PRAYERS BEING ANSWERED — Besides exemplifying a wealth of faith in his Creator, Glen Rowell, like many NFL hopefuls who are aiming to cash in on the big leagues, has hired an agent, a development that has contributed mightily to his being afforded the opportunity to put his football skills on display in the minor leagues. A former Kentucky Christian University standout, the 26-year-old Rowell in 2015 signed with Bloomington Edge of the Champions Indoor Football before ultimately accepting an invitation to join Tri-Town the following year. So far, he’s auditioned for two National Arena League teams with another one scheduled for late October.
A pretty resourceful guy, that Glen Rowell is.
Take, for instance, how just before midday on Monday, Rowell, a minor league football player who last played for the Tri-Town Titans of the Midwest Professional Indoor Football league, staged to his Facebook page an informative pie graph that featured the percentage of individuals who wound finding their way onto a National Football League roster.
Surprisingly, the largest piece of the graph cited that 39 percent of undrafted free agents end earning a spot on an NFL 53-man roster.
A pretty galvanizing discovery for the 26-year-old Rowell, who’s steadfastly clinging to lofty aspirations of auditioning for an NFL team down the road — hopefully much sooner than later.
“I think I have a good chance (of auditioning for an NFL team) because I got God on my side,” Rowell, a Danville, Illinois native, told Making Headline News during a recent interview.
Besides exemplifying a wealth of faith in his Creator, Rowell, like many NFL hopefuls who are aiming to cash in on the big leagues, has hired an agent, a development that has contributed mightily to him being afforded the golden opportunity to put his football skills on display in the minor leagues.
A former Kentucky Christian University standout, Rowell in 2015 signed with the Bloomington Edge of the Champions Indoor Football League before ultimately accepting an invitation to join Tri-Town the following year.
However, it wasn’t until January 25 of this year that Rowell made his professional debut.
HE’S BEING WATCHED — Rowell was invited to work out for both the Columbus Lions and the Lehigh Steelhawks of the National Arena League. As if that’s not enough to turn heads, he is scheduled to audition for the NAL’s Jacksonville Sharks in late October.
Given the developments that followed, it’s safe to assume that he essentially made the most of that monumental opportunity.
That’s because just recently, Rowell was invited to work out for both the Columbus Lions and the Lehigh Steelhawks of the National Arena League. As if that’s not enough to turn heads, he is scheduled to audition for the NAL’s Jacksonville Sharks in late October.
A pretty resourceful guy, that Glen Rowell, a middle school teacher assistant who knows full well he’s been thrust in a favorable situation, considering it appears that pro scouts have him under their radar.
HOLDING HIS OWN — During his stint with Tri-Town, Rowell, a former NAIA All-American for Kentucky Christian, was as good as advertised. In a career-best five professional appearances, the 6-foot, 238-pound linebacker recorded 60 tackles, six sacks, and batted down 15 passes.
“I just signed with an NFL/CFL (type of) agent that really believes in me and my hard work and playing ability,” Rowell said. “All I have to do is keep training hard, stay focused, and stay ready for any opportunity.”
During his stint with Tri-Town, Rowell, a former NAIA All-American for Kentucky Christian, was as good as advertised. While making a career-best five professional appearances, the 6-foot, 238-pound linebacker recorded 60 tackles, six sacks, and batted down 15 passes.
To his credit, 10 of his tackles ended in loss yardage and two safeties.
A pretty versatile guy, that Glen Rowell is.
HEAD OF THE CLASS — A middle school teacher assistant, Rowell who knows full well he’s been thrust in a favorable situation, considering it appears that pro scouts have him under their radar.
“My latest tryout went great,” Rowell said of his August 26 invite to Columbus. They invited me to mini-camp. I got a lot of good feedback. They like my hustle, work ethic, and explosiveness and grind to never give up when I make mistakes. They like how I move athletically and fly around and how I catch the ball for a linebacker.”
For what it’s worth, that he’s being afforded the exposure of playing at the professional level is priceless, Rowell said. Still, he stressed, among other things, that now is not the time to delve off into cruise control.
Especially considering the NFL is his prized destination.
“The many ways that playing professionally has helped me is by being a motivation to others in my community, to (inspire them to) go back to school and reach for their dreams and to never to give up no matter what the situation is,” Rowell, last year’s MPIF runner-up for Defensive Player of The Year, said. “What’s special about my pro career is that I get to showcase my mobility and versatility to scouts.”
All of which practically sums up why this NFL hopeful deemed it essential to stage that intriguing pie graph to his Facebook page just before midday on Monday.
A pretty resourceful guy, that Glen Rowell is.
EDITOR’S NOTE:If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, producer, author, athlete, musician, barber, life coach, motivational speaker, cosmetologist, tax preparer, model, or pastor/minister who is seeking exposure and would like to share your story with an in-depth news feature, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.
Andre Johnson is Founder and Publisher for Making Headline News. A 2000 graduate of the University of Memphis School of Journalism and a former staff reporter the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper, Johnson covers the NBA Southwest Division from Dallas, Texas. To reach Johnson, send email to [email protected] or to [email protected]. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.
ABOUT ANDRE: Andre Johnson is a longtime sports journalist and a 2000 graduate of the University of the Memphis with Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. A native of Memphis, Johnson is a former sport reporter Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper and Memphis Sport Magazine. He worked as full-time staffer for The Commercial Appeal from 2000-2002, in which he was the beat reporter for the Memphis Houn’dawgs of now-defunct American Basketball Assocation and the Memphis Xplorers of the arenafootball2 league. He has interviewed numerous sports personalities, most notably Archie Manning, LeBron James, George “Iceman” Gervin, Issac Bruce, Laila Ali, Vince Carter, Paul Westphal, Phil Jackson, Ken Hamlin, Cortez Kennedy, Michael Oher, Kobe Bryant, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Marc Gasol, Dwight Howard, James Harden, Patrick Willis, Stanley Morgan, Dirk Nowitzki, Rick Carlisle, Mark Cuban, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Rudy Gay, John Force, Lamar Odom, Alexandra Stevenson, Derek Fisher, Penny Hardaway, Phillip Rivers, Colin Kaepernick, Jim Harbaugh, Tyreke Evans, Kirk Ferentz, and O. J. Mayo, among others. To reach Johnson, send email to: [email protected]. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.
Andre Johnson 
“I think I have a good chance (of auditioning for an NFL team) because I got God on my side,” Rowell, a Danville, Illinois native, told Making Headline News during a recent interview.
EDITOR’S NOTE: If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, producer, author, athlete, musician, barber, life coach, motivational speaker, cosmetologist, tax preparer, model, or pastor/minister who is seeking exposure and would like to share your story with an in-depth news feature, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.
