OSU's Weeden taken by Cleveland in first round

BY BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
Thursday, April 26, 2012
4/27/12 at 5:26 AM

EDMOND – A life-changing telephone call came at 9:06 p.m., when Oklahoma State’s Brandon Weeden was informed that he had been selected by the Cleveland Browns with the 22nd pick overall in the NFL draft.

Along with about 50 family members and friends, Weeden watched ESPN’s draft coverage from his parents’ home in Edmond. When former Cowboy wide receiver Justin Blackmon was taken fifth overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars, there was a loud reaction from the Weeden party.

And when Weeden got the call from the Browns, there were cheers and tears. Weeden was embraced by his parents, by his wife Melanie and by his agent Sean Howard.

“I was cautiously optimistic that Cleveland was going to be Brandon’s landing spot,” said Howard, who is based in San Francisco and also represents former OSU tight end Brandon Pettigrew (now a Detroit Lion).

“Brandon had a great visit out in Cleveland and they showed a lot of interest,” Howard said. “He’ll have to compete, of course, but the system that they run – it sets up for him pretty well.”

Many draft analysts predicted that Weeden would not be drafted until the second round because of his age. He turns 29 in October.

Whether Weeden would be selected as high as No. 22 “was always questionable because of the age factor,” Howard said. “If we could remove his birth certificate, we would have been talking about Brandon being a top-10 pick. “That was our discussion with every team – but for his age, he’s a top-10 talent.”

During his two seasons as the Cowboy starter, Weeden broke all significant school passing records. In 2010, he led the program to its first 11-win record. In 2011, he led the program to its first 12-win record – and to its first Big 12 championship.

And now Weeden has an additional distinction. He is the only OSU quarterback to have been a first-round NFL draft pick.

Associated Images:

From his family's home in Edmond, Brandon Weeden does a TV interview during the first round of the NFL draft. BILL HAISTEN/Tulsa World