At the conclusion of the NFL draft, Matt Rhule made a phone call.
OK, he made a lot of phone calls, but his call to Sam Tecklenburg was more unexpected than the rest. Tecklenburg, who spent the past five years at Baylor, decided in January to retire from football, but had remained in contact with his former head coach.
He just didn't necessarily expect to actually hear from him the Saturday of the NFL draft.
"(Rhule had said) if I was interested, we could maybe figure something out down the line and that's kind of what happened," Tecklenburg said in an interview with The Observer. "(I was surprised) a little bit. I wasn't sure if he would actually call or not, (but) I'm really glad he did."
Tecklenburg is one of two former Baylor players on the Panthers roster, signing as an undrafted free agent and joining teammate and sixth-round draft pick defensive tackle Bravvion Roy. Leading up to the draft, Tecklenburg wasn't on any team's radar. He hadn't participated in pre-draft activities and had moved on from his dream of an NFL career after posting a message to Twitter on Jan. 10 about his retirement.
"Football has given me so much, but it has also taken a lot," Tecklenburg wrote. "While my dream has always been to play in the NFL, I can walk away now with no regrets, because I gave absolutely everything I had to this game."
Injuries often cause young athletes to walk away from sports. That wasn't the case for Tecklenburg, who never missed a game in college.
Tecklenburg came to Baylor as a tight end in 2015 and redshirted his freshman season. He struck around through a coaching change and the school's sexual assault scandal, and when Rhule arrived, a position change. Not two months before fall camp started in 2017, Rhule's first as head coach, Tecklenburg became a down lineman to offensive line. He started at center for the final 10 games of that season and then all 13 the following year.
His senior season, in 2019, he was a team captain and one of the Bears' more vocal leaders. Baylor finished 11-3, tying the most wins in school history, played in the Big 12 Championship game and the Sugar Bowl.
"I was as burnt out as I had ever felt physically and mentally. I had just given everything to that last season from the very first day last January all the way through the spring football, Tecklenburg said. "I just felt like that was a good point (to retire).
"Then as time went on, I felt like that was a really big decision I made and I wanted to stand by it, even though I was not not sold on that I've made the right one. And then eventually just had to say it's OK to change your mind."
He didn't regret the decision to move on from football, knowing he was always thinking about what was in his own best interest. But the one thing would have done differently is be more open with his support system about what he was going through.
"I just think during the season, maybe if I had acknowledged some of the things I was feeling physically and mentally instead of putting them on the back burner," Tecklenburg said, "maybe I could have arrived at where I am right now a little differently."
Between retiring and that phone call in April, Tecklenburg found a part-time job he loved helping in Baylor's weight room, considering strength training as a future career.
When Rhule extended the invitation to join the Panthers, Tecklenburg took a day to talk it over with his family, not wanting to go back on his decision. But mere months removed from the conclusion of Baylor's season, he had an opportunity to continue his football career.
Once Tecklenburg made up his mind, and had a contract offer in hand, he had to call his agents to see if they had any interest in still representing him _ a first for everyone involved.
Now Tecklenburg will get an opportunity to compete for a backup spot on an offensive line that is need of depth, and eventually showing what he can do by going toe-to-toe with Roy just like they did for years in Waco, Texas.
"Anyone who's ever asked about him I always tell everyone, I'm grateful for him because he made me so much better the past few years having to try and block him every day," Tecklenburg said.
Who usually wins those battles?
"He's a great player so he's gonna make his plays, but I'd like to think I do a decent job against him," Tecklenburg said.
Roy and Tecklenburg are in a unique position, playing for a majority of their college staff (there's 14 former Baylor coaches in Carolina) at the next level. The combined funny stories they have about Rhule and his antics could go on for days.
Tecklenburg said his experiences at Baylor prepared him for the learning he'll have to do with the Panthers, including the virtual rookie minicamp that was held last weekend.
After making multiple life-changing decisions over the course of a few months, he's not looking back on going pro. He's ready to be a Panther.
"I made the decision to be all in," Tecklenburg said. "I'm glad I did. I'm excited."
