Mississippi State center Ethan Miner went through the Pro Day drills and came away optimistic about his future.
Ethan Miner is an agreeable young husband, a loyal son and good son-in-law. But in this one case, he had to put his sizable foot down.
With the first child, a son, due in just another month, the Miners have picked their own name and not gone with what the older generation expected. "Yeah, we're going with Forrest Russell Miner. My parents tried to get me to do Cole because that was what they wanted to do for me. I said I'm not naming my kid Cole Miner."
That right there is why the Mississippi State press corps will miss having Ethan Miner around to, ahem, dig up quality comments such as this. More seriously, Bulldog football in general and quarterbacks in particular miss having Miner in front of them at this spring's practices.
If the 2024 season, his one with this program and in the SEC, did not yield the scoreboard results Miner and all wanted, the center himself takes a year's worth of good MSU memories where ever he is led next. And, his new family as well. Whether or not his name is called, Ethan has faith in the future.
Oh, and talk about timing…young Forrest Russell's due date is April 27. The NFL Draft this year is the 24th-to-26th. Bulldogs all should ask blessing on his household in the month ahead.
Miner spoke with media following his turn at campus Pro Day.
Ethan Miner: "It went pretty good. Obviously there's always room to improve. I'm a perfectionist, I wanted to hit better numbers. But no injuries, everything went smooth. So it was a good day.
Have you met with any teams here or in the process? "I just talked to the scout from the Chargers, it went really good. I think I need to talk to the Niners scout. So there's been some talk going on, I'm hoping after today it picks up."
What have you done since the season ended to get ready? "Well, as soon as Ole Miss was done, I went to my wife's parents' house and fished a little bit. I got back and said I've got to get on a diet. I had my wife take a picture for progress pictures, she hands me back my phone and I said oh, that's what I look like right now?!"
"So it's going to be a lot of chicken and rice. A strict diet, training, read my Bible, spend time with my wife. That's all we did."
And you don't mean fried chicken? "No. Just grilled. She finally made me put some seasoning on it because I usually just cook the chicken!"
How tough is it when you don't have an organized schedule with the team and have to do it on your own? "It was rough because you're in charge of yourself. You get so used to somebody telling you what to do every day."
"I got to a point a month in wanting somebody to 'hey, you've got to show up at this time'. But it was good just to get some time off and kind of get away from football. You know, six years of it straight, it was a good break."
What is the message to NFL teams about why you? "I think I've always been an under rated player. I'm not big, I'm only 6-2. I've got short arms. But I think my work ethic is really what separates me from other people. And it sounds cliché to say it, that's what everyone claims."
"But I truly believe it. It's been my whole life, just training for this opportunity. And I don't want to say that's my whole life because Christ is my whole life now. After my last year at Arkansas State it was pretty bad, I think it was only by the grace of God that I got to where I am now."
When you do have some down time what will you do before the draft? "I don't know. I'm might go home, I'm probably going to eat very bad. I might get a cheesecake, a pizza. I'll do that for like one day though, I'll get back on my diet."
"And then train, that's about it. We've got a baby coming April 27, hopefully it comes before then, I don't know. So we're really excited for that. And hoping he's going to be a football player like me, he's got some long legs. They say his legs are about three weeks ahead!"
I'd ask if you've picked out a name, but has she picked one? "Yeah, we're going with Forrest Russell Miner. My parents tried to get me to do Cole because that was what they wanted to do for me. I said I'm not naming my kid Cole Miner."
What did your one year here at Mississippi State mean to you? "It was awesome. Like I said, I was always kind of under recruited, I wasn't as big as everybody. So it was nice to finally have the opportunity to prove myself, and to prove that I could have played against this competition my whole life."
"It was just awesome being around all the guys and Coach Lebby. It was an awesome experience, just playing in that atmosphere. I still talk about playing at home, playing at Tennessee, it doesn't even feel like it actually happened."
"It was a great experience, I'm grateful God gave me the opportunity. Because I could have been done after my last year at Arkansas State. It was only because of Him that I'm where I'm at."
One of the guys today, Jimmy Bell, never played football here. But he worked out with you, what impresses about him? "He's got a ton of courage, I'll say that. Because I played six years. I just did all the training with him, I was the past two days nervous, I couldn't get my mind off it."
"He's only played basketball the last couple of years, he's a big guy, he can definitely make a team and show what he's got. But I think it took a lot of courage to come out here and do this in front of NFL scouts. I respect him a lot for that."
This article originates on GenesPage.com.