By Hannah Gordon
Daily Bruin Reporter
What kind of person are you?
Are you happy with sad times? Or sad with happy times?
Are you smart with a silly streak? Or silly with a smart
streak?
No, this isn’t Dr. Seuss. It’s the NFL combine. If
you want to play in the NFL, hopefully you are the kind who is not
only a perfect physical specimen, but also shrewd on the field,
intelligent off it, and, if it’s not too much to ask, a good
person.
To find out, coaches and managers interview the players and give
them the Wonderlic test, all hoping to discover if you are purple
with green spots or green with purple spots.
The Wonderlic is a 12 minute, 50 question intelligence test
containing a math and verbal section, one of the many intense
evaluations that players undergo in the combine’s meat market
atmosphere. Test results are not released publicly, nor do the
players even know what they scored. Teams reportedly look at your
highest score, and many prospects take the test on multiple
occasions.
According to at least one prospect, it just checks if you can
read and add, but the time limit adds a lot of pressure.
“You should be able to read if you’re being paid all
this money,” Wisconsin defensive lineman Wendell Bryant
said.
But isn’t it insulting to even question that?
“As you’ve seen in the past, not every NFL player
can read,” Bryant replied.
The same issues of bias that surround the SAT appear in any
standardized test, including the Wonderlic. Stanford offensive
lineman Eric Heitmann acknowledged that the high demands of
Stanford probably helped him a little with the test. Other players
openly acknowledge they are poor test-takers.
“Some of the tests are meaningful but you have to wonder
what does this have to do with football,” said Miami
defensive back Ed Reed, a self-described terrible test-taker.
“But I’m not a GM or a coach. I’m just one of
the guys on display,” he added.
Even the coaches acknowledge that test-taking differences should
be taken into account, but they do take the intelligence issue
seriously.
“You have to be careful about how you use those tests. Not
everyone tests well,” Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Tice
said. “But if your No. 1 criteria is intelligent players,
which (mine is), then you have to start there.”
From the scores, Tice and other coaches move on to the
interviews. Most players met with approximately 20 teams, usually
with their position coach, for 15 to 20 minutes. They ask players
everything from “Do your siblings play sports?” to
“Have you ever been convicted of a felony?”
You had best not lie since the NFL has unlimited resources for
its extensive background checks. And beware of revenge-seeking
ex-girlfriends because Tice has his position coaches talk to your
former teammates, college and high school coaches to find out what
kind of a person you are.
“Teams want to know you are a stable person, that you are
a good person, but playing is the most important thing,”
Heitmann said.
On the whole, players seemed unconcerned about the Wonderlic but
took the interviews seriously.
Coaches want to see if you can think on your feet and might run
you through certain game situations, according to Oregon
quarterback Joey Harrington. Of course, game film counts for most
of their evaluation, plus your physical performance at the combine,
but a great interview might set you apart from the next guy, and
players know that.
“You have to make yourself as marketable as
possible,” Virginia Tech wide receiver Andre Davis said.
So what kind of person are you?