Receiver scales back his dream
Hoping for a chance to play, Mike Furrey, a walk-on from Hilliard, is transferring to Northern Iowa
By Tim May
Dispatch Sports Reporter
In two years, walk-on wide receiver Mike Furrey of Hilliard never reached his goal: catching a pass for Ohio State in a real game in Ohio Stadium.
Barring a last-minute change of heart, Furrey never will realize that dream.
Furrey is transferring to Northern Iowa, a NCAA Division I-AA school. His dream to the contrary now, he’s doing it to pursue his passion.
“I guess after the last couple of years, it wasn’t that hard making this decision,” Furrey said. “Yeah, ever since I was little I wanted to catch that pass, but now it’s time to grow up a little bit and take advantage of what’s available out there.”
“Right now, I just want to play football.” He said.
With the receivers already on hand at OSU augmented by two sterling recruits, Ken-Yon Rambo and Reggie Germany, Furrey was going to find himself continually near the back of the pack.
No matter that in practices the last two years he often starred with his leaping grabs and sure hands. No matter that, until suffering a fractured foot this spring, he’d worked as hard as anyone on the field.
He was a non-scholarship player, and it became obvious that climbing that sandpile might take many years. At Northern Iowa, he’ll be under scholarship right away because of an offer from first-year coach Paul Dunbar, a former Toledo assistant.
“I visited out there last week, I liked it and I made my decision,” Furrey said.
He’s not walking off defiant. And he took no shots.
He never realized his dream of catching that pass, but he played enough to letter last year. And he practiced well enough to earn the respect of some of the best receivers the place has seen, including first-round NFL draft pick Terry Glenn two years ago and last year’s big play maker, Dimitrious Stanley.
“When you come in as a walk-on, you’re kind of shoved in a corner, so to speak, until you prove yourself,” Furrey said. “That’s one of the things you just have to accept.
“Once you show you belong, the other players start recognizing you. I hung around with Demetrious a lot. He was a great guy and he took me to other players, and they let you be a part of it all. That makes you feel better.”
But nothing beats playing. Furrey was a playmaking marvel at Hilliard High School, and in practices at OSU he had shown similar ability.
“You always figure that if you work hard enough, eventually things will work for you,’ Furrey said. “That’s always been my approach. But on the other hand, I have been given an immediate opportunity now by going to Northern Iowa.”
Because he is going down to Division I-AA, Furrey won’t have to sit out a season. He’ll go on scholarship after he finishes summer school at Ohio State next week.
Under Dunbar, UNI will run a single back set most of the time and throw the ball often.
“I think that is any receiver’s dream, to go to a school that throws a lot,” Furrey said.
Thus he will leave his primary dream behind, but not a lot of second thoughts.
“The only real goal I had when I went to Ohio State was to catch one pass,” he said “I don’t know if that will really bother me down the road, although every athlete, when they set their heart on achieving something, they like to get it done.”
“But I lettered. I got a Rose Bowl ring last year.”
Northern Iowa opens its season at Iowa on Sept. 6. Furrey was there last year, part of the road squad that beat the Hawkeyes en route to the Rose Bowl.
?It will be the same pink locker room,” Furrey said. “I’m looking forward to going back.”
By Tim May
Dispatch Sports Reporter
In two years, walk-on wide receiver Mike Furrey of Hilliard never reached his goal: catching a pass for Ohio State in a real game in Ohio Stadium.
Barring a last-minute change of heart, Furrey never will realize that dream.
Furrey is transferring to Northern Iowa, a NCAA Division I-AA school. His dream to the contrary now, he’s doing it to pursue his passion.
“I guess after the last couple of years, it wasn’t that hard making this decision,” Furrey said. “Yeah, ever since I was little I wanted to catch that pass, but now it’s time to grow up a little bit and take advantage of what’s available out there.”
“Right now, I just want to play football.” He said.
With the receivers already on hand at OSU augmented by two sterling recruits, Ken-Yon Rambo and Reggie Germany, Furrey was going to find himself continually near the back of the pack.
No matter that in practices the last two years he often starred with his leaping grabs and sure hands. No matter that, until suffering a fractured foot this spring, he’d worked as hard as anyone on the field.
He was a non-scholarship player, and it became obvious that climbing that sandpile might take many years. At Northern Iowa, he’ll be under scholarship right away because of an offer from first-year coach Paul Dunbar, a former Toledo assistant.
“I visited out there last week, I liked it and I made my decision,” Furrey said.
He’s not walking off defiant. And he took no shots.
He never realized his dream of catching that pass, but he played enough to letter last year. And he practiced well enough to earn the respect of some of the best receivers the place has seen, including first-round NFL draft pick Terry Glenn two years ago and last year’s big play maker, Dimitrious Stanley.
“When you come in as a walk-on, you’re kind of shoved in a corner, so to speak, until you prove yourself,” Furrey said. “That’s one of the things you just have to accept.
“Once you show you belong, the other players start recognizing you. I hung around with Demetrious a lot. He was a great guy and he took me to other players, and they let you be a part of it all. That makes you feel better.”
But nothing beats playing. Furrey was a playmaking marvel at Hilliard High School, and in practices at OSU he had shown similar ability.
“You always figure that if you work hard enough, eventually things will work for you,’ Furrey said. “That’s always been my approach. But on the other hand, I have been given an immediate opportunity now by going to Northern Iowa.”
Because he is going down to Division I-AA, Furrey won’t have to sit out a season. He’ll go on scholarship after he finishes summer school at Ohio State next week.
Under Dunbar, UNI will run a single back set most of the time and throw the ball often.
“I think that is any receiver’s dream, to go to a school that throws a lot,” Furrey said.
Thus he will leave his primary dream behind, but not a lot of second thoughts.
“The only real goal I had when I went to Ohio State was to catch one pass,” he said “I don’t know if that will really bother me down the road, although every athlete, when they set their heart on achieving something, they like to get it done.”
“But I lettered. I got a Rose Bowl ring last year.”
Northern Iowa opens its season at Iowa on Sept. 6. Furrey was there last year, part of the road squad that beat the Hawkeyes en route to the Rose Bowl.
?It will be the same pink locker room,” Furrey said. “I’m looking forward to going back.”