Once all three men put on the Silver and Black, it was back to square one.
Allen didn't necessarily feel a target on his back coming to the Raiders, but he was determined to prove to everyone he was worth the hype and the No. 10 overall pick.
Even while leading the league in rushing touchdowns and scrimmage yards his rookie season, he sought guidance from the veterans around him – which included 1970 Heisman Trophy winner Jim Plunkett.
"My approach was to go into camp like I was a \[undrafted\] free agent," said Allen. "Because professional football is completely different. That's a whole different proving ground. I didn't say one word; I just went to work."
"Just because you're a Heisman Trophy winner, that does not guarantee you success," he added. "And if you think that's going to carry you, it won't."
Allen's mentality and work ethic trickled down to Brown and Woodson. By the time Brown was drafted No. 6 overall in 1988, Allen was already a five-time Pro Bowler plus a league and Super Bowl MVP.
"Marcus Allen told me early on that winning the Heisman wasn't a future predictor of NFL success," said Brown. "And that's something that sort of stuck with me because even at that time, there had been a couple of guys that hadn't so-called 'made it.'"
Brown was on the verge of becoming one those Heisman winners he referenced who weren't able to live up to expectations. Despite being an immediate contributor on special teams, it took him five seasons to emerge into a full-time starting receiver. Yet Allen's advice ultimately prevailed. Brown kept working and recorded nine consecutive seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards, starting in 1993.
"I realized that everything that I had done in college, for the most part, it didn't matter anymore," Brown said. "I had to establish myself as an NFL player now."
Woodson's instant success mirrored Allen's as a rookie, as the No. 4 overall pick notched five interceptions, returning one for a touchdown, and secured the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year Award.
"It's a personal pressure that you put on yourself," said Woodson. "You just won the most prestigious award in college football; you've got to perform. You've got to live up to it."
Fortunately for the cornerback, he had a teammate in Brown who tested his abilities at the line of scrimmage, but also taught him how to be a professional.
"I was a young man with money, and I liked to hang out, so I used to get those Tim Brown talks," Woodson laughed. "Tim Brown used to tell me, 'Man, you can't be hooting with the owls and get up and soar with eagles.' I might have been a little hard-headed, but I appreciated it."
On the phone with Mendoza as the Raiders were making the pick, Head Coach Klint Kubiak was heard telling his quarterback, "You got to go earn a job like everybody else."
Kubiak's words embody the mentality in which the trio of Raiders legends brought to the NFL. It seems it only took a day for the No. 1 pick to get with the program.
"My college career was very blessed," Mendoza said during his introductory press conference with the Raiders. "It was a great, a very significant career, however, in the NFL I'm on the bottom of the totem pole again.
"I'm really looking forward to proving every single day to everybody in the building."