Jack Conklin 'couldn't be happier' as Titans' No. 8 pick
Jack Conklin’s journey as a walk-on from Plainwell to an All-American in East Lansing has a new benchmark.
First-round draft pick.
Tennessee traded up to select Conklin with the eighth pick of the NFL Draft on Thursday night, the first Michigan State offensive lineman to be selected in the opening round since Tony Mandarich went No. 2 overall in 1989.
“Tennessee, going through this whole process, that was the team I wanted to be with,” Conklin told TitansOnline.com. “For it happen the way it did, trading back from (No.) 1 to 15 and now up to 8th, it’s pretty crazy. And I couldn’t be happier.
“Once I left there, I knew right then and there I wanted to be a Tennessee Titan. I was hoping. Luckily, it worked out the way it did. Ever since then, I’d set my heart on Tennessee.”
MSU's Jack Conklin an ex-walk-on just days away from NFL dream
Conklin also becomes MSU’s highest-drafted selection since wide receiver Charles Rogers went at No. 2 overall to Detroit Lions. That’s ironic with Rogers’ well-documented troubles in the NFL, because another player’s potential problems might have allowed Conklin to jump in the draft.
A video that surfaced on Ole Miss offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil’s Twitter account about 10 minutes before the draft began that appeared to show him smoking something from a gas mask water pipe. Tunsil deleted his Twitter account, then restarted it with an apology. Miami eventually took him at No. 13.
In the interim, Tennessee made a move up to get Conklin.
“We all talk about Tunsil – let's not forget this is a very, very good football player,” Stanford coach David Shaw said of Conklin on NFL Network. “I talked to a lot of people that had this guy (Conklin) as their No. 1 tackle in the draft. They thought a lot of him on and off the field and his ceiling is very high.”
The Titans originally had the No. 1 overall pick but traded it to Los Angeles in a multipack blockbuster earlier this month. Then Thursday night, Tennessee dealt that No. 15 pick and its third-round selection in this year’s draft and a second-round pick in 2017 to Cleveland for the No. 8 pick. The Browns also sent the Titans a sixth-round pick in this draft.
“I think we had earmarked Conklin for a while now…,” Titans general manager John Robinson told reporters. “We just felt like it really clicked and it was a good marriage for us.”
Cook, Conklin, other Spartans prepared for NFL Draft
ESPN analyst Jon Gruden said he believes Conklin “is the No. 1 offensive lineman, hands down, in this draft.”
“This kid is nasty,” Gruden said. “He can down-block. Watch the punishment he can deliver with his strong hands and long arms. He can play left tackle, right tackle, he can play guard. He’s gonna be an outstanding Tennessee Titan.
“If you like nastiness and finishing and people who can thump you, you like Conklin.”
Tennessee finished 25th out of 32 NFL teams in total rushing in 2015, averaging 92.8 yards per game. They hired Russ Grimm as their new offensive line coach in January.
“I love coach Grimm, what he’s all about. Just the whole organization, the way John Robinson and coach (Mike) Mularkey, what they are trying to create there,” Conklin said. “That’s the exact type of program I was part of at Michigan State. And that’s exactly why I want to be part of building up that foundation into, hopefully, that Super Bowl-winning team.”
In Tennessee, Conklin likely will be opposite with former Michigan star Taylor Lewan, who played left tackle last season to protect quarterback Marcus Mariota’s blindside. Lewan was the Titans’ first-round pick in 2014 at No. 11 overall, while Mariota was the No. 2 overall pick last year.
“We’re both Titans, that’s what matters. We both want to go to the playoffs, win the Super Bowl,” Conklin told reporters on a teleconference. “I’ve played against Marcus Mariota. I know what he can do to an opposing team.”
MSU tackle Conklin goes from walk-on to 'dominant'
The 6-foot-6, 308-pound Conklin left MSU after his junior season, in which he earned first-team All-American honors from USA Today and Sporting News, the Spartans’ first lineman to do so since Flozell Adams in 1997. Conklin also earned second-team honors from the Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America and Walter Camp Football Foundation, as well first-team All-Big Ten honors.
He was a three-year starter at left tackle for the Spartans as they won the Rose Bowl and Cotton Bowl, then made the College Football Playoff semifinals in December. He started 38 of his 39 career games.
“He’s a very physical player. He likes contact,” Mularkey said. “That’s the program he comes from. And you know, he knows what is expected of him here.”
It’s the third straight year MSU has had a first-round pick. Minnesota took cornerback Trae Waynes at No. 11 overall last year, and Cincinnati took cornerback Darqueze Dennard at No. 24 in 2014. Dennard was MSU’s first first-round pick since Rogers.
“I’m gonna be your old-school, blue-collar type of offensive tackle,” Conklin told the team’s website. “And I’m gonna put people on the ground and do it the same way, every play.”
