Temple University Athletics
Adam DiMichele Blog: April 29
4.29.09 | Football
Senior quarterback Adam DiMichele (McKees Rocks, Pa.) is concluding his academic career at Temple University. Over the next two weeks, the team captain will share his thoughts twice each week about classes ending, final exams, and graduation.
April 29, 2009
With my time in the great city of Philadelphia slowly but surely coming to an end, I find myself constantly looking back at all the great times I've had and all the people who made an impact on my life here. When I was asked to write this two-day-a-week journal entry, I was a little nervous. I didn't know if I would have enough to write about or if it would be as exciting as the one my former teammate Travis Manger did last year. But hey, he is journalism major, so I will see what I can come up with. Here goes...
With the 2009 National Football League draft rapidly approaching, I had the opportunity to attend my teammate Alex Derenthal's G.B.D Party in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., last weekend. G.B.D is an acronym for Graduation, Birthday, and Draft. I felt as though this would be a great time to get away from everything and just enjoy my time in the sunshine state with a few good friends and their families.
I flew out of Philadelphia with another teammate, Andre Douglas, on the 19th of April. I'm not a firm believer of luck, but if I was, I promise you I would have NONE! For the second consecutive time flying (4th overall), things didn't go as planned. Delays, delays, and more delays. It's basically a typical day in the airport for me though.
Andre, on the other hand, didn't seem to be too thrilled about having to wait an extra hour or so cramped on the plane before it took off . [Don't forget Andre is 6'5, 310 lbs.] When we finally landed in Atlanta, our connecting flight was taking off in 30 minutes and was already boarding its passengers. Andre and I sped through Atlanta's airport to our connecting gate, and we were actually able to get onto the flight.
Finally, something good happened to me in the airport. We landed in Fort Lauderdale two hours behind schedule, but our ride was right on time. Alex and his girlfriend Gabi were waiting for us as we got our bags and headed for the car. I would have to say that Andre and I were not ready for what hit us when we got outside. We were actually able to breathe clean air (Believe me, it's most definitely different).
Alex reminded us the previous night to have our bathing suits ready, because we were heading straight to the beach from the airport. As we drove to the beach, I couldn't help but think to myself that "I was meant to live in Florida." Everything about it just seemed perfect to me. I told myself right then and there that if I ever had the chance and the money to move here, I would.
The day at the beach was truly amazing (minus the sunburn I received on my back, because I failed to put sun tan lotion on it-- big mistake). We headed back to Alex's house to get cleaned up. We ate dinner at a local pizza shop named "Antonio's ". Alex proudly stated to us that he has been coming to this restaurant since he was three-years old, and we would not be disappointed. Sixteen slices later, he was right.
We had an early wakeup call the next morning. A friend of the Derenthal family, Captain Mike, was waiting for us with four wave runners on the top of a giant $3.75 million dollar yacht. In all honestly, it's indescribable (see pictures). We all assisted Mike in unloading the wave runners into the water. The next thing I know, a giant splash hit the water next to us. Alex, out of nowhere jumped from the top of the yacht into the water. It's not every day you get to experience something like that, so I took full advantage of it. I ran upstairs, took one look down and jumped! We hopped on our wave runners and headed toward the inner coastal. I was anxious to see how fast one of these machines went. I topped out at 60 mph.
Both Andre and Alex seemed to be daredevils on theirs as well. Alex would make some of the sharpest turns I've ever seen, going close to 35 mph. A piece of advice to all those riding wave runners or plan on living in Florida in the future, make sure you don't forget to put sunscreen on your feet! The sun is a different animal down there. I know firsthand and will never again forget. The experience, as Andre put it, was simply, "life changing". I agree.
The trip to Florida was a way for me to get away from everything. I wouldn't be worrying about the NFL draft or if there was any possibility of me signing on as a free agent somewhere. A major goal in my life, and I'm sure it's the same for many others is to do enough to allow my parents to live comfortably. They've sacrificed so much to make my life better. I've always wanted to get my mother a house, and I want to make sure my niece and nephews never have to worry about anything for the rest of their lives. Is that going to happen? I don't know. Is it possible? Absolutely.
Alex's party was on Sunday, which was the second day of the draft. His mother Lynn (possibly the sweetest woman you'll ever meet) had everything running smoothly and had more food than you can imagine. He had around 70 people that showed up to celebrate his special day. As I sat on the couch texting my youngest brother Nico, I looked up on the television and saw "Jacksonville Jaguars Selection: Terrance Knighton, DT, Temple University". I couldn't have been happier.
I started repeating it to everyone, and his mother finally starting screaming. I sat back, sent Terrance (or TKnight to everyone but me) a text message and smiled. This was well deserved, and I could sense good things for my other teammates on this day as well.
As the draft went on, I spent a lot of my time outside throwing the football around with Alex and Andre. This sped the process up and by around 6:30 p.m. when the draft ended, I was still out there tossing the pigskin around. No one else on our roster was drafted that day and things weren't looking to good for Alex, Andre, or myself.
We got some good news in a phone call that night from one of the fastest men I know, our wide receiver Travis Shelton. He told us the Denver Broncos wanted him in their team's minicamp, and he was heading out west on Thursday. Two down, a lot more to go.
The next thing I know, Andre comes in and tells us the Buccaneers were offering a two-year deal, and he is on his way to Tampa Bay on Thursday. I never saw the big guy smile the way he was at that exact moment. My prayers for the last four months were being answered.
On Monday morning, Alex got a few calls from different teams around the league. My center chose to go into a minicamp with his hometown team, the Miami Dolphins. If I know Alex, no one will outwork him, and he will be on an NFL roster this season. His house basically erupted. Calls were made to all of his family members and everyone had huge smiles on their faces.
Our return flight back to Philadelphia was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, and I still wasn't hearing much from any teams. Early Tuesday morning, my agent gave me the news that I've been waiting for. The Philadelphia Eagles invited me to their rookie minicamp this weekend. I tried to keep the smile hidden, but Alex and Andre knew the deal.
Before I got off the phone with my agent, they had already posted my situation in their statuses on Facebook. I felt relieved but at the same time, I understand how difficult the road ahead of me is going to be. But, like the rest of my teammates, I think we are ready for the challenges that lie ahead. We have come from a program where the coaches preach Toughness, Discipline, and Finish. Coach Golden and his staff have been absolutely amazing throughout this entire process.
All in all, the trip to Fort Lauderdale was a success for everyone involved. The opportunity is there, the rest is up to us. I will leave you with a quote my younger brother Alex sent me a few days ago; it fits in well with what I've been going through the past few months. "Those who endure, CONQUER". Think about it! Until next time...
