I know I’m biased, but what I witnessed over the past weekend was 255 mistakes.
During the first and second rounds, I unrealistically hoped a team would “steal” him although he told me his agent was informed it would be between the fourth and seventh. Didn’t happen. When it was time for the final and “Mr. Irrelevant” pick, not a single supporter cared about the title and that’s because of confidence he’d prosper in the role.
Prove ‘em wrong, of course, like Elijah Bell has so many times. He was small as a Little Patriot but grew tall by high school; Wheeling Park had never won a state championship, but Elijah joined a grand cast that included one of his best friends, Savion Johnson, to propel the Patriots to the 2015 Class AAA W.Va. Championship; and off then he went to North Carolina A&T to see what he could be.
Championships? Check, check, check! Receiving records? Another triple-check with most catches, yards, and touchdowns in Aggie history. Selected in the NFL Draft?
Not so much, but Elijah is far from done. Soon following the draft, the NFL shared that there are more Hall of Famers in Canton who were undrafted free agents (17) than overall No. 1 picks (14). That stat, though, is only one reason Bell remains determined. Consider the statistics he recorded during his three months in California as a member of a prospect camp. Elijah ran faster than Antonio Brown and the same as JuJu Smith-Schuster, and he outweighs both receivers by 25 pounds.
All the NFL really needs to do is read what his mother, Dawn, posted on Facebook after the seven rounds of selections.
The last few days didn’t go as we had hoped … but his opportunity isn’t over and he’s not giving up. He’s been underrated his entire career and this is nothing different!! When his opportunity comes, nobody knows better than me that he will make the BEST of it! He’s never expected anything to just come to him and come easy! He’s always worked extra hard to achieve his goals. This is just another chance for him to prove himself! He’s always gonna be in the record books and he’s NCA&T’s All-time leading WR!!! He’s still the GOAT in my eyes and nobody is more proud than I am!!! Mommy loves you Elijah!!!
“North Carolina A&T is a very good school, but it’s a small school compared to the others, and Elijah is from West Virginia, too,” explained Daryl “Boogie” Johnson, one of Bell’s mentors. “Randy Moss had blazing speed when he came out of high school, and he went to Marshall which is a bigger school. That does make a difference.
“But he’ll be OK. Elijah is far from done,” Johnson said. “He’d probably be signed right now if it wasn’t for this virus. All they gotta do is see him work out and catch that football. Whichever team takes a chance one him won’t regret it, that I know for sure.”
Although the NFL has followed its usual schedule for trades, other transactions, and the draft during the offseason, no one knows at this time if training camps will open in July with the preseason and regular season to follow as normal. Since COVID-19 took hold in the United States in mid-March, all communication has taken place electronically.
The game is not the same, and neither is performing at pro days and tryouts just like Linsly’s C.J. Goodwin had to do before making it to the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons in 2016.
“You have to prove that you belong on that level,” Goodwin said on The Watchdog (98.1 FM WKKX and 97.7 FM WVLY) a few months ago following his season with the Cowboys. “If you do, someone will keep you around.”
It’ll happen. Yeah, I know I’m biased, but I believe we will see Elijah Bell in the NFL.
