CHAPEL HILL, N.C. _ There went Austin Proehl again, zipping from one half of the football field to the other.
He'd sprint off the line, stop, cut one way or the other, then leap high or dive low to snag passes at North Carolina's pro day on Tuesday. As he went through his wide receiver workout, some 20 NFL scouts, including one from the Carolina Panthers, jotted down notes from the sideline.
Standing right with them was Austin's dad, Ricky, a former Carolina Panthers player and assistant coach. Or at least, he was standing with the scouts for parts of his son's workouts. At other times, he hopped right onto the field with Austin, lining up like a pseudo-defensive back.
You know, just dad stuff.
Except in their case, it's more than a typical father-son relationship. It's a kid trying to follow in his father's footsteps without ... well, following exactly in his father's footsteps.
"There's a lot of anxiety _ it's your son," Ricky Proehl, a 17-year NFL veteran, said after UNC's pro day ended. "You know, when you're out there doing it, it's a lot easier, but when you know what's at stake, it's tough as a dad."
But for Austin, a Charlotte native and Providence High graduate, the toughest part of his journey to the NFL is just beginning.
