Dez Bryant

Dez Bryant is a professional football player for the Dallas Cowboys. The team selected him with the 24th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.http://www.nfl.com/draft/2010/tracker#dt-by-round-input:1 He played wide receiver in college for Oklahoma State Cowboys Football. He was born on November 4, 1988 in Lufkin, Texas. Bryant was ranked as the 29th best player coming out of high school by ESPN. In 2008, he was named consensus All-American wide receiver following his sophomore season.http://www.okstate.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/bryant_dez00.html

Dez Bryant received accolades as a freshman by being named second team All-American. He was second in the nation with 19 touchdown receptions, third in receiving yards and third in yards per punt return in 2008. Bryant was named first team All-American by The Sporting News and the Associated Press.http://www.okstate.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/bryant_dez00.html He finished the 2008 season with 87 receptions for 1,480 yards. Bryant played in the 2007 Insight Bowl and the 2008 Holiday Bowl.

• 2007: Second Team All-American

• 2008: First team All-American

• 2008: First Team All-Big 12 Conference

• 2008: College Football Performance Awards Wide Receiver Trophy Recipient

On January 10, Bryant reportedly hired Eugene Parker, a longtime associate of Deion Sanders, to be his agent. Bryant is projected by ESPN analyst Mel Kiper to be the ninth player selected in the 2010 NFL Draft.http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/OSU/article.aspx?subjectid=93&articleid=20100110_93_0_Inadva367825&allcom=1 On February 7 sporting apparel company Under Armor began sponsoring Bryant. He is scheduled to film a commercial with Brandon Jennings of the Milwaukee Bucks.http://www.newsok.com/oklahoma-scene-dez-bryant-signs-with-under-armour/article/3437759 Reports by independent investigators at the NFL combine showed that Bryant is late for meetings, practices and games. He also left the combine early. Gambling experts revealed that Bryant did poorly in interviews and alienated teams.http://www.nflgambling.org/nfl-gambling/nfl-gambling-dez-bryant-hurts-his-cause-nfl-draft/

Through the first five games of the season, Dez Bryant played in three games, scoring four touchdowns on 323 yards receiving and 111 yards in punt returns.http://www.okstate.com/sports/m-footbl/stats/2009-2010/teamcume.html In early October, Dez Bryant was suspended for the rest of the season by NCAA Football on allegations that former NFL player Deion Sanders tried to set up a business relationship between agent Eugene Parker and Bryant.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/danpatrick/blog/80401/index.html On October 13, the Oklahoma State coaching staff announced that they have started the reinstatement process of Bryant and back him 100 percent.http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-college-football-notes13-2009oct13,0,7447100.story

After his bid for reinstatement on November 5 was denied by the Division I Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement, Bryant revealed he will enter the 2010 NFL Draft.http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/11/dez-bryants-final-appeal-dismissed.html He sat out most of the 2009 season after being declared ineligible for lying about an offseason meeting with Deion Sanders.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4627936

In a recent mock draft conducted with assistance of DraftTek.com, Bryant was selected 15th overall by the Houston Texans, making it apparent his suspension hasn't affected his status as a legitimate first round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.http://bleacherreport.com/articles/297366-2010-nfl-mock-draft-two-round-november-edition/page/2 On December 6, Bryant appeared with his teammates and coaches at an end of season banquet, supporting the team and reflecting on the season.http://www.newson6.com/Global/story.asp?S=11632805

"I would tell the college player to be honest at all times, but at the same time I just feel like — I don't know — the NCAA, they're going to do whatever they want to do. I'm just going to leave it at that. I just feel like it was really unfair." - Dez Bryant, on his suspension by the NCAAhttp://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j3CaY6iywF1NS2QOUJu--at8Ch6wD9DU983G0

"What I was impressed with was the way he close a cushion on a defensive back. Now, you take a guy that was 224 pounds; he lines up and the defensive back plays 8-9 yards off of him and you can see this young man close the cushion on the defensive back but also have the ability to go by. He’s a guy that does something, everyday, that you say, “Wow. This guy is going to be a tremendous talent.”" - Ray Sherman, Cowboys wide receivers coach on Dez Bryanthttp://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/football/cowboys/stories/050510dnsposhermaninterview.185644c0.html