S3 Episode 3: What It Takes

be moved from one point to another. Now we're less than twenty four hours away from the start of the first round in Cleveland, Ohio. The next step and Alex Leatherwood's long term plan is finally on the horizon. From mastering his blocking techniques to playing for the top college program to learning multiple positions on the offensive line, remove he's made has been a deliberate march to this point.

He's definitely a mastermind and planning and executing. The next big step on Alex's master plan is to become a first round draft pick. That's part of the reason he returned to Alabama for his senior season. Although whether he'll be picked in Round one or not is still up in the air. In fact, it's such a big unknown that ESPN's NFL expert Jeremy Fowler calls to Marius Bilbo, Alex's agent at Clutched Sports, to specifically ask about Alex's draft position. So what do I owe this honor of

hearing from Jeremy Fowler. Jeremy Fowler asked to Marius, if Alex is going to be taken in the first round. Man, that's that's that's a question for us. All I got in between and this. I literally told him, this is a huge gap. Huge I got in between nineteen and forty and the range. And I say that because most teams I've talked with Jeremy they only have like fifteen and sixteen first round grades. Most NFL teams only have

first round grades on fifteen or sixteen players. This year, because there was no scouting combine, the college season was about half the normal length, and a large number of players opted to sit out the year completely. Scouts and executives accustomed to making draft decisions with folders of data and dozens of hours of game tape are now being forced to do a lot more speculating a sure guy, like for Leatherwood to be a guy that's a plug and play guy. I mean, for god, say, he won

the Outline Trophy. He played at Alabama, he played at the highest level of football. He played multiple positions, whether they be guard, on left tackle, and the right tackle too because he protected to his blind side. You know, I've always saw him as one of the top tier guys, and you know, so it has been not concerning, but just I think people are reaching for other guys because

he's such a sure guy. He's such a short pick, people start reaching outside of that and saying, Okay, every scalt, every person want to be the guy that discovered that next guy. And I just feel like Leatherwood is a safer guy when you when you're using the first round pick on the guy, you want to make sure he can come in and play. And people always talking about that guard and tackle, which can he be? I mean, I say, look at look at the guy from Washington

redsk and that's just franchise tag. He was drafted from Iowa the tackle and they slid him down and he's an All Pro guard. You know, I think that the least that's what you get with Leatherwood. Ironically, teams are questioning whether Alex is too much of a sure thing. He won the Outland Trophy, which is given to the best interior offensive lineman in the country, and on top of that, he has consistently played at an elite level for multiple years and has excelled at almost every position

on the offensive line. So of course teams are doing everything they can to p Coles in his draft status, asking questions like does he have a natural position in the NFL? Is he a true franchise left tackle capable of protecting a quarterback's blindside? Or has playing at Alabama already helped him peak and therefore do other linemen have more of an upside in the long run. It's enough to make even the most confident prospect begin to question himself and being an anchor on the line is absolutely

not how Alex Leatherwood's career began at Alabama. Here's Alex talking about arriving on campus as the most sought after offensive line recruit in the country. I was bright eyed and bushy tailed. Is that what they called it? I was definitely that when I first got there. But um, the hardest thing I feel like, you get such a good player, you're like top playing in the country, coming out of high school, all that stuff you think of, how ship and then um season comes in life, you're

not starting this. She kind of like hits you hard, you know what I mean? At first, I was but hurt and my felings. I'm my damn not starting to not playing him just on the sideline bench warming and ship. Alex was the top ranked recruit in the state of Florida and the top ranked offensive tackle in the entire country. Coming in as a freshman and not playing wasn't a possibility. He ever considered happening. His close friend and teammate to

rest Parks weighs in on some of Alex's challenges. The biggest obstacles to Alex probably had to take on going through this program and him executing his plan was making sure he was consistent with everything that he did. Consistency is such a hard thing to really do for a lot of people, especially at this level, and we're all human. It wasn't just the struggles with consistency. The initial conditioning and physical demands also caught Alex off guard. It was

definitely tough at first. I graduated early. I got there in January and that's when we do our winter conditioning program. Fourth quarter blare easily by far, the most harsh thing I've ever done in my life. Here's Alex's teammate Jurez again, Oh whoa who All Right. Running program consists of us working really really hard in training. We run like crazy, like it's It's probably one of the hardest things that

I've ever done in my entire life. And I know that I'm smaller than Alex, so running is not that hard on me. But going through that program, I felt that as I was going to die every time I did it. So Alex, yeah, he's very much a hard worker, but that is something that will fight your brain at the core. College football fans have likely heard whisperings of this notorious conditioning program. However, the details of the workouts

are guarded like a national secret. Here's Alex again offering a low level security clear in summary, it's a funnel running heavy lifting. Um. I know when we had got a new coaches staff changed my junior year on a new oldline coach, Coach Flood, he was like, I can't believe it. Y'all are like America's biggest cross country team. He's a lot of running, That's all I got to say. Here's Jarazz again on how challenging these workouts can be

regardless of your size. It's a level of not understanding is this my body hurting or is this my head? Like my brain? And I know that he struggled with that because that is that's some ships. Sorry excuse my language, but that program is some ship that that that we cannot survive. You know. Um, there are many moments where I felt as, oh, I'm about to stop playing football.

I can't do this anymore, Like I was willing to give up the entire sport at some point, just because I knew that I was just I can't do this workout anymore. This is it's really hard. But I've definitely seen him kill those workouts at times and seeing the workout kind of get the best of him at times. They can be humbling for an elite recruit to suddenly find himself overwhelmed by practices and workouts, many of which are so demanding you openly question your desire to continue

playing the sport. And after each grueling week of practice, Alex spent every Saturday watching from the sidelines, only playing in mop up time to run out the clock. This kind of adversity often leads to young players blaming coaches, finding excuses, or even transferring programs, But instead Alex looked inward. So like the first couple of weeks, I was just for myself and things like that. But shortly after I was like, let me clearly, I'm not playing because I'm

not ready. I mean, just um self talking really like licking myself in the mirror, having a tough conversations with myself and talking myself through it, you know, live down. While am I not playing all that type? Shipn't really like me answering the question for myself. That was the only answer, you know what I mean. So I was like,

we're gonna fix it. So learning how to be like mature and a grown man about my work and my practice in my craft, Durette saw Alex's preparation and work ethic begin to transform, and his master plan growing even

more detailed. The way that he went about that struggle about like him always being his playbook, always watching film, always making sure that he's up, meeting when his coaches, and and making sure that the rest of the guys on the on the line of doing what they have to do, Like he chose to hone in on his struggles in a sense and polish him to his best ability, versus let them bring him down in a sense or

or really shake his world. By the end of Alexi's freshman season, Alabama makes it to the two thousand and eighteen National Championship game against the University of Georgia. I mean, of course I was excited about the game. I had all the faith in my team that we were going to get the job done and what they asked and all that good stuff. So I wouldn't really check him about the game. I was just uh grateful to be there. But my mom was the furthest away from like playing,

you know what I mean. Alex anticipates having an amazing view from the Crimson Tide sidelines throughout the night, and then Alabama's starting left tackle gets hurt in the third quarter. As the injured star leads the field, the team turns to a freshman who barely played the entire season, who had no intention of ever getting into this game, and who now has to step up with the national championship

on the line. Yeah, Essentially, he got hurt, and I'm like, damn, um, I hope I don't go out here and get my ass whooped on national TV because this is like the only game everybody in the country is watching right now. I'm a freshman. I think it's like a couple of first rounders on that defense like us, like it's too really good as Russia's all the goods. And I'm just like, damn, these are some grown ass man. We just dude's probably got children and ship. I'm like, what e team, I'm

gonna go get my ass whooped. Perhaps seeing the concern and Alex's eyes, Alabama coach Nick Saban pulls him aside and gives him a quick pep talk. He was just like, take it up play by play, don't worry about what happened to last play, and don't be too anxious about the next play. But all you gonna do is do your job. And and we trusted you because we we got you out here so you can do a job,

So do it. Basically, the bright eyed, bushey tailed freshman is thrown into arguably the worst possible scenario, playing his first significant minutes of the season in the second half of the National Championship game against the top ten defense full of future NFL players. Alex breaks the huddle, settles into a stands and the ball is hyping. As soon as that balls not on my first play out there,

all the butterflies are gone. Like that, it was over with, and like I went out there and I was like black, I'm a dog too, you know. So we find them shot, we find the dance from the tango, we finish, see who wanted more? And you know what I mean, I was good. Once he got that first play under his belt, Alex's confidence grew and if you recall from the end of episode one, Alabama and Georgia take the championship game

into overtime. It's really a blessing because like, if I would have carried on that season hill and sorry for myself and not really putting the work in to like be the best player that I can be, then I probably would have winning that game and lay the egg. But I didn't. I went out there and I'll trusting my train and trusting my work. The work that I

put in your ship, I bought out. He excelled all the way into the final play of the game when Alex holds up the pass rush long enough to give the Alabama quarterback time to throw deep down the true freshman. I'm good, l up Deafantam Alabama right, George your heart. If he doesn't stop his man, the ball never rives in Davante Smith's hands, and Alabama potentially doesn't win the national championship. He'd spent the whole year preparing for this opportunity,

and then it actually happened. He called the touchdown and like everybody swung the field shout. I was in shambles. I was crying, eyes out for life a whole hour after. I was a bad award because like you're coming from like a bad high school program, then as a freshman going to the best college football program, putting in all that work, you know what I mean, and even like behind the scene when like you cannot playing and ship and to see all your hard work coming fruition and

come to life, like I contributed to that win. I helped my team win that and that's something that will never be taken away from me. That ship was insane, isn't that them? Like that first one? Nothing like that

first one. Alex won the National championship again this past year, but it didn't live up to that final play his freshman year, and maybe nothing else ever will compare, or maybe his next life changing moment will transpire when all his hard work and sacrifice culminate once again, this time with an NFL team calling his name in the draft, something that he hopes will happen very very soon. We'll

be right back. A few hours after talking to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, agent to Marius Bilbo gets another call from him. This time the call is about a new agent at Clutch, not the players they represent. We are growing. I told you, I told you long ago that Rich was better than advertised. He knows what he's doing and we have a vision for the football side of Clutch and is shown on this final day before the draft kicks off, Clutch Sports

announces they've signed agent Nicole n Yeah. She's She's impressive, very impressive, and I've always been a fan of her. So, like I said, it's it's official now, so we're excited and ready to get to get the building. Over the last few years, Nicole has become one of the most high profile agents in the NFL, and in twenty nineteen, she became the first black female agent to ever represent a top ten draft pick, and like Alex and DeVante and many of the other players she personally reps, the

road to the NFL has not been easy. Here's Nicole. I grew up in what I would call the hood, a dairy impoverished neighborhood, below the poverty line and really in the middle of gang violence and a lot of crime. Just not your middle class American family was very much we're just trying to survive. And most of the people that I was surrounded with were black males that lived that same life. Like our only goal was to get out of the hood. How do we get out of

the hood? And some didn't make it out. My brother, for example, was killed at one He was shot and killed because of gang violence. Like many of the people I was surrounded, I did not make it out. However, some of them did because of sports. Nicole grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and attended the University of Oklahoma for undergrad and for law school, and during her time there,

her career in sports came about very naturally. There were a lot of players when I went to Oklahoma that I knew from either back home or we talked, and so I would watch them kind of make it out and make it into football, maybe go to the NFL for a year too, because the NFL's career link is really short, and then i'd somehow see them like on Christmas break back in the hood, or broke everything that they had for a couple of years, They're already broke,

and I could not believe it. I could not understand it because once I was out, I was never looking back, and I'm like, what in the world, Like, how does how does that happen? How do you have millions of dollars? I mean, I just I could not make sense of it in my head. But sevent NFL players within two years of leaving the NFL claim some level of financial distress, whether that stay filed bankruptcy, they go broke, And so I tell my guys, I'm like, that's three out of four.

I mean, there is no reason that that should happen. And so it was like my mission to help these when I want to say young men, but these were my friends. I got certified at. Most of my clients were my exact age, these were my peers, These are people I grew up with. So you hear agents or financial visors talk about players going broke because the family is like, you know, mooching off of them. I get it, though it's not just mooching off. It's it's survival. There

is nothing else. And so I get when the aunts and uncles and moms and dads are calling for money. I know where that is coming trump and I know how to handle and navigate that because even just as a lawyer, I had the same thing happened. I'm not an NFL player. I don't have NFL player of money, but even just as a lawyer of being successful in that not the same same exact situation. And so I'm able to relate to them on just again another level, and I'm like, oh, yeah, we're from the same situation.

Like they got it, they understood like we we both came from the same circumstances. After Clutch makes the announcement about Nicole, they throw a dinner in Cleveland to welcome her as the new president of football operations and to honor their draft prospects who flew into town. This includes Alabama received for Davante Smith, who was enjoying some bread and butter at his table. But it's sweet Matt, we

will just call this. That's Davante's agent Kelton Crenshaw talking about how he's receiving text from coaches and teams even at this late hour the night before the draft. Specifically, he just received messages from Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rule. Carolina has the eight overall pick and is one of the teams reportedly interested in drafting Davante. This is the game team's play as the draft gets closer and closer, scrambling to do their final homework on potential picks or

showing their interest without tipping their hand. What you did, Ohio State. But I'm still pretty nuest you know how. This is Maverick Carter, a longtime friend and business collaborator with Clutch Sports founder Rich Paul and NBA legend Lebron James. That ship was right, but I was room for the Did you kicked our show? How are you doing? Dog for good? Yeah? Good? Cut that nervous entage so good.

No matter where you going, keep out in New York and Caney, Yeah, you just don't want to be in New York, Texas too, Just like Alex and their teammate Landon Dickerson. Davante is worried about paying too much in taxes as soon as he enters the NFL. Apparently, the University of Alabama locker room spends a great deal of time discussing state tax policy in between crushing all their

opponents and winning national championships. So you want to be Texas, say this, see Florida here you're staying with From my text, I live in Kelly. I know where. It's like I ain't try to come out now. It's like love and literally choked the Brady like a month after day wanted he was came at tam Super Bowl. I think I'm a good standing I like he likes you buying the house. That's what being up the top. It's nice time up good meaning who what everything, appreciating food coming out, food

coming out? You are ye snake sound. Some people might be impressed with these new celebrity circles and the late night text from NFL executives. Davante Smith is not one of those people. He's more interested in eating his steak that just arrived so he can head back to the hotel. Excuse me, I had a one something similar. Yes, it is personally you want this steak. He's offering his steak to his little brother Christian because he likes the steak well done and he won't eat it if it's too rare.

He likes a one sauce on it, and he doesn't care what anyone thinks about that. He knows what he likes for sure. He knows what he likes. He knows we just like he's a very deliberate guy to be so young. This is his agent Kelton talking about that high level of self awareness Davante always exhibits. He's not like one of these people that's just kind of like whatever.

He has strong opinions for sure. But as far as like getting rattled even like will you hear stories of like how during the season when like Certainty Bees and like said things that are kind of quote unquote took shots at him. Those were like the guys he had like his best games. Generally, he doesn't really get too high, he doesn't get too low. He's a very even killed young man. He's definitely mature beyond years. He just does everything the right way. Man. He knows what he likes

and he sticks to it. And based on his two national championships, winning the Heisman Trophy and completing arguably the best season a receiver ever had in college football. His

approach seems to be working. So instead of a steak, Devanta eats some mashed potatoes as Clutch Sports founder and CEO Rich Paul stands to give a toast, I just want to you know, often time the only opportunity in the time he was thinking about it fo way, So I want to say the relationship you all lot tomorrow and I want to be to Yeah for cold Heads days are official your first day for a while. He rather is to both Bill Hall and Kelton as well.

Smile all you guys who behind the other. Here's a Rich on the decision to bring the over to Clutch. The coach great watched her a long time, inquired about her around the league. Nothing but great things, really professional, really good agent. We didn't hire her because she was a woman, because she was a black woman. Hired her because she was in a great agent. Unless she knows football, she knows business. Male female, It didn't matter to me.

She belongs so I didn't look at it from that perspective. I was just trying to add to our group. Even though Rich doesn't view her as a female agent, specifically for as a black woman. First and foremost, Nicole's experience working in a field where of the certified agents are male means she hasn't had that same luxury in her career. The whole thing is tough, Like I'm a woman, and then I'm a black woman. And then for a very long time, I was very young, and you know, I'm

still pretty darn young. So for a while, my age was always a thing. You know, I signed my first first rounder at twenty nine, Like what I have? You know, I was twenty eight and I did one of my first big contracts and my player was twenty eight, So that was also I was like, oh, you're you're young, you're under thirty year woman, you're black. It was just always something like, for example, i'd run Clutch and one of the agents who's amazing and has had multiple top

five picks and done all this amazing stuff. You know, in his presentations, he doesn't talk much about himself. You know, he's like, here's our company, and here's what we do, and let's talk about what we can do for you. But he doesn't give his resume, and I'm always like, man, why are you not giving your resume and show them how legit you are. He's like, oh, I just don't do that. I was like, wait a second, you don't have to do that. There's a difference. I have to

I have to go in. I don't walk in the room as a credible person. I'm a woman. They don't immediately know that I know the game. I have to spend twenty minutes explaining I worked at the n f l p A, I know the game. I'm married to a college coach. I know what a four or three defenses. I have to create, set the stage. He doesn't have to do that and so, and that's a knock on him. It's just it's an observation, like, Wow, how different the world is. And you know, it's like I always have

to navigate things very, very differently. We'll be right back. Just how different is it operating in the world of pro football when you're a young black female agent. Even something as basic as networking is no longer straightforward. You go to the combine and you usually like you try to take out general managers, to stay dinners, to network.

That's part of networking as an agent. You hit up a guy, hit up a GM, hit up a scalt, let's go to drinks, go to dinner, you know, and you pay for it and you wine and dine them. I can't do that. I can't call up so and so GM and take them to dinner. The optics are there, and so it takes me three times the work to build the relationship with the GM because I can't hang out with him one on one, right, And so it's it's little stuff like that that people don't know, they

don't think of. I have to be more cautious what I'm saying when I'm texting what not. You know, everything I do, I have to think about it first, like, oh, does this come off in any way? But professional, it's like none of my peers are thinking about that. They're just doing what they want to do that feels right. I don't get to do that. I don't have that luxury. And sometimes the differences between genders extends far beyond standard

professional challenges. Seems will sometimes book reserve or did you discount at the player's hotel as an agent, especially if the team is on the road, so that you can see your guys. And so this particular team had booked my room for me, and I was trying to see my player who's at the same hotels me, just on

a different floor. And the security guard, which was in front of the elevator, like when I got off, I thought for sure that I was a girlfriend sneaking in and like literally escorted me out of the whole hotel, not the floor, not to the elevator of the whole hotel, Like you can't be doing this. And this was pretty early on in my career, so I'm pretty bold, like that would never happen to me. Today I would lose MYSH. But in the moment, I was just like, what is

happening right now? And so I'm trying to name drop and I didn't have my I D on me, and I'm like, I promise you I'm an agent. I'm you could ask anybody just weird stuff like that. It's like nobody would ever do that to a mail That would

never happen. And so one of my big goals in this career in life is to empower other women to feel confident to do what I do, and not just do what I do as and be an agent, but be comfortable in their own skin, be comfortable with being their authentic self in whatever situation they're in, be comfortable with being in a male dominated field, being able to advocate for their seat at the table. I promised myself.

I committed to myself that I would get to where I wanted to be, and I would drink every woman that I could with me across the room. Rich takes a more literal seat at the table, joining DeVante and his family after everyone finishes dinner. He's recounting the trip from l A to Cleveland for the draft this weekend. My kids asked me, I'll be flying commercial private now, and I'm like, what are y'all getting this stuff from?

Taking now? Rich turns to Davante's father, Alvin Dickerson, Pops, I got a question because he told me something at my house. Is it true, jag go outside, take a squirrel, ain't carving him up? What comes from und? I mean, I'm from the country too, but that one said just this out of the crazy. When DeVante and his dad were in Los Angeles meeting with the Clutch team, they told stories about shooting squirrels back home, as well as

how some people in the area eat them. They may or may not have also mentioned being chased by wild hogs in the swamp too. Like DeVante's agent, Kelton said, he's a very confident and deliberate guy. To be so young, rabbit, I'm an mind the rack suld friend. That was a little straw, perfect, Dad, I was. I can think about that. Since you left, I've been telling my story. I said, heard that, Yeah right, yeah. But I talk to Jeff today. He wanted to Detroit. Oh cool? Did he like ship here? Detroit?

Whistle riches, referring to cornerback jeffer Couda, last year's third overall pick, who was featured in season one. I'm drafted. Are you trying to come in at the morning. Yeah, I'm gonna going to trade. I'm gonna gona trade me in the morning too. That's DeVante's agent Kelton, asking about joining his client for his morning workout. Of course, Kelton might not realize what he's getting into, but I'm probably with this the long just up about it. Hit the

trade mill, then probably get the pool. Not at pool. You hit that pool, you go out straight to sleep out? Is over? Wait and you hit the pull with his over with you? The pull? You my way? You can't say anything. The rest of the day and pool real. So be there at six and pitch you in sleep, start sex. That's fool having sex while you lay like that. Davante is laughing at how shocked Kelton is about his

plans for draft day. Yes, he's waking up at five am for a serious workout on arguably the biggest day of his life. And yes he could train all morning and still be calm and relaxed enough to take a nap, dozing off while waiting to find out where he'll be living, what team he'll be playing on, how much money he'll be making, and who his teammates and coaches will be. Normal people get nervous about every single one of those life changing unknowns. Davante isn't losing over any of them.

He already knows what he wants and that everything else is just a distraction. Yeah. I mean I've been working for this moment, so I kind of expected to be here. I probably worked that I put in just knowing that day in the day out I've been grinding, So I mean I expected to be here. I expected nothing less. Next undrafted, you know they're not just handing out Hodsman Trophy awards and outline trophy awars. I think a part of that kind of got to me. You know, it's

like what more can I do? It's probably like a quarter of a mile stretch of land. There was a stage, and then there was like a large area that was like green room pods. All of that was inside of this tent area. To be honest, what exactly what he said kind of a blur because I was just elated. I couldn't do anything but break down in tears because that plan came to life. It was just one of the amazing moments to just be there and witness and just be a part of them. I was just like, well,

I guess we're going to New York. At this point, I was just kind of like, we're going to New York, and is what it is? That's the dupe thing about the NFL Draft is super unpredictable. Drafted is a production of tree Ford Media, Clutch Sports Group, and I Heart Radio. The executive producers are Kelly Garner, Lisa Ammerman, Eric Slott, Eric Weiner, and Seawan Tatone. The series is produced and written by Eric Winer. Garme Mamalu is our coordinating producer.

Coral Silverberg is our associate producer. Tom Monahan is our senior audio engineer. The show is mixed, edited and hosted by me Stephen Johnson, additional production help from Tim Shower and Haley Mandelberg. For transcripts of the show and more information, undrafted put a tree for dot fm, and for more podcasts from My Heart, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.