- Sep 6, 2005
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Though the Jaguars knew that the former Clemson star was their guy, they said that the NFL forced them to wait at least seven minutes before making any sort of move.
Once that seven-minute mark hit, though, things got worse for the Jaguars. Lawrence wasn’t picking up his phone.
While the Jaguars won’t complain, considering everything worked out just fine, fans at least now know why it took them so long to officially select Lawrence to kick off the draft.
Fans watching the draft at home were understandably annoyed. As everyone knew what the Jaguars were going to do, why drag it out?“Well when the league called, they said you have to wait seven minutes to turn in the card,” Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said in a draft video released by the team. “So we didn’t pick up the phone to call [Lawrence]. We just sat there, and he’s sitting on his end wondering why we haven’t called him.”
Once that seven-minute mark hit, though, things got worse for the Jaguars. Lawrence wasn’t picking up his phone.
Coach Urban Meyer eventually picked up the phone himself and got through to Lawrence, and the rest was history.“We started calling him, getting a recording,” owner Shad Kahn said. “Then you’re seeing the clock tick away and, ‘Let’s try it again.’ We got the same recording. So after about three tries, you're nervous.”
While the Jaguars won’t complain, considering everything worked out just fine, fans at least now know why it took them so long to officially select Lawrence to kick off the draft.