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Longest of longshots

Undrafted rookie receiver makes a name for himself

Posted: Thursday August 01, 2002 11:41 AM

  Peter King - Training Camp Postcards

This is the eighth in a series of postcards Sports Illustrated's Peter King will e-mail from his annual NFL training camp tour.

Wednesday, July 31

Team: Cleveland Browns


In Berea, Ohio, just down the runway from the Cleveland airport, at the Browns' training facility. The Browns set up bleachers, which are usually crowded, on one side of the field and a huge, fan-cooled white tent for club family members and friends. Nice place, but a tad antiseptic for the real Browns fan. They'd be better off at a local college campus. There are about 1,000 of them within a few Tim Couch spirals.


1. I think I saw lots of good things, accurate things, from Couch on the pre-practice film of recent workouts I watched this morning. But he ended the afternoon shabbily, throwing a quick cross behind a wide-open Kevin Johnson and not looking sharp throwing near the goal line.

2. I think I saw one of the great locker-room pranks after practice. Couch turned 25 today, and he was in the process of doing a TV interview with a Columbus guy when tight end Aaron Shea and Johnson approached in a sneaky way from either side of him. SPLAT!!! Both whammed him in the face with shaving cream pies. "Gotcha Coucheee!" screamed Johnson. "Lova ya, dawg!" Couch, through gritted teeth, acknowledged that he'd been had. "Thanks, KJ -- my former go-to receiver," he said.

3. I think, not to jump on a guy when he's out of the organization, but anyone who can stick up for Dwight Clark after seeing the base of talent still on hand from his two years overseeing the draft and personnel is nuts. Clark chose 60 players, 24 in the two drafts and 36 in the expansion draft. Two of the 60, Couch and Courtney Brown, were first overall picks in the college draft. There's not a single great player among all the others. That has really slowed the Browns' progress as much as anything. I don't know whether to be a believer yet in Butch Davis' right-hand man, soon-to-be personnel czar Pete Garcia, but he sure does work hard.

4. I think Quincy Morgan, the second-round wideout from last year's draft, looks like a star in the making. Great hands and very nice speed. He's developing a good rapport with Couch and should surpass Johnson as Couch's go-to guy at some point early this season.

5. I think Tre' Johnson, he of the perennial knee problems, looks as if he'll be healthy enough to start the season at guard. I make no promises about durability, though.


File these names away. The Browns have an all-name team on their roster:

  • Wideout Frisman Jackson, a free agent from Western Illinois (profiled below);

  • Linebacker Andra Davis, wideout Andre Davis;

  • Cornerback Earthwind Moreland, the well-traveled one, who was named after Earth, Wind and Fire;

  • Three Millers (Arnold, Ben, Jamir), three M. Smiths (Mark, Marquis, Michael), two Taylors (Ben, Jay), three Johnsons (J.J., Kevin and Tre'), two Jacksons (Frisman, James) and two Dawsons (JaJuan and Phil).


    Offensive production. William Green, who took first-team snaps this afternoon, should be the inside-outside back Davis has needed. At wideout, the speed and production of Morgan should help, though Johnson still thinks he's the Big Dawg on Campus. He keeps railing against me every time I'm around. "Why you doggin' me?" he asked. "Show me some love." Apparently, my crime is that I think he's a nice player, not a franchise one. The Browns agree: Johnson's trying to redo his contract for big money, while the Browns want to pay him good money. We'll see how the season goes, but I think he's worth good money, not big.


    Long-snapper Ryan Kuehl has good, and expensive, tastes. After his wife gave birth to a son, Tyler, on Tuesday, he returned to camp Wednesday and handed out Cohibas to all. Except me. (Kevin, I hope you don't mind, but I'm stealing your line here: Show me some love, Ryan!)

    They're not Cubans, mind you. But these Dominican Cohibas are still darned good cigars, at about $13 a pop.


    I am drawn to No. 15, a free-agent wideout from Western Illinois, a former college quarterback who has turned every head in the Browns' building.

    I shall try not to gush, but I have found Training Table Utopia, right here on Lou Groza Drive:

    Entree: Grilled salmon. Moist, pure, perfectly grilled fish, much better than what I slave over on my back-deck Weber grill. Unmatched, by a long shot, on this tour. Grade: A+

    Side dish: Chinese chicken stir fry over brown rice. A bit peppery for me, but a must-try. Delicious and moist. Grade: A

    Vegetables: A medley of fresh steamed long-stemmed broccoli, green beans, baby carrots and asparagus. I had to put that evil asparagus over to the side, because it is a very bad veggie, but otherwise this was fine and snappy and fresh. Grade: A-

    Son of Side Dish: A small portion of wheat pasta mixed with baby scallops. In a light oil. I could eat this forever, and a few lunches beyond. Grade: A+

    Drink: Fresh-pressed apple juice. Tasted like Yakima. Grade: A+

    Dessert: Low-fat chocolate yogurt and bright-yellow banana smoothie, made fresh in a blender. Grade: A+

    Overall grade: A+. I have never had a better meal at an NFL camp. Period.

    Frisman Jackson.

    I saw him make a few plays on tape and asked Butch Davis: "Who is that guy?"

    "Frisman Jackson," said Davis. "And he's got a chance."

    Jackson is 6-foot-3, 205 pounds with legs like slim trees. He's built to take punishment and runs a 4.47 40-yard dash. Excellent hands. OK route-runner. He has a very good chance to make this team, either the real roster -- if Davis thinks he can do more things than a Dennis Northcutt, who is decidedly on the bubble here -- or the practice squad. But this guy will play in the NFL someday, for someone. Guaranteed.

    The other day in practice, offensive coordinator Bruce Arians sent Jackson on a reverse. He took the pitch, ran toward right end, stopped and let loose a 60-yard bomb right on target to promising rookie Andre Davis. "I think I turned the heads of everyone with that throw," Jackson said.

    Jackson played quarterback at Western Illinois, Bryan Cox's alma mater, as a junior, then was switched to wideout for his senior year. He caught 55 balls for 1,047 yards. He thought he'd be drafted, as do about 1,000 college seniors at the Western Illinoises of the world, but he wasn't, and signed with the Browns for the opportunity to make a team. He has it.

    We talked football, sitting out behind the Browns' facility late this afternoon. "I've been dreaming about this chance since I was a little kid," he said. "I was still dreaming about it last year in college. I remember being Tim Couch on the John Madden game. I knew if I got the chance I could prove I belong."

    Then the talk turned to ...

    "I have to ask you about your name," I said.

    "It came to my mother in a dream when she was pregnant with me," he said. "Frisman. I don't know what it means. She just had to name me that after she had the dream. When I was young, I hated it. I couldn't wait to change my name. Kids called me, 'Frisbee,' 'Frischman.' They mocked me. But now I like it. I'm going to keep it."

    Davis surprised the team by giving them the night off after a great practice. I asked the Friz-man if he was going out with the boys to blow off some camp steam.

    "No," he said. "Staying in. Studying the playbook. I haven't gotten to the point where I can relax yet. I'm all business."


    St. Louis Rams, Macomb, Ill.

    Check back soon for more of Peter King's Postcards from Camp. Or visit the archive to catch up.

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