O's Draftee to Play in Bowl Game

N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson was drafted by the Orioles in 2007 but chose to play college football instead. You can catch him on Monday afternoon when the Wolfpack face Rutgers in the Papajohns.com Bowl.

Do any bit of research on Russell Wilson and what immediately jumps out is his
versatility. He's on scholarship to play quarterback at North Carolina State,
but his performance on the baseball diamond in high school earned him a draft
selection by the Baltimore Orioles in 2007.

ESPN told Wilson's two-sport story this past summer.

Though he now plays for a different football coaching staff (former Boston
College coach Tom O'Brien supplanted Amato), Wilson is still permitted to play
two sports. He is on scholarship for football, but baseball is likely where his
future lies. Already taken by the Baltimore Orioles in the 41st round of the
2007 Major League Baseball draft, Wilson instead elected to fulfill his dream of
playing two college sports while pursuing a degree.

"I was leaning towards [entering the draft]," Wilson says, "but a college education is
something you'll always have."

When Wilson chose college, major league teams backed off -- the Orioles eventually selected him late in the draft as a just-in-case. "A lot of scouts said Russell could have been taken in the third or fourth round [of the '07 MLB draft] and were making calls trying to get him to sign," Avent says. "I have no doubt he'll make it to the big leagues."

Wilson's career goals aren't limited to baseball, however. A sports fanatic his
entire life -- "I was never a cartoon guy," he says, "I was always watching
ESPN" -- Wilson hopes to one day become a "SportsCenter" anchor after his
playing days are over.