Jeff Rayburn knows what an NFL player looks like.<\/p>\n
Rayburn has coached five current NFL players at Lone Star High School in Frisco, Texas. So, he and his staff have a good feel for what it takes for a player to look to be one the pathway to the league at a young age.<\/p>\n
When Ashton Jeanty showed up unexpectedly as a sophomore, Rayburn knew.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could see it already,\u201d Rayburn said of the early thoughts of Jeanty in a telephone interview with Silver and Black Pride. \u201cWe have guys in the league and you could see Ashton was one of those guys.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the Las Vegas Raiders drafted the running back out of Boise State with the No. 6 overall pick in the April draft, Jeanty joined a special group of Lone Star alumni. He joins Raiders teammate, safety Trey Taylor, Denver Broncos wide receiver Marvin Mims, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton and New Orleans Saints linebacker Jaylan Ford as former Rangers\u2019 players being part of the NFL. Rayburn said Jeanty and Taylor didn\u2019t overlap at the high school.<\/p>\n
While Rayburn loves seeing young players develop from an early age, he really didn\u2019t know much about Jeanty before he enrolled at the school. Jeanty began his high school football career in Europe because his father was in the military.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe saw some highlights of him after he just kind of showed up as a sophomore,\u201d Rayburn said. \u201c(What a gift) no doubt about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jeanty didn\u2019t become the school\u2019s full-time starting running back until his senior season. He played defense as a sophomore, playing on the defensive line and at linebacker including on special teams. He moved to a slot wide receiver role as a junior. <\/p>\n
Once he played running back, he took over, rushing for more than 2,000 yards and gaining more than 1,000 yards as a receiver out of the backfield. Rayburn is often asked why Jeanty didn\u2019t go to one of the country\u2019s top programs, well, the answer is not many recruiters knew much about him, so Boise State jumped on him as a senior.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d say it worked out very well for everyone,\u201d Rayburn said.<\/p>\n