A dream come true, part 2: 10 former Falcons getting their shot at the pros
Provided by Milford Academy
NEW BERLIN – In 1999, when Milford Academy was on a mission to relocate the campus after being in based in Connecticut since opening their doors, Athletic Director and head football coach Bill Chaplick was selected to lead. After a long process, the academy selected the old New Berlin school, located on School Road inside the village. The campus now plays host to a new roster of approximately 50 players from all over the country.
Following the one-year stint, many members of the team will receive scholarship offers to play Division-I or Division-II schools while some are recruited to play at Division-III programs. Depending on there play at the collegiate level, some may get there shot at playing in the pros.
In April, 10 players who were members of the 2013 and 2014 rosters under Chaplick, were either drafted by, signed by or invited by National Football League (NFL) organization to become a member of their team.
The first portion of this two-part series featured the the first four of the 10 players – Blessuan Austin, Ka’Dar Hollman, Jamar Summers, Kahzin Daniels, Jacob Dolegala, Derrek Thomas, Marquis Young, Eric Mayes, Derrick Gore and Chasz Wright – time at Milford Academy, where and what they did after their year with the Falcons and who they are getting their shot in the NFL with. Today’s second part features the remaining six who are now headed to the big league.
Jacob Dolegala, Quarterback
Standing a 6 feet-6 inches and weighing in at 240 pounds, there is no question quarterback Jacob Dolegala is the near-perfect size to be an NFL field general. With his 4.91 second 40-yard dash at his pro day, Dolegala is getting his chance in the professional league with the Cincinnati Bengals.
However, the quarterback’s dream of reaching the NFL was almost dashed when he suffered a labrum tear in his throwing shoulder his senior year of high school.
After the minor setback of surgery to repair the tear, the New York native hailing from Buffalo made the near four-hour trip to Milford to begin the road to his recovery. It was there, with his 143 completed passes and 50 touchdowns through the air, Central Connecticut signed Dolegala to a scholarship.
As the starter of the Blue Devils for all four years, Dolegala amassed 8,129 passing yards with 48 career passing TDs in 44 games. His completion percentage finished at 57.6 percent as he connected with his receivers 654 times out of 1,136 tries, ending his career at Central Connecticut with an 126.5 efficiency rating.
The former Falcon has football ties as his grandfather, Al Bemiller, played for the Bills in the AFL in the 1960s.
Derrek Thomas, Cornerback
A wide receiver in Chaplick’s offense at Milford Academy, Derrek Thomas a key member of the 9-3 2013 Falcons roster. Thomas came away with 15 receptions for 446 years, averaging 29.7 yards per catch, and four touchdowns in the 11 games played with Milford.
From the prep school, the then wide receiver moved on to play with the Temple Owls. In 2016, Thomas moved to the cornerback position and appeared in 27 games. In his time as an Owl, the now defensive standout finished with 35 tackles, one interception and 13 pass deflections.
Two years after making the switch to the other side of the ball, Thomas transferred to Baylor University for his senior year and immediately made an impact for the Bears. In 13 games as a member of the Big 12 conference, the cornerback racked up 21 tackles and one interception.
In April, Thomas picked up the phone as a number from Seattle Washington was calling. It was the Seahawks organization on the other end to let the former Milford Academy player know he will be getting a shot to play under Pete Carroll.
Marquis Young, Running Back
After finishing his one season at Milford Academy, Marquis Young went one state to the east and played for the Minutemen at the University of Massachusetts (Umass) where he will be a member of the record books after his four-year stint with UMass, finishing fifth all-time for rushing yards and carries as he picked up 3,631 yards on the ground in 685 attempts.
His longest scoring run of his collegiate career was for 95 yards but it wasn’t the only time the former Falcon took it into the endzone. Young crossed the goal line a total of 29 times, ending up sixth on the all-time list for rushing touchdowns in the program’s history.
Averaging 5.3 yards per carry, Young also ended his career for the Minutemen as seventh all-time for that statistic. He averaged 77.3 yards per game, breaking the centry yard mark eight times over his career. As a Falcon, the running back recorded 375 yards in 40 carries (9.8 yards per carry) with five rushing touchdowns.
Young has attended two minicamps already this NFL offseason as he was invited to the Indianapolis Colts rookie minicamp on May 3-5. The 6 foot-1 inch, 215 pound speedster – who ran a 4.49 40 yard dash at his pro day – then went to Nashville to take part in the Tennessee Titans minicamp for rookies May 10-12.
Three other former Falcons were invited to NFL rookie minicamps this offseason. Offensive lineman Eric Mayes, running back Derrick Gore and offensive lineman Chasz Wright. Gore, a four-year player at Louisana-Monroe, is getting his chance in the league with Los Angeles Chargers. Gore, who complied 257 yards in 40 attempts at Milford, scored three touchdowns for Chaplick’s offense. At LA-Monroe, the running back ended with 1247 years in 295 attempts with 12 rushing TDs.
Mayes, once on the defensive side of the ball as a Milford Academy player, moved to the other side of the ball when he attended the University of Southern Florida following his year in New Berlin. In his final two season with the Bulls, Mayes played in 22 games, starting 21 of them at left tackle.
Best known for his time opening holes for now-Giants running back Saquon Barkley and protecting quarterback Trace McSorley, Penn State alum Chasz Wright was redshirted his true freshman year. Returning in 2015 for his season of action on the field, Wright saw playing time at left guard.
Over the next three seasons, the former Milford Academy lineman appeared in 38 games – 16 of them starts in the trenches. At the conclusion of his senior year, Wright was awarded the Quarterback’s Award at the team’s award banquet.
Wright attended the Buffalo Bills rookie minicamp in May as he was picked up as an undrafted free agent. If he is invited to join the preseason roster with the bills, Wright will have the chance to create gaps in the line for another former Falcon LeSean McCoy.
Milford Academy, a national winning tradition, has an overall record of 171-48 under Chaplick as head coach. The coach who brought the program to New Berlin was a three-year letterman at the center position as a member of Boston College’s roster from 1975-1980. Chaplick is entering his 20th season, 21st year as head coach of the Falcons program.
Since taking over the program and moving the school into the area, Chaplick’s has coached 16 players that have made it into the NFL. Some of those played include Tyler Matakevich (Pittsburgh Steelers), Shonn Greene (NY Jets), Ollie Ogbu (Indianapolis Colts) and McCoy.
In the past three years, Milford Academy has sent 98-percent of the student body onto college and two-thirds of the graduates have received scholarship offers to continue both their education and playing career.
Following the one-year stint, many members of the team will receive scholarship offers to play Division-I or Division-II schools while some are recruited to play at Division-III programs. Depending on there play at the collegiate level, some may get there shot at playing in the pros.
In April, 10 players who were members of the 2013 and 2014 rosters under Chaplick, were either drafted by, signed by or invited by National Football League (NFL) organization to become a member of their team.
The first portion of this two-part series featured the the first four of the 10 players – Blessuan Austin, Ka’Dar Hollman, Jamar Summers, Kahzin Daniels, Jacob Dolegala, Derrek Thomas, Marquis Young, Eric Mayes, Derrick Gore and Chasz Wright – time at Milford Academy, where and what they did after their year with the Falcons and who they are getting their shot in the NFL with. Today’s second part features the remaining six who are now headed to the big league.
Jacob Dolegala, Quarterback
Standing a 6 feet-6 inches and weighing in at 240 pounds, there is no question quarterback Jacob Dolegala is the near-perfect size to be an NFL field general. With his 4.91 second 40-yard dash at his pro day, Dolegala is getting his chance in the professional league with the Cincinnati Bengals.
However, the quarterback’s dream of reaching the NFL was almost dashed when he suffered a labrum tear in his throwing shoulder his senior year of high school.
After the minor setback of surgery to repair the tear, the New York native hailing from Buffalo made the near four-hour trip to Milford to begin the road to his recovery. It was there, with his 143 completed passes and 50 touchdowns through the air, Central Connecticut signed Dolegala to a scholarship.
As the starter of the Blue Devils for all four years, Dolegala amassed 8,129 passing yards with 48 career passing TDs in 44 games. His completion percentage finished at 57.6 percent as he connected with his receivers 654 times out of 1,136 tries, ending his career at Central Connecticut with an 126.5 efficiency rating.
The former Falcon has football ties as his grandfather, Al Bemiller, played for the Bills in the AFL in the 1960s.
Derrek Thomas, Cornerback
A wide receiver in Chaplick’s offense at Milford Academy, Derrek Thomas a key member of the 9-3 2013 Falcons roster. Thomas came away with 15 receptions for 446 years, averaging 29.7 yards per catch, and four touchdowns in the 11 games played with Milford.
From the prep school, the then wide receiver moved on to play with the Temple Owls. In 2016, Thomas moved to the cornerback position and appeared in 27 games. In his time as an Owl, the now defensive standout finished with 35 tackles, one interception and 13 pass deflections.
Two years after making the switch to the other side of the ball, Thomas transferred to Baylor University for his senior year and immediately made an impact for the Bears. In 13 games as a member of the Big 12 conference, the cornerback racked up 21 tackles and one interception.
In April, Thomas picked up the phone as a number from Seattle Washington was calling. It was the Seahawks organization on the other end to let the former Milford Academy player know he will be getting a shot to play under Pete Carroll.
Marquis Young, Running Back
After finishing his one season at Milford Academy, Marquis Young went one state to the east and played for the Minutemen at the University of Massachusetts (Umass) where he will be a member of the record books after his four-year stint with UMass, finishing fifth all-time for rushing yards and carries as he picked up 3,631 yards on the ground in 685 attempts.
His longest scoring run of his collegiate career was for 95 yards but it wasn’t the only time the former Falcon took it into the endzone. Young crossed the goal line a total of 29 times, ending up sixth on the all-time list for rushing touchdowns in the program’s history.
Averaging 5.3 yards per carry, Young also ended his career for the Minutemen as seventh all-time for that statistic. He averaged 77.3 yards per game, breaking the centry yard mark eight times over his career. As a Falcon, the running back recorded 375 yards in 40 carries (9.8 yards per carry) with five rushing touchdowns.
Young has attended two minicamps already this NFL offseason as he was invited to the Indianapolis Colts rookie minicamp on May 3-5. The 6 foot-1 inch, 215 pound speedster – who ran a 4.49 40 yard dash at his pro day – then went to Nashville to take part in the Tennessee Titans minicamp for rookies May 10-12.
Three other former Falcons were invited to NFL rookie minicamps this offseason. Offensive lineman Eric Mayes, running back Derrick Gore and offensive lineman Chasz Wright. Gore, a four-year player at Louisana-Monroe, is getting his chance in the league with Los Angeles Chargers. Gore, who complied 257 yards in 40 attempts at Milford, scored three touchdowns for Chaplick’s offense. At LA-Monroe, the running back ended with 1247 years in 295 attempts with 12 rushing TDs.
Mayes, once on the defensive side of the ball as a Milford Academy player, moved to the other side of the ball when he attended the University of Southern Florida following his year in New Berlin. In his final two season with the Bulls, Mayes played in 22 games, starting 21 of them at left tackle.
Best known for his time opening holes for now-Giants running back Saquon Barkley and protecting quarterback Trace McSorley, Penn State alum Chasz Wright was redshirted his true freshman year. Returning in 2015 for his season of action on the field, Wright saw playing time at left guard.
Over the next three seasons, the former Milford Academy lineman appeared in 38 games – 16 of them starts in the trenches. At the conclusion of his senior year, Wright was awarded the Quarterback’s Award at the team’s award banquet.
Wright attended the Buffalo Bills rookie minicamp in May as he was picked up as an undrafted free agent. If he is invited to join the preseason roster with the bills, Wright will have the chance to create gaps in the line for another former Falcon LeSean McCoy.
Milford Academy, a national winning tradition, has an overall record of 171-48 under Chaplick as head coach. The coach who brought the program to New Berlin was a three-year letterman at the center position as a member of Boston College’s roster from 1975-1980. Chaplick is entering his 20th season, 21st year as head coach of the Falcons program.
Since taking over the program and moving the school into the area, Chaplick’s has coached 16 players that have made it into the NFL. Some of those played include Tyler Matakevich (Pittsburgh Steelers), Shonn Greene (NY Jets), Ollie Ogbu (Indianapolis Colts) and McCoy.
In the past three years, Milford Academy has sent 98-percent of the student body onto college and two-thirds of the graduates have received scholarship offers to continue both their education and playing career.
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