Lufkin, Texas won’t be the primary place that involves thoughts if you envision the belief of a lifelong dream, however that’s precisely the place Ja’Lynn Polk determined he needed to be the day earlier than the 2024 NFL Draft.
He had some enterprise to take care of.
Polk, simply two days away from being chosen by the New England Patriots, determined to move again to his previous stomping grounds at Lufkin Excessive Faculty and discuss to present student-athletes. It’s one thing he did all through his collegiate profession and was partly impressed by the second former Dallas Cowboys broad receiver (and Lufkin legend) Dez Bryant gifted him a pair of cleats when he was a teenager.
Polk didn’t return to Abe Martin Stadium at hand out swag, although. He needed to relay a message to the couple dozen or so upperclassmen in attendance.
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“He instructed the youngsters, ‘Mark it down, I’ll win a Tremendous Bowl and I shall be All-Professional,’” Lufkin head coach Todd Fast instructed NESN.com. “His targets are lofty, however they’re targets he can attain.”
Polk’s journey towards New England began out in Lufkin, the place he had an distinctive highschool profession following a path that was blazed by different NFL wideouts Bryant and Keke Coutee. Polk helped the Panthers win a pair of division titles and added his title to a number of college leaderboards, however his recruitment wasn’t something to jot down dwelling about. Texas Tech was his finest provide, and though it’s a power-five program, it wasn’t the place Polk wanted to be to make his later proclamation come true.
It was the right place to begin, although.
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David Yost and Joel Filani, the offensive coordinator and broad receivers coach for the Pink Raiders on the time, fell in love as quickly as they discovered Polk. He attended a recruiting camp in East Texas that had about 700 children operating round and stood out instantly. Yost and Filani noticed the identical factor Fast had been experiencing the last few years; Polk wasn’t the largest, quickest or strongest child in attendance, however he was the very best.
“His objective is to win each snap he takes,” Fast says. “He is aware of that can give him the possibility to compete, so he’s a fierce competitor throughout follow and he’s not blowing smoke simply saying stuff. He really believes it and he is aware of what it takes. He’s going to work, he’s gonna compete and New England will fall in love with him simply due to who he’s.”
Polk solely spent one season in Lubbock, Texas, however achieved extra than simply about anybody anticipated out of the then-freshman wideout. Erik Ezukama was the main receiver on that crew, and T.J. Vasher was a former teammate of Patrick Mahomes who was described by Yost as “the second coming” for Tech. However it was Polk who instantly stepped in and have become the offense’s most dependable participant.
“He was good from the get-go,” Yost instructed NESN.com. “He’d simply exit and make performs, they usually play good soccer the place he’s from, however he walks right into a room and it’s by no means too huge for him. I believe when he went to Washington it was the identical factor, the place he was higher than they anticipated… He’s only a actually, actually high-level soccer participant. Ja’Lynn isn’t the primary man you consider if you need to run a reverse or throw a display screen, nevertheless it at all times labored once we’d get the ball to him so we’d be dumb to not put the ball in his fingers. You simply get the identical factor from him on a regular basis.”
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Polk was earmarked for better success in his sophomore marketing campaign with the Pink Raiders, however issues had been altering in Lubbock. Yost was out of a job, making it probably that Filani wasn’t too far behind. It was the primary instance of one thing Polk handled all through his beginner profession and an unlucky actuality of soccer: it’s a enterprise.
“All of us knew there have been uncertainties,” Filani shared. “He got here to me and mentioned, ‘Coach, I don’t even know in case you’re going to be right here.’ I mentioned, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to be right here, both!’ It got here to some extent the place he thought of leaving, so I helped him get to Washington the place he’d have a chance to shine.”
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It was a simple resolution in the long run. Polk moved north to Seattle, the place his cousin and former highschool teammate, Caleb Berry, had simply enrolled.
Polk’s arrival to Washington didn’t result in fast success. He was caught behind Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, alongside others, on the depth chart and noticed the vast majority of his first season misplaced to a damaged clavicle. He regarded to maneuver previous that in 2022, however the deck gave the impression to be stacked in opposition to him as Jimmy Lake, the top coach who recruited Polk to the Pacific Northwest, was fired resulting from an on-field incident the place he lunged at a participant.
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Lake and Filani primarily facilitated the switch from Texas Tech to Washington, and now neither can be round to help Polk in what can be a crucial season for his improvement. The Huskies in the end employed Kalen DeBoer, somebody Polk had zero prior relationship with.
It wound up being the very best factor that ever occurred for the younger wideout’s profession.
Polk flourished in DeBoer and Ryan Grubb’s offense, catching 110 passes for 1,853 yards and 15 touchdowns over the following two seasons, good for the second most receiving yards and scores in this system throughout that stretch.
“It’s spectacular,” Filani mentioned. “He knew that he’d get it carried out, simply along with his work ethic. It wasn’t assured that he was going to play there, and he needed to work his tail off. He’s simply the man that might by no means go away and proved he may very well be the man at a excessive degree.”
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Polk’s most spectacular attribute, a minimum of from an outdoor perspective, was his skill to proceed rising into himself and produce others together with him. He had a management high quality that was unmatched by these he’d been round, whether or not it was at Texas Tech or Washington.
“He’s humorous. He’s very bubbly,” Yost mentioned of Polk’s persona. “I’d met Rome Odunze all through the recruiting course of, and he didn’t actually communicate. Ja’Lynn was like — he was chit-chatting on a regular basis. I’d heard he was the third man (at Washington), however after I watched him I believed, ‘He’s pretty much as good as any of them.’ Ja’Lynn shall be a very, actually good participant the day he reveals up, and he’ll be that approach till the day he’s carried out. It’s the identical man on daily basis, whether or not it’s management, maturity or any of these issues. He’s been that approach because the day I met him.”
Polk arrives in New England with some pretty lofty expectations. He isn’t fairly as declarative as new teammate Javon Baker, however he’s displayed precisely what the Patriots may have hoped for out of a possible No. 1 choice — each as a frontrunner on the sphere and off it.
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Polk led positional drills all through rookie minicamp and took it upon himself — alongside Baker — to turn out to be extra vocal because the rookies acclimate to their new surroundings.
“We’re looking for our routine and schedule to be the very best we could be,” Polk mentioned following rookie minicamp follow in early Could. “We need to lead the fellows within the room, and to feed off the vets and choose their brains concerning the issues they do.”
It’s been a trait Polk has held since he was 18, studying the tradition at Texas Tech.
“He’s a man you’ll be able to lean on,” Yost mentioned. “He’ll appear extra veteran and mature than his time. He was a real freshman for us, however he may need been probably the most mature of our receivers, simply because he talked probably the most and did it on a regular basis.”
The Patriots, lengthy mocked for having a string of No. 3 broad receivers, most likely didn’t do themselves any favors within the pubic notion division by deciding on Polk. He was, within the eyes of many, the No. 3 choice in his personal faculty program.
It’s up for debate whether or not that’s even true, however the undoubted reality is that Polk has what an NFL crew seems for in a real top-flight choice.
“He’s received nice fingers,” Filani mentioned. “He most likely has the very best fingers I’ve seen since (Michael) Crabtree. He makes catches that — he’s simply so sturdy and might management his physique. He can separate sufficient to the place he could make contested catches however give the quarterback a chance to get him the ball.
“I do know he desires to be a No. 1. He’s working towards that, and there’s solely so many Justin Jeffersons and Ja’Marr Chases however you speak about a man like Stefon Diggs — these guys are unwilling to not be the highest man. I see him competing for the highest spot, and I believe he’ll assault that and take it. He could be the man (New England) actually leans on, and I can see him being the man.”
If he’s capable of be the man for the Patriots, they’ll contemplate his choice a house run. However is there an actual shot at Polk reaching that lofty objective he shared again in Lufkin the day earlier than the 2024 NFL Draft?
“E-book it,” Fast mentioned. “He doesn’t discuss to listen to himself discuss. It’s really a part of what his objective is, and you’ll ebook it.”
