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Raiders insider: 'Mr. Irrelevant' surprised
By Jason Jones -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:01 am PDT Saturday, June 17, 2006
ALAMEDA -- The line for autographs was long at the Raiders Youth Skills Camp last weekend.
Rookie receiver Kevin McMahan from Maine, feeling sympathetic for those who had to wait awhile, signed for youngsters in line.
McMahan knows about waiting. He was the last player picked in the 2006 NFL draft, No. 255 overall, earning the title "Mr. Irrelevant." McMahan is in Southern California this weekend for ceremonies in his honor. The festivities include a banquet and the awarding of The Lowsman -- a trophy with the football player fumbling.
The 49ers, the team he had heard from the most, called and said they probably wouldn't take a receiver with the 254th pick. They drafted safety Vickiel Vaughn.
"Finally I get a phone call from the Oakland Raiders, and I was so shocked," McMahan said. "I thought they were playing a joke on me. I hadn't even heard from the Raiders."
Wide receiver wasn't a need position in the draft, but the Raiders like McMahan's size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), and he was happy a team wanted him.
"If I was going into free agency and I was passed over in the seventh round by a team like the 49ers that had a chance to take me, then why would I have chosen to go (to San Francisco) as a free agent?" McMahan said. "It's like, Man, how bad do they want me?"
Being wanted and drafted by the Raiders is an accomplishment for a player who didn't play football until his senior year of high school.
The Rochester, N.Y., native was a basketball player at Aquinas Institute before meeting former Raiders tight end Roland Williams at a football camp. Williams encouraged McMahan to try football.
"Being able to look at Randy Moss and Jerry Porter and see how they do it has really helped me a lot," McMahan said. "(Receivers coach) Fred Biletnikoff has so much information to give me on how to get better, and I'm just in his ear all the time."
On the water
Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha decided to bring some friends on his first fishing trip.
He brought a group of boys from the East Oakland Youth Development Center with him to the Sugar Creek Ranch for an overnight outing.
Asomugha called Regina Jackson, the center's executive director, to see if the idea would work. The Raiders have worked with the center for about 10 years, and Asomugha has been a regular.
"He said, 'Well, I've never been fishing. I was just thinking, If I've never been fishing, there are a whole lot of kids at the center that have never been fishing,' " Jackson said of the conversation with Asomugha. "He called me back and said, 'I want to host it.' "
The group left the Raiders' facility Thursday on the trip, which was to have included an appearance on former Cal quarterback Mike Pawlawski's fly-fishing show, "Familiar Waters," which airs on the Outdoor Channel.
"I know the kids at the Youth Development Center," Asomugha said. "I know these kids don't get out much and do much fishing, no less in East Oakland."
Prize time
Drawing for the Raiders' "One Nation: 200 Prizes" promotion for season-ticket holders begins Monday. Prizes range from two Super Bowl tickets to gift cards. Visit www.raidernation.com for more information.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/v-print/story/14268936p-15080137c.html
By Jason Jones -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:01 am PDT Saturday, June 17, 2006
ALAMEDA -- The line for autographs was long at the Raiders Youth Skills Camp last weekend.
Rookie receiver Kevin McMahan from Maine, feeling sympathetic for those who had to wait awhile, signed for youngsters in line.
McMahan knows about waiting. He was the last player picked in the 2006 NFL draft, No. 255 overall, earning the title "Mr. Irrelevant." McMahan is in Southern California this weekend for ceremonies in his honor. The festivities include a banquet and the awarding of The Lowsman -- a trophy with the football player fumbling.
The 49ers, the team he had heard from the most, called and said they probably wouldn't take a receiver with the 254th pick. They drafted safety Vickiel Vaughn.
"Finally I get a phone call from the Oakland Raiders, and I was so shocked," McMahan said. "I thought they were playing a joke on me. I hadn't even heard from the Raiders."
Wide receiver wasn't a need position in the draft, but the Raiders like McMahan's size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), and he was happy a team wanted him.
"If I was going into free agency and I was passed over in the seventh round by a team like the 49ers that had a chance to take me, then why would I have chosen to go (to San Francisco) as a free agent?" McMahan said. "It's like, Man, how bad do they want me?"
Being wanted and drafted by the Raiders is an accomplishment for a player who didn't play football until his senior year of high school.
The Rochester, N.Y., native was a basketball player at Aquinas Institute before meeting former Raiders tight end Roland Williams at a football camp. Williams encouraged McMahan to try football.
"Being able to look at Randy Moss and Jerry Porter and see how they do it has really helped me a lot," McMahan said. "(Receivers coach) Fred Biletnikoff has so much information to give me on how to get better, and I'm just in his ear all the time."
On the water
Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha decided to bring some friends on his first fishing trip.
He brought a group of boys from the East Oakland Youth Development Center with him to the Sugar Creek Ranch for an overnight outing.
Asomugha called Regina Jackson, the center's executive director, to see if the idea would work. The Raiders have worked with the center for about 10 years, and Asomugha has been a regular.
"He said, 'Well, I've never been fishing. I was just thinking, If I've never been fishing, there are a whole lot of kids at the center that have never been fishing,' " Jackson said of the conversation with Asomugha. "He called me back and said, 'I want to host it.' "
The group left the Raiders' facility Thursday on the trip, which was to have included an appearance on former Cal quarterback Mike Pawlawski's fly-fishing show, "Familiar Waters," which airs on the Outdoor Channel.
"I know the kids at the Youth Development Center," Asomugha said. "I know these kids don't get out much and do much fishing, no less in East Oakland."
Prize time
Drawing for the Raiders' "One Nation: 200 Prizes" promotion for season-ticket holders begins Monday. Prizes range from two Super Bowl tickets to gift cards. Visit www.raidernation.com for more information.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/v-print/story/14268936p-15080137c.html