Former Hawaii quarterback Cole McDonald does not know when — or if — he will be selected in the three-day, seven-round NFL Draft, which kicks off today.
But he knows that ahead of each telecast, he will not just be one of America’s idle.
“I’m probably going to work out,” McDonald said. “I don’t really want to be (sitting) around the house until the stuff is actually going on. I get nervous. Even before games, I get real anxious. I just want to go out and play and be on the field. In this case, I want to hear my named called.”
McDonald is expected to be chosen during Saturday’s final four rounds. If he is not picked, he will likely be offered a free-agent contract.
“I’m just being hopeful,” said McDonald, who relinquished his senior season to apply for the draft. “Just having the opportunity to even have my name put in the basket like that, man, it’s pretty cool. I’m trying to embrace the moment because it’s something I’ve been working for my whole life.”
Until the lockdown because of the pandemic, McDonald was training at a facility run by the Mamba Academy, a training operation founded by the late NBA star Kobe Bryant. He also worked under Jordan Palmer, who was featured in a recent ESPN article as being a quarterback guru.
Entering the past UH season, McDonald worked on a motion that quickened his release and tightened his passes, particularly on medium-range throws. Palmer has helped McDonald improve his delivery further. McDonald said the fine-tuning involved reps and developing muscle memory “you have to build in order to make it unconsciously competent. I’m taking it day by day, just working on the little things, turning big rocks into little stones. And making those littler ones even smaller. Just working. That’s what I’m working on for this draft process.”
McDonald has been contacted by teams.
“I can say, ‘this team is calling me,’ or ‘this team is calling me,’ ” McDonald said. “But at the end of the day, you don’t actually know (the interest) until you get that phone call from whatever squad on draft day.”
McDonald said he will monitor the draft with his family in La Mirada, Calif. He said there will be enough food. “Not Hawaii good,” he said, but “we’ve been trying to up the ante a little bit.”
He added: “Regardless of where I go, if I go undrafted (and sign as a free agent), I mean, being in that opportunity alone is going to be super fulfilling.”
