Jurgens Put Finishing on Draft Resume at NFL Pro Day
5/10/2024 10:31:00 AM | Football
“I'm just going to do everything I can do and try to make a spot.” - Michael Jurgens
A three-time team captain, Wake Forest offensive lineman Michael Jurgens returned to the Doc Martin Practice Complex days before performing in front of representatives from all 32 NFL scouts at Pro Day.
This included representatives from the Minnesota Vikings who eventually selected Jurgens with the 230th overall selection in the seventh round of the NFL Draft.
"It's really weird," he said about the experience of returning to Wake Forest just a few short months after finishing up his exhaustive work both on the football field and the classroom. "The biggest thing that hit me coming back was just, it was kind of a humbling experience. Once you come back and it's like everything's the same, the wheel just keeps on turning.
"I walked in the staff room and Chuck Wade's in there, stuffing binders, getting ready for meetings. I walked out here and Ryan Schutta is setting up drills for special teams. It's just everything's the same. And looking back on that, if I could give a message to people playing now, it's like don't get bored with those details. Fall in love with those details and make them all count — all those cliche things that people say."
Though Jurgens was a rare three-time captain, a lot of those leadership roles on the team change on a year-to-year basis.
"It really is weird how it's like you're just part of the machine and then once you go off in the real world, the machine keeps moving and it's cool to see and they do a great job," Jurgens said. "Probably two separate times during my time here, we lost a lot of leaders and a lot of great players, and coach Clawson always does a great job of preparing those next people to fill their shoes."
After training out west for a few weeks, Jurgens felt good about the work he put in during Pro Day.
"It was good," he said. "I haven't seen all the times and scores yet, but felt good about everything. I did the best I could.
"I went home and trained for a couple weeks and then flew out to California. Had a really great experience out there, it was about an hour south of San Francisco. Great group of guys just training all these drills and these events. And then I flew back to Ohio about two and a half weeks ago for Blake Whiteheart's wedding, so that was a lot of fun. Saw a lot of former teammates and then came back down here and been here for about two weeks, just getting ready."
After having the Pro Day in late March, Jurgens went to the local Pro Day with the Carolina Panthers as well as a top 30 visit with his future employer, the Minnesota Vikings.
The lead up to the Wake Forest Pro Day was quite busy for Jurgens, who first focused on getting his body recovered from the long 2023 season before training for all the pre-draft drills.
"There's a lot of accumulation on your joints and your muscles throughout the season and getting that load off," he said. "And then a lot of those drills are just about rehearsing. Just like in football, you have your steps and your routines to get ready for him, and so just learning all that and just learning more about how to carry yourself in the league and all those things and yeah, it was a good experience."
While he's getting good feedback from the scouts, he's not completely sure what to expect on draft day.
"Nobody ever knows anything actually, right?" Jurgens said. "Obviously, I loved being drafted. A lot of teams had me on that bubble between free agent and draftable. I felt confident about wherever I ended up. If it's possible for my genetic makeup to play in the NFL, then I'll do it. I know I'll do everything I can to achieve that. So yeah, I'm just going to do everything I can do and try to make a spot."
In the meantime, Jurgens has relied on those who have gone before him — former Wake Forest offensive linemen like Nate Gilliam, Zach Tom, Sean Maginn and Phil Haynes, who have earned NFL contracts.
"They've definitely been helpful," Jurgens said. "And then coach Clawson's obviously been doing this forever, just hearing his experiences and how to approach things. And then my trainer was really great too. He has been doing this for a long time, just telling us about how to approach interviews and the drills and how to carry yourself when you're on a team."
After years of coming out to McCreary Field House to watch his teammates participate in Wake Forest Pro Day, it was Jurgens turn to earn the support.
"It's cool," Jurgens said. "It's different. It's a really different experience. For six years, I've been part of a team and been relying on other people and other people have been relying on me. It's really different to just be focusing on yourself and there's good and bad things about it, but it's different. I definitely prefer being on a team than I do being an individual."
This included representatives from the Minnesota Vikings who eventually selected Jurgens with the 230th overall selection in the seventh round of the NFL Draft.
"It's really weird," he said about the experience of returning to Wake Forest just a few short months after finishing up his exhaustive work both on the football field and the classroom. "The biggest thing that hit me coming back was just, it was kind of a humbling experience. Once you come back and it's like everything's the same, the wheel just keeps on turning.
"I walked in the staff room and Chuck Wade's in there, stuffing binders, getting ready for meetings. I walked out here and Ryan Schutta is setting up drills for special teams. It's just everything's the same. And looking back on that, if I could give a message to people playing now, it's like don't get bored with those details. Fall in love with those details and make them all count — all those cliche things that people say."
Though Jurgens was a rare three-time captain, a lot of those leadership roles on the team change on a year-to-year basis.
"It really is weird how it's like you're just part of the machine and then once you go off in the real world, the machine keeps moving and it's cool to see and they do a great job," Jurgens said. "Probably two separate times during my time here, we lost a lot of leaders and a lot of great players, and coach Clawson always does a great job of preparing those next people to fill their shoes."
After training out west for a few weeks, Jurgens felt good about the work he put in during Pro Day.
"It was good," he said. "I haven't seen all the times and scores yet, but felt good about everything. I did the best I could.
"I went home and trained for a couple weeks and then flew out to California. Had a really great experience out there, it was about an hour south of San Francisco. Great group of guys just training all these drills and these events. And then I flew back to Ohio about two and a half weeks ago for Blake Whiteheart's wedding, so that was a lot of fun. Saw a lot of former teammates and then came back down here and been here for about two weeks, just getting ready."
After having the Pro Day in late March, Jurgens went to the local Pro Day with the Carolina Panthers as well as a top 30 visit with his future employer, the Minnesota Vikings.
The lead up to the Wake Forest Pro Day was quite busy for Jurgens, who first focused on getting his body recovered from the long 2023 season before training for all the pre-draft drills.
"There's a lot of accumulation on your joints and your muscles throughout the season and getting that load off," he said. "And then a lot of those drills are just about rehearsing. Just like in football, you have your steps and your routines to get ready for him, and so just learning all that and just learning more about how to carry yourself in the league and all those things and yeah, it was a good experience."
While he's getting good feedback from the scouts, he's not completely sure what to expect on draft day.
"Nobody ever knows anything actually, right?" Jurgens said. "Obviously, I loved being drafted. A lot of teams had me on that bubble between free agent and draftable. I felt confident about wherever I ended up. If it's possible for my genetic makeup to play in the NFL, then I'll do it. I know I'll do everything I can to achieve that. So yeah, I'm just going to do everything I can do and try to make a spot."
In the meantime, Jurgens has relied on those who have gone before him — former Wake Forest offensive linemen like Nate Gilliam, Zach Tom, Sean Maginn and Phil Haynes, who have earned NFL contracts.
"They've definitely been helpful," Jurgens said. "And then coach Clawson's obviously been doing this forever, just hearing his experiences and how to approach things. And then my trainer was really great too. He has been doing this for a long time, just telling us about how to approach interviews and the drills and how to carry yourself when you're on a team."
After years of coming out to McCreary Field House to watch his teammates participate in Wake Forest Pro Day, it was Jurgens turn to earn the support.
"It's cool," Jurgens said. "It's different. It's a really different experience. For six years, I've been part of a team and been relying on other people and other people have been relying on me. It's really different to just be focusing on yourself and there's good and bad things about it, but it's different. I definitely prefer being on a team than I do being an individual."
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