It's a typical coach's office, with all sorts of cluttered papers piled up on the desk, and a whiteboard full of tactics written on the wall on one side of the door; Diagonally diagonally in the corner, with an old desktop computer and a television, and a crumbling pile of videotapes next to it, it should be the corner where the opponent's game footage is analyzed.

"Sit down." Rick took a detour to the back of his desk and reached out to gesture, "If you're worried about sweat staining the chair, I'm sure the school would be more than willing to replace it with a brand new chair for the winner of the Rose Bowl." ”

Usually Rick always has a straight face, not even many expressions, let alone humorous jokes. Such an unusual joke, Lu Ke couldn't help but be a little stunned, and rarely didn't answer the words - first Kevin, then Rick, this morning is really a bit abnormal.

Faced with such a reaction, Rick didn't care, smiled slightly, and continued, "You're a senior this year, right?" Have you made a decision now? Participating in the draft? Or are you looking for breakthroughs in other areas? ”

"Yes, I decided, I want to try it." Lu Ke's words were flat, but his tone was extremely firm, and his understated expression revealed the strength of his heart.

This time, Rick was slightly stunned and smiled dumbly, "Then it couldn't be better." The words were full of smoke, he opened the drawer next to him, took out an envelope, and handed it to Lu Ke, "I was still worried just now, if you give up, will this letter be in vain." ”

Lu Ke didn't know why, took the envelope, only to see the words "letter of recommendation" written outside, he looked up at Rick in confusion, Rick motioned for him to open it with his eyes, and after getting permission, Lu Ke opened the unsealed envelope, took out the letter inside, and began to read.

This is a letter of recommendation from UCLA head coach Rick New Hesse, officially recommending Lu Ke to participate in the rookie training camp.

The official league of rugby is the International Rugby Union, abbreviated as NFL (National-Football-League), with a total of 32 teams, the atmosphere of the American Football League (AFC) and the National Football League (NFC), each of which is composed of four divisions, east, west, south and north, each with four teams.

This league is not only the first of the four major professional leagues in North America, but also the largest professional football league in the world. The commercial income, viewership, and market impact of league competitions are the most powerful professional sports leagues in North America, and the finals every year are called the Super Bowl, with more than 100 million viewers, and are nicknamed the "American Spring Festival Gala" by domestic media.

Just like the NBA draft, which is the most familiar in China, the NFL also has a draft every year, which is the best way for rookie players from all over the world to show themselves and enter the professional league. Prior to the official draft, the league will also host a rookie boot camp that will bring the rookies together for four days of presentation and testing, where scouts will make further evaluations and judgments and provide teams for selection.

However, there are thousands of rookies every year, and not everyone can make it into the league. There will be seven rounds of the draft, and about 250 rookies will be selected; All of the rest are undrafted rookies, and among them, there is not one player in the league who enters the league. Naturally, rookie camp can't accommodate all of the draft rookie members.

Generally speaking, before the official rookie training camp, the league will issue a series of invitations based on scouting reports, on-court performances, professional recommendations and other relevant information, inviting the rookies to gather together and participate in the in-state training camps in various states, and after passing the selection, the final selection of about 330 rookies will go to Indianapolis to participate in the training camp -

Not only senior scouts, but also 32 team executives, coaches, and team doctors will be in attendance.

For Lu Ke, in the four years of college, he only participated in one game, plus two minutes, the scouts did not have any information about him at all, even if the scouts paid attention, all the data of the first three years were blank, he was like a monkey jumping out of the cracks in the stones, and it was "unknown" to everyone.

So, although he decided to participate in the draft, the future is dark. Not to mention rookie camp, you may not even be able to participate in the in-state tryouts.

But now, the problem has been solved, and this letter of recommendation in his hand, from Rick, is enough to be a stepping stone to the state selection tournament and open a door for his draft path!

This gift is really too precious and too heavy. Lu Ke couldn't help but raise his head, his eyes full of surprise, "Coach! ”

For a long time, Lu Ke and the coach have not had the opportunity to communicate, and he and Anthony are more familiar than Rick. Before the Rose Bowl, the coaching staff chose Kevin as the starting quarterback, and Lu Ke thought it was ......

There is no need for words to explain, a look is enough to explain everything, Rick's eyes showed a look of understanding, however, he did not explain, just said lightly, "There is still a gap in the strength of the team, and in this year's lineup, the only ones who are capable of participating in the draft are Logan, Raheem and you." Logan and Raheem are basically fine, and I think maybe you need a chance to show everybody like you did in the last two games. ”

Gone are the days when Ivy League schools dominated the NCAA football arena, and now it's Ohio State, USC, Auburn, University of Alabama, University of Florida, Louisiana State University coming together.

Even USC, whose Reggie-Bush was formally convicted last year of an investigation into taking bribes from a sports agent prior to the 2006 draft led to heavy fines imposed by the NCAA on USC, are now in a slump and have lost to UCLA this year, entering a dark period after a decade of glory for the Trojans.

Although the Bruins won this year's Rose Bowl, they couldn't even make it into the top eight in the national rankings, and their overall strength was blown up by a number of state universities, and they fell behind in the offensive group to the defensive group to the special service group.

As Rick said, there are only two Bruins on the roster with draft quality: Logan Newman, a close end on the offensive side, and Raheem Moore, a center back on the defensive side. However, neither of these two people can reach the level of the first round of the show, as for the second round or the third round of the show, it depends on the performance of the next rookie training camp; If you don't pay attention, it's possible that the draft rounds will continue to slide.

As for Lu Ke, Rick couldn't make an accurate judgment either.

Purely from a physical and technical point of view, Lu Ke still has too many shortcomings, not to mention the draft, even the average level of the undrafted rookies is enough; But from the perspective of the temperament of the game, Lu Ke showed the top level, whether it is the judgment of the critical moment or the choice of the crisis, he can often play extraordinarily in the decisive killing, long passes, short passes, footsteps and dodge, these skills are eye-catching.

Yes, his strength is still not enough; Yes, he led the Bruins to victory in the Rose Bowl. It's a paradoxical phenomenon that even Rick can't explain.

Every school's head coach is eligible to recommend players, especially the head coach of the Rose Bowl winner. Rick thought about it, and hesitated, with running guard Marcus Lynch, defensive tackle David Carter and others on his radar.

After careful consideration, Rick still chose Lu Ke. Because Lu Ke has more uncertainties, and at the same time, he needs more opportunities to show himself. His letters of recommendation are enough for players to enter the in-state selection, but they are still not enough to enter the rookie training camp; As for Marcus and David, they have basically no problem in the in-state training camp and can be selected by virtue of their own strength.

Under the trade-off, Lu Ke stood out. Rick knew it was an adventure and a gamble. But what about the substitution on top of the rose bowl?

"Thank you!" A thousand words, and finally turned into the simplest sentence of thanks, Lu Ke said.

Rick could see the vigor and excitement in those eyes, the love and madness in his bones, which made Rick's mood jump, and he knew that he had made the right choice. "You won the last two minutes of the game, and at least I can give you a chance to show yourself."

Without too much politeness, Rick stood up and patted Lu Ke on the shoulder, "I'm looking forward to the day I see you in the professional arena." ”

"Thank you." Lu Ke said repeatedly, it seemed that at this moment, no words could compare to this simple phrase, he turned around and was about to leave, and then he heard Rick's voice behind him, "The letter of recommendation, it's best for me to keep it." I need to send it to the association. ”

"Oh!" Lu Ke suddenly realized, turned around and handed the letter to Rick, and said with a smile, "Then, I'll go to training first." Today's training mission is not yet complete. ”

It was a day full of joy and sorrow.

Happily, on the road to the draft, he took the first step; The Bruins reaped the Rose Bowl, and today is a celebration for everyone to be sober; After a season full of ups and downs, they can finally take a break.

Sadly, the time of parting has come, and the seniors have embraced each other and cherished each other, and after graduation, they will embark on different life paths, and it is unknown whether they will see each other again in the future.

"Have you heard?" Logan's face was full of gossip that could hardly be hidden, and he walked quickly to Lu Ke's side, bumped Lu Ke with his shoulder, and said with a wink, "Kevin Prise has decided not to participate in the draft." ”

Lu Ke opened his mouth slightly, unexpectedly, but it was reasonable. Quarterbacks, every year the league is lacking quarterbacks, but every year the league is also eliminating quarterbacks, and it's harder to make a name for yourself in this position than any other position. Even if Kevin participated in the draft, he was probably a rookie.

Now, Lu Ke finally understood the reason why Kevin came to the training ground this morning. Farewell, Kevin also ushered in his farewell.

Looking at the green training ground in front of him, Lu Ke's jubilant mood couldn't help but bring a little reluctance.