 "Photo: ANNIE BROWN, VOLANTE, 2010")
 "Photo: ANNIE BROWN, VOLANTE, 2010")
To reach the NFL is a dream almost all college athletes share, but only the best of the best ever achieve that hope. Seniors Noah Shepard, Ko Quaye, and Jake Arthur, however, all have earned a shot at realizing that very dream.
Both have signed with pro-NFL teams as free agents following Saturday’s draft, and will be making the move from small-time college football to the big leagues.
Shepard, who was USD’s all time leader in passing touchdowns, passing yards, and total offense signed with the Green Bay Packers. Quay, an all-American from last fall with 31 tackles, and who ranked 10th in the Great West Conference for all time stops, signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Arthur received the call from the Minnesota Vikings Sunday and will be reporting to their rookie mini-camp Thursday.
Shepard described the feeling as being unbelievable.
“It’s something I’ve always dreamed of and I have worked my whole life to achieve this goal,” Shepard said. “Not like I’m done working, but there is a sense of accomplishment. To say I’m a Green Bay Packer is pretty unreal.”
Shepard said he is signing with the Packers officially on Tuesday, then Thursday he leaves for Wisconsin, where he will be competing for the third-string quarterback position. He had received the phone call during the seventh round of the draft, and accepted their offer.
Shepard said that it was nice to have a degree of certainty in his future with his girlfriend and their young daughter.
“They are happy,” he said. “We know where we are going to be now and it’s good to know where we are going.”
Arthur received the news Sunday, the day after the draft, when the Vikings called him and made the offer. The Viking mini-camp will be from Thursday through Sunday. He said he was absolutely excited about the opportunity.
“It’s the thing I have wanted to do for a long time,” Arthur said. “The more I can stay around (football) the better.”
Head coach Ed Meierkort said he was happy to hear that his former players have made it to the NFL.
“I’m very proud of them,” Meierkort said. “It’s like one of my own boys, I am a proud coach and I know they will do well. It’s a big thing to go from small college football to the NFL, and I don’t think they will really realize it until they get their uniforms on in Jacksonville or Lambeau field.”
He said based off the activity in the last week, it was not much of a surprise that they had been signed because the main question was not if they would make it to the pros, but where. Now that they have signed with the NFL teams, Meierkort said they can continue being strong players on and off the field.
“They are fantastic players and but more importantly, they were great leaders,” he said. “They are student athletes, graduating in May, which is very important and both are going to be good representatives of football at the USD.”
Quaye, Arthur and Shepard are far from the first Coyotes to make the transition between college football and the pros. Wide receiver and former Coyote Stefan Logan has had strong seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and other players, both under Meierkort and earlier coaches, have also gone from USD to the NFL.
Reach reporter Sarah Paulus at Sarah.Paulus@usd.edu.
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