University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Three Former Golden Eagles Take Their Game Overseas
4/2/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
April 2, 2007
TAMPA, Fla. - For Tom Johnson, Etric Pruitt and Jeremy Parquet - all former Southern Miss football players - the chance of a lifetime awaits them overseas in the form of NFL Europa for the 2007 season.
All three players - Johnson with the Indianapolis Colts, Pruitt with the Detroit Lions and Parquet with the St. Louis Rams - were allocated by their respected NFL teams for the opportunity to prove that they deserve a spot on an NFL roster by improving their game while competing against other NFL players as well as national players from all across the globe for the next four months. However, instead of playing in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, these three players will be scattered across Germany, with Johnson to the Cologne Centurions, Parquet with the Hamburg Sea Devils and Pruitt a member of the Berlin Thunder.
The NFL Europa league consists of six teams, with five in Germany, including the Berlin Thunder, Cologne Centurions, Frankfurt Galaxy, Hamburg Sea Devils, Rhein Fire and the Amsterdam Admirals - the only team outside of Germany. All six teams report to Tampa, Fla. for a three week training camp in March before departing for Europe in April for a 10 week season that concludes with the two teams with the best record pitted against each other in the World Bowl Championship Game held in Frankfurt, Germany on June 23.
Since wrapping up their collegiate careers as Golden Eagles, all three players have made their way into the NFL and onto a team that now looks to further their playing career with the opportunity that NFL Europa offers. However, the road to achieving their dream of playing in the NFL has not been easy. Pruitt (2004 sixth round draft choice - 186th overall - by the Atlanta Falcons) and Parquet (2005 seventh round draft pick - 238th overall - by the Kansas City Chiefs) were each late round draftees, and Johnson signed as an undrafted free agent with the Indianapolis Colts (2006).
Pruitt, who with 362 tackles concluded his collegiate career with the most tackles by a defensive back in Southern Miss team history, played with the Falcons for one season in 2004 before getting released at the end of the year, then signed with the Seattle Seahawks in 2005 and played in Super Bowl XL, but was cut again at season's end. He caught on with the Detroit Lions in 2006 and was a member of their practice squad for the rest of the season.
 Etric Pruitt  | |
"I'm real excited to go to Europe," said Pruitt. "At first, I wasn't excited and didn't really want to go, but now that I'm here in Tampa in training camp and getting better at the stuff that I need to get better at, I'm excited to go over there and try to win a World Bowl and hopefully I'll have a job when I come back."
Parquet, who is posting a weekly blog on SouthernMiss.com entitled From Hattiesburg to Hamburg about his travels and experiences, looks to make a steady impact in NFL Europa by showcasing the same talent that saw him start 40 games as a Golden Eagle. Parquet's path into the NFL took an unexpected turn after getting released by the Chiefs following one season with the team and was forced to find a job elsewhere in 2006. After six visits to six different NFL teams, he signed with the St. Louis Rams where he played in the final five games for the team last season.
"When I got released by Kansas City on September 1, 2006, I can honestly tell you that was the worst day of my life," said Parquet. "I tried to play it off like it was all good and I was going to get back in the league quick, but it didn't happen that way. Growing up playing football every year for 15 years or so, and then somebody tells you it's over - that really hurts.
"But I stayed positive and humble, gave it to God, and I went to St. Louis and I was signed to the Rams active roster for the last five games of the season. That was a good experience and I got to play with another great tackle in Orlando Pace."
 Jeremy Parquet | |
For Johnson, who played only two seasons at Southern Miss after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, the transitional process of going from college to the professional ranks has had its difficulties in the initial process of making an NFL roster, but drawing from his own collegiate experience at Southern Miss alongside his fellow alumnae has made him more confident in not only his own ability as a player, but is also something he can share with a few fellow Golden Eagles on the same path as well.
"Right now it's been a struggle for me, mentally, to do all those transactions from college to NFL, and then having to come to a place like NFL Europa to rehabilitate yourself and work on whatever they have you doing," said Johnson. "So it's been kind of frustrating for me, but at the same time it's great for all the Southern Miss guys to be here and to have an opportunity to pretty much dominate because each one of us - Etric, 'Padre' (Parquet) and myself - we're all pretty dominate people, so we're going to come in and dominate the league."
With training camp wrapping up in Tampa, all three players have had a chance to play against one another in combined scrimmages and each has seen how their former Golden Eagle teammates have improved since their college days.
"The Southern Miss players that we have here are really good people in Tom 'Tank' Johnson and Jeremy Parquet, and they're really good players," said Pruitt. "I scrimmaged against 'Tank' already and he had two sacks in that scrimmage, so that was impressive to me, and at the same time I'm over here trying to do my thing too. Overall, I think it's going to be good to have Southern Miss represented all over the world."
Though they will be halfway across the world, the school that all three played at will forever be in their thoughts as each proudly represents not only their home country, but their alma mater as well.
"I'm always a Golden Eagle, born a Golden Eagle and raised as a Golden Eagle and I'll always be a Golden Eagle no matter what I do," said Pruitt. "Whether it's football, business-wise or what not, I'll be a Golden Eagle always."
The 2007 NFL Europa season begins on April 14 and will be available to watch on the NFL Network with at least one game airing live while the other two games will be available on tape delay.
