Seahawks’ 1st-round pick L.J. Collier talks ‘unreal’ feeling of being drafted
Apr 26, 2019, 10:14 AM | Updated: 10:41 am
Seahawks DE L.J. Collier recorded six sacks for TCU in 2018. (Getty)
(Getty)
New Seahawks defensive end L.J. Collier joined Brock Huard and Mike Salk Friday morning to talk about being drafted by Seattle 29th overall in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft.
Seahawks add power, versatility with DE L.J. Collier
Listen to Collier’s full interview in the audio clip embedded above. Here are a few takeaways:
What was it like for you and your friends and family to get that call from John Schneider Thursday? “Man, it was an unreal moment because everyone in there, everybody was anxious, everybody was nervous, we didn’t know what to expect. When I got that call people were crying, people were excited. It’s just an unreal feeling. Coming from where I come from, and everything, man, it was very humbling. It was one of the best moments of my life.”
Did you anticipate Seattle would be calling you? “My agent thought so, when they traded Frank Clark. And when I talked to Coach Carroll when I was in Seattle, I felt just pretty good about the whole situation and everything he was saying. So I kind of saw it coming and I felt good about the talk we had, I wasn’t surprised.”
Hopefully that conversation went better than the one he tried to have with you Thursday: (laughs) “I know man, everybody was just overwhelmed, it was crazy… I hope he’ll forgive me for that.”
The moment @ljcollier91 became a Seahawk.
Safe to say everyone's pretty excited. 🤩 pic.twitter.com/nPLx7Mem1X
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) April 26, 2019
You say you like to “be mean” on the field. What’s that mean? “You can’t have friends on the field and you can’t be nice to play D-line. Those other guys are the enemy. Honestly, I hate anybody that ain’t wearing the same color jersey as me.”
How does a small-town kid make it? “When you get your shot, and a lot of people are telling you you can’t do this you can’t do that, you have to dig deep in yourself and believe in yourself, no matter what… and believe you can do it. There’s going to be times when you can’t eat, you can’t sleep, you’re going to cry. But you have to believe in yourself at the end of the day. And that’s what I did. I went through a lot. But I never gave up. I knew what I wanted, I knew I could play at this level, and I’m going to prove that. I’ve proved a lot of people wrong and I’m going to continue to prove people wrong.”
Carroll: Seahawks ‘found something special’ in 1st-round pick L.J. Collier
