knowing how hard I had to work and what it took for me to get to this point," he said. "A lot of times when you go to that bigger school that's more publicized and things like that, you're spoon-fed. Everything is pretty much given to you and it's up to you to just go out there and do a couple of things and you're there.
"That's one of the things I didn't want, to be given an opportunity."
Despite his incredible collegiate productivity, Jennings' 4.53-second time in the 40-yard dash and small-school pedigree likely hurt him on draft day.
As it turned out Jennings was the fourth wide receiver taken, at No. 52 overall, by the Packers, who overlooked his relatively small stature - a general no-no in coach Mike McCarthy's version of the West Coast offense - and instead focused on his productivity and return ability.
"All the talk about the small school, all that's done and over with. It's time to just go out there, play ball," he said. "I'm at the level of play that I wanted to get to; it's the highest level there is. It's all up to me now to go out there and prove everybody wrong."
With likely No. 3 receiver Rod Gardner not present thus far at the Packers' organized team activities, Jennings has received plenty of opportunities at the line of scrimmage and done well, according to offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski.
"He stands out," he said. "He's really smooth. He's what we thought he would be. The game doesn't seem like it's too big for him. He does some things where you go, 'Wow.' He flashes. But he's young."
Added McCarthy: "I think he's been able to pick up the scheme. You don't see him making too many mental errors. He has the ability to separate."
Catching fire
Snub by Michigan set Jennings ablaze
By TODD ROSIAK
[email protected]
Posted: June 1, 2006
Green Bay - Greg Jennings has been everything the Green Bay Packers had hoped he'd be when they drafted him in the second round in April.
<!--Begin Sidebar--><!--End Sidebar--> Quick, strong, smart and in the mix as both a punt and kick returner, the 5-foot-11, 197-pounder from Western Michigan has shown no signs in his month with the team that the game in the National Football League is too big for him.
But there was a time when there were those who had their doubts about his ability to perform at even the Division I college level.
A native of Kalamazoo, Mich., Jennings earned second team all-state honors after his junior year at Kalamazoo Central and, as a result, a number of schools were expressing interest in his services.
Michigan State, Purdue and Wisconsin were among those calling but once Michigan entered the picture, his recruitment was over. A lifelong Wolverines fan, Jennings orally committed to Michigan without so much as taking a visit anywhere else.
"I went to every game, they were keeping in contact, calling me, 'Greg, are you coming up? We just wanted to know,' " Jennings recalled Thursday. "I was no longer on recruiting visits (to Ann Arbor)."
That all changed, though, by the end of Jennings' senior year.
For reasons unbeknown to him, coach Lloyd Carr and his staff began distancing themselves from Jennings.
"I never had to call them. They just stopped calling me," he said. "Then I called them and they were kind of standoffish, like, 'Well, you can come up, but . . .' and I was, like, 'But? I've never heard that before. Where is that coming from?' "
Eventually, with less than a month to go before national signing day, Jennings took the hint and started looking elsewhere. Problem was, none of the other Big Ten schools that had pursued him had room for him.
"I burned my bridges," he said. "I called Michigan State and couldn't get in up there. They had already used up all their scholarships. Wisconsin had already used all theirs. Purdue was the only one who kind of had one half-scholarship left but I didn't want a half-scholarship. Then it was, like, 'OK, forget it. Let's go to the (Mid-American Conference).' "
Jennings' first visit was to Eastern Michigan, and that's where he expected to sign. But after reconsidering he visited and signed with Western Michigan, his hometown university.
"I literally did not want to be there on my visit. It was home for me," Jennings said. "Then the next morning I woke up and all of a sudden I wanted to go to Western. It was crazy."
And over the course of four seasons, all Jennings did was rewrite Western Michigan's record books.
After redshirting in 2001 and missing four games in 2002 with a broken left ankle, Jennings went on to set all-time records for the Broncos with 238 catches, 3,539 yards, 39 touchdowns and 5,093 all-purpose yards.
Jennings also became just the 11th player in NCAA Division I history to record three 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
"(Michigan's snub) drove me. And looking back on it I wouldn't do it any differently, knowing how hard I had to work and what it took for me to get to this point," he said. "A lot of times when you go to that bigger school that's more publicized and things like that, you're spoon-fed. Everything is pretty much given to you and it's up to you to just go out there and do a couple of things and you're there.
"That's one of the things I didn't want, to be given an opportunity."
Despite his incredible collegiate productivity, Jennings' 4.53-second time in the 40-yard dash and small-school pedigree likely hurt him on draft day.
As it turned out Jennings was the fourth wide receiver taken, at No. 52 overall, by the Packers, who overlooked his relatively small stature - a general no-no in coach Mike McCarthy's version of the West Coast offense - and instead focused on his productivity and return ability.
"All the talk about the small school, all that's done and over with. It's time to just go out there, play ball," he said. "I'm at the level of play that I wanted to get to; it's the highest level there is. It's all up to me now to go out there and prove everybody wrong."
With likely No. 3 receiver Rod Gardner not present thus far at the Packers' organized team activities, Jennings has received plenty of opportunities at the line of scrimmage and done well, according to offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski.
"He stands out," he said. "He's really smooth. He's what we thought he would be. The game doesn't seem like it's too big for him. He does some things where you go, 'Wow.' He flashes. But he's young."
Added McCarthy: "I think he's been able to pick up the scheme. You don't see him making too many mental errors. He has the ability to separate."
