Dez Bryant reportedly hires Parker to serve as agent
BY BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
Sunday, January 10, 2010
1/10/10 at 10:48 PM
In advance of the 2010 NFL draft, former Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant reportedly has hired Eugene Parker to serve as his agent.
NBCSports.com reported the story on Sunday night. Parker is a longtime associate of Deion Sanders, and it was Bryant’s interaction with Sanders that led to an NCAA investigation and ultimately to Bryant’s suspension and the end of his career with the Cowboys.
In October, Bryant was suspended by OSU after admitting that he lied to NCAA officials about his meetings with Sanders.
Bryant admitted to participating in a training session with Sanders at a Dallas-area gym and to having dinner at Sanders’ home. Bryant has said that when questioned by the NCAA about his time with Sanders, he denied that it occurred because he mistakenly believed it had been a violation.
The NCAA investigated the Bryant-Sanders relationship because of a rule prohibiting student-athletes from entering into any type of agreement with an agent until their eligibility has been exhausted. Sanders says he has been associated with Parker for 17 years.
Sanders has said that he did not attempt to influence Bryant’s decision on the hiring of an agent. Sanders, who won Super Bowl championships with the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys, is an NFL Network analyst.
“(Bryant is) not ineligible about what went on at my house,” Sanders said during an NFL Network interview in October. “He’s ineligible because he lied. It’s not a violation to come to my house.”
In 2008, Bryant was on the field for all 13 contests and was voted an All-American. The Cowboys were No. 6 nationally in total offense (488 yards per game).
In 2009, because of the suspension, Bryant played in only three games. By season’s end, OSU was 99th nationally in passing and 70th in total offense (367-yard average).
Felix Jones, a Dallas Cowboy running back who attended Tulsa’s Booker T. Washington High School and the University of Arkansas, is represented by Parker. Also among Parker’s currently active NFL clients are wide receivers Hines Ward of Pittsburgh, Devin Hester of Chicago and rookie Michael Crabtree of San Francisco. Because of a contract holdout, Crabtree didn’t play until late October.
Bryant played in only 28 games at Oklahoma State, but ranks No. 4 on the school’s career lists for total receptions (147) and receiving yards (2,425).
Mel Kiper Jr., an ESPN football analyst, projects Bryant as being the ninth player selected overall in the 2010 NFL draft. Kiper has Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh as the No. 1 pick overall, with Oklahoma defensive tackle Gerald McCoy at No. 2, Sooner quarterback Sam Bradford at No. 5 and OSU offensive tackle Russell Okung at No. 7.
Associated Images:
Dez Bryant played in only 28 games at OSU, but ranks No. 4 on the school’s career lists for total receptions and receiving yards. STEPHEN HOLMAN/Tulsa World file
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