By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com Publisher
The NFL Draft will go down this weekend and former Iowa State lineman Reggie Stephens will more than likely be the first and possibly only Cyclone taken. CycloneFanatic.com caught up with Stephens on Monday afternoon to talk about how the draft process has treated him.
How would you describe how this whole draft process has treated you?
RS: The entire thing, you just have to take it for what it is worth. I think that I will look back on it and enjoy it and maybe laugh a little bit at some of the things that I had to go through. I try to enjoy it as much as possible. Kind of like a hurry up and wait type of scenario now that the workouts and that type of stuff is completed.
What are some of those things that you say you might laugh at someday? Bogus questions? Drills?
RS: I can’t think of the last time I ran 40-yards in a straight line on the football field. Just preparing for that type of a test. Some of the questions. People just try to know your character. It is an interesting process. People try to feel you out to see what kind of person you are and what type of player you are. It is interesting. You just try to do your best and take it for what it is worth.
Can you think of any specific weird questions that you’ve been asked?
RS: I have been fairly fortunate without having to answer anything too off the wall about any personal things or stuff. They ask you about any crimes you have committed or something like that. I guess I have been pretty clean so I haven’t had to do too much like that.
Do you know much about teams who are seriously considering you or where you might go come this weekend?
RS: I think that the funny thing about this process is how much misinformation is out there. I talked to a lot of different teams. A bunch of them have told me that they are interested and that I’ll be on their board or whatever. I really have no idea where or when I might go. I could give you a list of teams who have contacted me and I have talked to. I have flown to a couple of different places to work out and do interviews like that. But at the end of the day, they have a process to go through as well.
I’ve seen a lot of talk about Minnesota and Chicago looking at you. I know that would make a lot of Cyclone fans happy. Are they in the mix?
RS: I think so. Chicago is one of the teams that I flew and visited with. Coach Tice, who is the offensive line coach there, came to my pro day. I talked to him. I have been in touch with him since that pro day. That would be a dream come true to be able to play so close to here.
What have scouts told you about your strengths and weaknesses throughout this process?
RS: The move to center last year helped me out a lot. I now have versatility. I can play more than one position. My toughness. I’ve played through some injuries and just the way that I played guard. I’m a physical guy. At the same time, they’ve had some concerns about my weight so what I tried to do is address that. I’ve lost about 12 pounds after the season. Those were the main things that I heard.
Are you being projected as a center or guard at the next level, or will that just depend on the team?
RS: It will depend on the team. For instance, the Bengals have me as a center because that’s their need. But the Bears say that guard is my primary position. Everybody likes the fact that I am versatile.
Ben Lamaak has taken over for you at the center position at Iowa State. It is sort of similar to what went down with you with the switch. Based off of your experience now, will Ben have a better shot at getting drafted next year at this time due to him being able to play so many positions?
RS: I hope so. Whenever you can put on tape all of the different things that you can do, that’s good. It wasn’t like I just played center because somebody was injured for a couple of snaps. I did it on a consistent basis. I think that will help Ben in the long run. He has three positions that he can put out there.
It sounds like it was a pretty smooth spring. Do you have any concerns about Ben playing center?
RS: He’ll do great. He likes to give me calls to tell me how great he is practicing and how many more plays the offense runs.
Do you have any big plans to watch the draft?
RS: With my situation, I’m not having a big party or anything like that. I’ll be on the phone with my family. I will just be in my apartment in Ames just waiting.
Will you have some buddies from the team over or anything or will you just hang by yourself?
RS: No. I’d rather just take it all in by myself and I’ll let everybody else know what happened at the end of the day.
Reggie’s NFLDRAFTSCOUT.COM profile
