Texas Tech linebacker Dakota Allen became the first “Last Chance U” star ever to get be selected in the NFL Draft. The Los Angeles Rams picked Allen in the seventh round at 251st overall.
It marked a new beginning for a prospect with a complicated past. He was featured on Season 2 of the Netflix docuseries, which follows college football prospects after a huge fall out of prominence. Allen ended up at East Mississippi Community College after he’d been charged with second-degree robbery and kicked out of Texas Tech. When the charges were dismissed and Allen played well in JUCO, he returned to Lubbock to continue his career.
“Honestly, it was a weird experience, but also a great experience,” Allen told the team website when asked about appearing on the show. “People do recognize me from the show. They recognize me as sort of the good guy on the show. The whole experience was just amazing and I’m thankful for it because I was able to continue playing football.”
Indeed, Allen got much more support on Twitter than the average seventh round pick. Many of the show’s fans seemed to be rooting for the young linebacker.
