"The Cowboys have a long and rich history with players from small schools. Defensive tackle Jethro Pugh out of Elizabeth (N.C.) City State was the first small-school standout for the Cowboys when he was drafted in 1964. Since then the Cowboys have compiled an impressive list of small-school talent that includes Hall of Fame OT Rayfield Wright out of Fort Valley State, HoF OG Larry Allen out of Sonoma State, and numerous Pro Bowlers."
"More recently, small-school prospects continued to make the roster in Dallas. DeMarcus Ware (Troy), Tony Romo (Eastern Illinois), Miles Austin (Monmouth), Barry Church (Toledo), and Jeff Heath (Saginaw Valley St.) went on to fame and fortune in Dallas. Granted, outside of DeMarcus Ware, all of the recent small-school prospects joined the Cowboys as undrafted free agents right after college. But that doesn't mean the Cowboys acquired small-school prospects entirely outside of the draft, far from it."
"As you review the names on the list above, you can't be very happy. J.J. Wilcox (whose school has moved into the FBS since he graduated) is the only pick that had moderate success for the Cowboys. And what is particularly galling is that the list above contains six third- or fourth-round picks. That's still premium territory as far as the draft is concerned. But these six picks, for various reasons, averaged just seven games started over their entire NFL career."
The Dallas Cowboys have consistently found NFL contributors from small colleges, beginning with Jethro Pugh in 1964 and including Hall of Famers Rayfield Wright and Larry Allen. Recent success stories include DeMarcus Ware, Tony Romo, Miles Austin, Barry Church, and Jeff Heath, many of whom joined as undrafted free agents. Between 2009 and 2013 the Cowboys often drafted non-FBS prospects but several mid-round small-school selections failed to produce, with six third- or fourth-round picks averaging only seven career starts. Organizational disagreements between scouts and coaches over players such as Sharrif Floyd prompted a restructuring that elevated Will McClay.
Read at Blogging The Boys
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