It’s always nice to be wanted.
And Plainwell native Jack Conklin certainly must have felt wanted by the Tennessee Titans during the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday, April 28.
Tennessee traded up from 15th to eighth in the first round to select Conklin, an offensive tackle out of Michigan State University.
The Titans, who had traded away the first overall pick to the Los Angeles Rams the previous week, surrendered a second and fourth round pick to Cleveland to move up seven places, ensuring they would get Conklin.
“Ever since I went and took a visit down to Tennessee, I fell in love with the program and everything they’re trying to build there,” Conklin, listed at 6-foot-6 and 325 pounds, said in a conference call with reporters. “And I had a sense after I left that that was going to be the organization I was going to end up with.
“Once I heard the trade go through, I was beyond speechless, just so excited, because I just knew they were going to choose me.”
Conklin’s path from Plainwell to top-10 draft selection wasn’t a typical one.
With no Division 1 scholarship offers coming out of high school, Conklin ended up attending MSU as a preferred walk-on.
He eventually earned a scholarship with the Spartans and, after being red-shirted as a freshman, went on to start 38 of 39 games the next three seasons. Thirty-five of those starts came at left tackle, with the other three at right tackle.
His play helped propel MSU into one of the top teams in the country, including a berth in the four-team playoff last season.
Along the way, Conklin earned All-Conference and All-American honors.
All the while, Conklin never forgot where he came from, often coming back to visit family and friends in Plainwell. He also came to see the Trojans football team—of which his father Darren Conklin serves as head coach—when his schedule allowed.
And the residents of Plainwell couldn’t be prouder of their native son, as evidenced by the several hundred who gathered for a draft watch party at Plainwell’s Performing Arts Center.
Plainwell fifth-grader Nicholas Rachel was among those supporters.
“When people think of Plainwell, they think of Jack Conklin,” said Rachel, who, along with friend Trammel Robinson, was decked out in a Trojan football jersey in honor of the occasion. “It makes me feel like Plainwell is a huge part of the NFL now. It feels good for someone like Jack to represent our town like that.”
The evening included refreshments and giveaways of such items as signed pictures of Conklin.
Plainwell seventh-grader Gavin Blades was one of the lucky fans to receive one of those photos.
“I’m just really surprised,” Blades said of hearing his number called for the giveaway. “It’s really cool. I actually found the ticket on the ground, to be honest with you. I was just lucky, I guess.”
Rachel considers himself lucky to have someone like Conklin to look up to.
“Knowing Jack made it to the NFL makes me want to try to do my best,” he said. “It makes me want to work hard every day to be the best I can be.”
Plainwell city manager Erik Wilson—a self-proclaimed huge fan of the NFL draft—said he was excited for Conklin.
“I was happy for Jack,” Wilson said. “I thought he’d go to the Titans at 15, but then they traded up and took him higher. I guess they must have thought other teams would take him.
“I was hoping the Lions would get him, but that’s a great pick.”
Wilson also pointed out Conklin will be linemates with former University of Michigan tackle Taylor Lewan who played in Ann Arbor from 2009 to 2013.
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