Fresno State Athletics
Bulldog Walk-ons Making Their Mark
6/17/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
June 17, 2005
FRESNO, Calif. - Logan Mankins recently posed for pictures at a press conference in Foxboro, Mass., as the first round pick of the 2005 NFL draft of the defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots. It's hard to imagine no one wanted him five years ago.
That was the case for Mankins, who arrived on the Fresno State campus from Catheys Valley as a walk-on football player. Walk-ons are players who join a team without receiving an athletic scholarship. In most cases, these players are not recruited out of high schools.
Mankins is the latest in a long line of Bulldog walk-on success stories. The Fresno State walk-on program under Pat Hill has produced several outstanding players. His is a classic rags-to-riches story, where he emerged after a redshirt season to earn Freshman All-America honors as he helped a Bulldog offense, quarterbacked by David Carr, become one of the most prolific in NCAA history. Mankins had the immense responsibility of protecting Carr's blindside as a left tackle. He was unflappable. After starting 38 games in his career, which culminated in a bundle of awards, he was chosen in the first round of the most recent NFL Draft. Wearing a navy blue suit and sporting a sharp Patriots cap, he stood next to New England's owner Robert Kraft holding a Patriots jersey with the No. 1, signifying the top choice. He became just the fourth Bulldog in history to be a first-round pick.
It's a long way from California to Massachusetts, but Mankins' journey to college football is not that uncommon for some recent Bulldogs.
One of the top players on the 2005 squad, senior Garrett McIntyre, was a walk-on who did not decide to attend Fresno State until a week before fall camp started in August 2002. He was planning to head away to a junior college and was not very familiar with the Bulldog program until he was put in touch with linebackers coach Tom Mason. McIntyre played linebacker in high school at South Lake Tahoe (Calif.) High School, where his team didn't win a game during his senior season. Because of that and some coaching turmoil, McIntyre slipped through the recruiting tracks.
At Fresno State he has developed into an All-WAC player, and entering the 2005 season is rated as one of the top defensive lineman in the nation and a preseason All-American.
"It couldn't have worked out any better," said McIntyre, who in addition to being a first-team All-WAC player, was also selected to the Academic All-WAC team. "I got really lucky early in my career because I got to play as a true freshman. I made the first road trip to Wisconsin because I was a back-up on the kick return team. One of our D-lineman (Del Hawkins) got hurt and I had to go in. There were 80,000 people and it was pretty crazy. The rest is history, I guess you could say."
After seven tackles for losses and three quarterback sacks as a freshman, McIntyre was awarded a scholarship for the second semester of his freshman year by Hill. Since then, he has continued to terrorize opposing offenses. As a sophomore, McIntyre tore apart the UCLA offensive front in Fresno State's 17-9 win over the Bruins in the 2003 Silicon Valley Football Classic. He was selected the defensive MVP of the game and named to the All-Bowl team by Sports Illustrated. Last year, he was one of the WAC's top defenders and ranked among the best in the league in quarterback sacks and tackles for losses. His ability was present in big games. Against No. 13 Kansas State, McIntyre had seven tackles, 2.5 for losses and one sack. He was the driving force that held the Wildcats to 180 total yards and Heisman Trophy candidate Darren Sproles to just 37 rushing yards.
As he enters his senior season, he already rates in the top 10 with 18 career quarterback sacks, joining a storied list of Bulldogs like Ron Cox, Alan Harper, Jethro Franklin and Nick Burley.
"Garrett is like many players who have come her and earned success," Hill said. "He's worked very hard to make himself better. He's obviously contributed at a high level for the last three years. If you can play football you will find yourself on the field and it doesn't matter where you came from or whether you are on scholarship or not."
McIntyre continues to excel on Bulldog special teams and he credit the Bulldog coaches by not treating walk-ons differently than scholarship players.
"I never noticed anything," he said. "When I came in here, I just wanted to play football and make the team. I thought I would be a college linebacker, because that's what I played in high school, but we needed some lineman. It didn't matter to me. I just wanted to play. I was treated like everyone else. No different."
His younger brother, Justin, followed Garrett's footsteps by walking on to the team last fall.
Other key Bulldogs on the 2005 team arrived at Fresno State with similar stories. Right tackle Chris Denman came to Fresno State as a defensive lineman from Tehachapi, Calif. After one year, he switched to the offensive line where he has started the last 19 games and been an important fixture of one of the nation's best offensive line units. Denman is now on scholarship.
Bryson Sumlin burst onto the scene in 2003, when he was used at Fresno State's short-yardage specialist and scored a team-high nine rushing touchdowns but it took patience and two years of waiting. The Bakersfield native came to Fresno State in 2001 to battle for playing at running back. He got caught in a logjam of talented runners that included 1,000-yard rushers Paris Gaines and Rodney Davis, so Hill thought the talented Sumlin would see playing time sooner if he moved to cornerback. Hill presented the idea to Sumlin about switching positions, or offered to help him find another school where he could play running back. Sumlin declined both offers and decided to stick it out and work his way up the depth chart at Fresno State. Sumlin enters 2005 as the top returning rusher in the WAC after churning out more than 1,000 yards and 13 touchdowns last season.
"Bryson is the perfect picture of a player who knew what he wanted and had the patience to accomplish his goals," Hill said. "I have a lot of respect for him. A lot of guys would have switched positions or moved on to be able to play sooner, but he was patient, worked hard and waited his turn. He's turned himself into a heck of a football player."
Hill credits assistant coach Tim Simons for scouring the Valley in search of such hidden gems. Simons, a legendary coach at Clovis, knows Valley football better than anyone and takes great pride in finding players who can walk-on and contribute to the program.
"I think there's a formula for the type of players we want," said Simons. "We want guys who play football in the way we appreciate; playing hard, being competitive and have what we call `motors.' They don't have the measurable qualities of height or size or speed to make them a scholarship athlete. A lot of our players were like that coming out of high school but they developed and in many cases earned a scholarship early in their careers."
Simons cited linebacker Emanuel Sanchez, who played quarterback and safety at Lindsay (Calif.) High School, as another example. Sanchez was not a college prospect for either position, not owning the skills to be a quarterback or the speed to be a safety, but Simons was so impressed with the way he dominated games in high school. Simons felt with some work and a few pounds, he could become an outside linebacker. Sanchez walked on to the Bulldog team and has become an impact player, leading the team in interceptions in 2003 and earned honorable mention All-WAC honors last season.
Fullback Nathan Adams was a dominating high school tailback at Calaveras High School who rushed for more than 1,500 yards. He was a projected college fullback or linebacker by Simons and earned a scholarship last fall after starting the season opener against Washington.
"Most of our walk-ons are from the Valley," Simons said. "That's Coach Hill's emphasis. We treat all walk-ons just like a scholarship player. We always have to plan for the future and part of that plan is developing players. Sometimes it takes a couple years for a walk-on to be ready to see any playing time or earn a scholarship."
Simons said that nearly 80 percent of walk-ons who stay in the Bulldog program for the duration of their eligibility earn scholarships.
According to Hill, walk-ons are very important the program. With a scholarship limit of 85 players, Hill needs to find another 20 players willing to join the team without a promise of a scholarship.
"We need quality players in the program," said Hill. "Football is a violent sport and the injury rate is high, so having players to step up and carry the flag is very important. We are always looking to improve and develop our depth. That's critical for the long football season. Some people don't understand how important walk-ons are to the sport of football. I think it's more important than any other sport."
Matt Rivera was one of those role players. A star running back at Clovis (Calif.) High, most school passed on the diminutive Rivera. But Rivera has been a productive and valuable back for the Dogs. As Fresno State's most depending blocker, he has become a feature back in the offense with his ability to make big plays after catching passes. He scored two touchdowns in Fresno State's 45-21 rout of No. 13 Kansas State last season and became the team's top receiver from the backfield.
Mankins isn't the only former walk-on Bulldog finding NFL success. Former All-WAC safety Cameron Worrell from Chowchilla was a walk-on who went onto an NFL career. Worrell has been a member of the Chicago Bears for the last two seasons.
Former linebacker Todd Garcia, a two-year starter from Corcoran, was another walk-on impact player for the Bulldogs. Garcia made a big overtime play in Fresno State's win over Virginia in the MPC Computers Bowl, hauling down Cavalier quarterback Marques Hagans for a sack when it appeared he was headed for a first down. That ended Virginia's drive and forced a field goal. The Bulldogs won the game on their first play from scrimmage when another walk-on, Stephen Spach, caught the game-winning touchdown.
Spach's tight end mate Duncan Reid, who was one of the top passing catching tight ends in school history, are examples of players who have earned success. Both came to Fresno State in 2000 as walk-ons. After five years, both players recently signed NFL free agent contracts.
The projected starting tight end for the 2005 season, Devyn McDonald, was a walk-on wide receiver. He worked four years before earning scholarship for his senior season.
Hill credits successful walk-ons for being able to be patient until their time comes. In many cases, that means spending countless hours in the weight room and working with the scout teams.
"There's not magic potent for developing walk-on players," Hill said. "Of course, we are always looking for the next Logan Mankins to walk-on. But it's what lies in the talent and heart of the player that will dictate whether they have success. If a player has a great passion for the game, like some of the top guys we've had, they have a great opportunity to find success in our program."
For ticket information for the 2005 season, call the Bulldog Ticket Office at (559) 278-DOGS or go on-line to gobulldogs.com.
