From some article on the draft:
”It was an unforgettable and frustrating experience that O’Neal intends to thoroughly utilize as motivational fuel heading into his rookie season. Ultimately, O’Neal fell not because of his production or film but due to a slower than anticipated 40-yard dash time of 4.63 to 4.71 seconds.
“I will never, ever forget the names they called,” said O’Neal, a three-year starter for the Aggies whose rookie contract includes a $10,000 signing bonus and $50,000 of his base salary guaranteed. “I was projected from the fourth round to the seventh round, and for my name to not even be called at all, I wish those guys luck, but there’s no chance some of them are on my level. To fall because of a misinterpreted 40-yard dash time, to see a lot of that stuff, that was interesting to me. I had a lot riding on this.“
My two reactions:
1. “Misinterpreted.” Lol.
2. After years of bagging on him for being slow, it’s hilarious that the reason he wasn’t drafted was because he was… slow