Forgive me for this analogy, but Trevor Lawrence reminds me of this former great college QB — who became the Number 1 “draft bust” in NFL history

… Leaf’s story is one that many athletes should read

Maybe it is his free-spirited nature, his strong personal beliefs, or his long hair. When I first saw Trevor Lawrence in his freshman season at Clemson, I was impressed, as was the rest of America — but I still wondered about him. 

No, it was not the hair, but perhaps the air. He just kind of exuded nonchalance, which can be good at times, but not always. 

I heard that he was a free spirit, which some coaches do not like. And that he had his own mind, which is good but not in the minds of many coaches.

Still, seeing Clemson destroy the Crimson Tide of Alabama was enough to sway my opinion. 

The guy was a winner. 

Big, agile, with a rifle-like arm. 

But then, after the Tigers were decimated by Ohio State in the 2020 semifinals, I started to think,

I have seen this guy somewhere before this.

Truth be told, I just watched the highlights. I swore off watching all college football for this season. 

Nevertheless, the idea of seeing this same big, strong college quarterback who is being touted as a number 1 pick in the NFL draft haunted me. 

Who is this guy like?

Enter Ryan Leaf.

Who the hell is Ryan Leaf?

I know that many young football fans have probably never heard of Ryan Leaf. There is a reason for that. 

If they Google his name, they will discover that “Ryan Leaf” brings up this little tidbit: The number 1 draft bust in NFL history.

Yet, when he left Washington State after the 1997 season, one in which he led the little known Cougars to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1931 — and gave national championship Michigan a veritable run for their money — Leaf was ranked as possibly the top pick in the NFL Draft — along with Peyton Manning of Tennessee.

He was a best of an athlete, about the same size, 6-5 or 6-6, as Lawrence is, and maybe a little stronger at 240 pounds. In addition, he had a very strong arm, and had decent mobility. He had been named first team All American in some polls and was the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. 

He played a great game in the Rose Bowl loss to Michigan, engineering comeback that ended deep in enemy territory, ending when his spike was ruled after the clock ran out and a 21-16 win for Michigan. That raised his profile significantly, and the Colts, who had the top pick, wanted Leaf instead of Manning with their number 1 pick. 

However, the Indianapolis coaches like Manning better, and they made the wise choice with Leaf going to the San Diego Chargers. 

Manning had been a disappointment for Tennessee fans for failing to deliver a national title to the Volunteers. He just could not win the big game, and that had reduced his marketability.

Manning ended up number 1 and Leaf number 2. 

Similarities and differences

So, the obvious similarities are physical. Both Leaf and Lawrence have tremendous raw physical skills, one that could translate into a large contract in the NFL. 

Both were/are free spirited people, going their own ways. Lawrence has the long hair, which Leaf did not, but you could not ignore both of their leadership skills. Both led their teams to great accomplishments, though Leaf did not win the national title. Lawrence did have one title, and neither won in their senior season. 

Leaf took his Washington State team to unparalleled heights for the program. 

Neither won the Heisman, with Leaf finishing third to Charles Woodson and Manning, while Lawrence, who was the preseason favorite in 2020, fell to second to Alabama wideout Devonta Smith, the first receiver to win the award in 29 years. 

Lawrence had a much-higher profile than Leaf did in Pullman, Washington, but Leaf engineered two wins over Pac-10 powers UCLA and Southern Cal early in the season to capture national attention. 

However, Lawrence’s behavior and life will undergo a much more stringent look than Leaf’s did 23 years ago. The NFL is determined today to eliminate draft busts like Leaf turned out to be, but the truth is that there are just as many today as there were then.

Which should frighten the Jacksonville Jaquars, which have the top pick this year. They obviously will probably lean toward Lawrence, but since they will also have a new coach, who knows what their priorities will be. 

Why did a superb athlete like Leaf fail?

Experts who analyzed Leaf identified a number of areas that caused Leaf’s failure. He recently talked about the reasons that brought him down. 

The football experts criticize his lack of a work ethic, poor personal behavior, lack of focus, and a strange personality. 

Ultimately, his NFL life ended in failure in just four years, but it ended up in prison about a decade ago because of drug issues. 

He talked about those problems with the Los Angeles Times three years ago,    

There was a joke going around campus when I was at Washington State. It went, “What’s the difference between God and Ryan Leaf?” The punchline was, “God doesn’t think he’s Ryan Leaf.”

When I came into the NFL, there were three things that were very important to me: money, power and prestige. I was powerful now because I was a famous athlete. I had prestige because I was doing what everybody wanted to do. And I had a lot of money.

When I’m talking to parents, I tell them an analogy. My emotional level was kind of stunted when I was about 13, so I tell them to try this experiment at home: Give your 13-year-old child $31 million and see how that works out.

So I’m 21, have $31 million, and I wasn’t responsible to anyone anymore for money or really anything. If anybody said “no” to me, I would discard them from my life. That included my parents at one point. I just had zero perspective on what was important.

I spend a lot of time now working with young men coming into the NFL, or in college, and my biggest suggestion to them is, just because you’re a good football player doesn’t mean you’re a good person. The ego that goes with being an athlete in this country is huge. We play a game.

But that game was important to me, and to millions of people across the country. I was always successful at that game, and I didn’t fail until I got to the highest level, so a lot of my bad behavior was covered up by how I performed. Once my career started to go downhill, those behaviors were given a spotlight on a national level. I think it was my mother’s worst fear that her son would be found out that way, on that stage. And I was.

Sam Farmer, “His NFL-to-prison cautionary tale leaves students transfixed,” L.A. Times, March 20, 2017

Leaf’s life, instead of celebrity and success, was filled with addiction to painkillers, 32 months in prison, a suicide attempt, and failure. 

Warning for Lawrence — and others

Leaf now works for a company that places him in front of young people who have experienced problem with alcohol, drugs, or the legal system. 

However, the part of Leaf’s statement above that should be a red flag for current athletes is the first one, 

God doesn’t think he’s Ryan Leaf.

Sam Farmer, L.A. Times, March 20, 2017

Too many athletes are like Leaf in that their value systems are out of sync with reality. They believe that they are God, not servants of God. That could include people like Lawrence who became a hero not just at Clemson but nationally after he engineered a huge win over Alabama for a national title a short time ago. 

That sort of fame can be fleeting. 

Peyton Manning earned two Super Bowl rings and about four MVP awards in the NFL, but much of that was due to his work ethic and willingness to work with all members of his team. 

Some stories I have read about Lawrence have tried to paint him as a humble, level-headed guy, but it is difficult to navigate your way through a minefield like that of the NFL and the draft. 

Lawrence has the raw talent to succeed in the NFL, but so did Leaf. The problem for Lawrence will not be football, it will be handling life. 

I have said that for the high school and college athletes I have coached, the success can be predicated on how well they do above their shoulders. 

It is all in a person’s head if he or she achieves success.

That is why Ryan Leaf failed, and it is a sad narrative with warning signs for many people in similar situations.