NFL DraftProspect Interviews

NFL Draft Diamonds Prospect Interview: Israel Helms, LT, Wayne State University

Israel Helms the big offensive tackle from Wayne State is flying up NFL Draft boards. He had a top 30 visit already with one team and is getting noticed.

• Name: Israel Helms

• Height: 6’5

• Weight: 305

• Position: Left tackle

• College: Wayne State University

Tell us about your hometown, and what you love most about it?

• Southfield MI is my hometown. I love that I am right outside of downtown Detroit and can get around Michigan very easy being near two highways.

List these three in order of importance and why: Film Study, Strength and Conditioning and Practice?

• Film Study, Practice, and then Strength and Conditioning. Film study is most important to me because I learn things best from seeing the big picture first. Then practice because you learn technique and footwork. Then Strength and conditioning because your body has to be in shape to play the game.

What do you worry about, and why?

• Not being the best version of me that I can be. I don’t want to die and people say at my funeral that he wasted his potential. I don’t want my children to look at me and say we won’t be like dad. I want to be a man of integrity and positive influence on people that I interact with.

Give me an example of when you failed at something. How did you react and how did you overcome failure?

• My worst game this past year was against the University of Indianapolis. It was the first time I was schemed against. Their scheme worked and they heckled me the whole game. I let them get into my head. I went in for halftime and had to self-correct. I then schemed against their scheme with our TE. What I learned from that game was having better controls of my emotions and keeping my mind clear throughout the game.

What do your teammates say is your best quality?

• They can depend on me. If say I’m going to do something, I’m going to do it. 

Who is the best player you have ever played against in college?

• Zach Sieler. He was a DE for Ferris State and is now with the Baltimore Ravens.

What would your career be if you couldn’t play football? 

• I would be working the day as an electrical engineer while saving my money for investing in the stock market and real estate. My long term goal would be becoming an entrepreneur.  

Room, desk, and car – which do you clean first?

• Car, because nobody sees my room or desk.

If there was a disaster and you could either save three strangers or one family member, which would you choose and why?

• I would save my one family member. Doctors cannot perform on their loved ones because emotions would cloud their judgment. I know logically it would be better to save three lives to the one. Although, with my emotions involved I would save my one family member.

If you could be any television or movie character, who would you be and why?

• I would be Batman. He instills fear into the heart of criminals with the mantle of the bat. He is extremely disciplined and sticks to his code of ethics. He uses his intelligence and will power to beat opponents. His one superpower is that he never quits.  

Tell me about your biggest adversity in life and how you’ve dealt with or overcome it?

• The recent passing of my grandmother. It was the first time I had to seem someone pass right before me. This life is a short one and it has made me more appreciative of each day that I get on this earth. No day is promised.

What is your most embarrassing moment?

• I once ripped my pants jumping off the swings in elementary school.  

What was the most memorable play of your collegiate career?

• My second play in my collegiate career. We were playing against Malone University. I was blocking back side on inside zone. Our running back Deiontae Nicholas cuts back behind my block to score a 40-yard touchdown. I got a pancake on the play and it was a night game at home. When we watched the play as a team the next day, and we could see my man slowly get up and limp off the field.

What song best describes your work ethic?

• Fort Minor- Remember the name

What is the most important trait you can have (Physical or Non-Physical) to help you succeed at the next level? 

• My mind. I visualize success and believe in my skills to outwork and beat my opponents. 

If you could bring one person back from the dead for one day, who would it be and why?

• My grandmother. She recently passed last year and I want to tell her how much she means to me and that I’m going to be in the NFL. 

If you were to open a dance club, what would you name it? 

• Good Times  

Who is the most underrated player in the NFL? 

• Russell Wilson. He is a hall of fame quarterback. He has carried the Seattle Seahawks on his back. He has scrambled for his life game to game. He is a super bowl winning quarterback. He can scramble and still throw the ball down the field with accuracy. Yet, he is overlooked and not respected at one of the most valuable positions in football.

Would you rather be liked or respected, and why?

• I will rather be respected. Respect is higher than being liked. You can’t worry about being liked because people are fickle. People’s trust and respect for someone doesn’t go away as easily because it is earned.

What player who had his career derailed by off-field issues do you feel for the most and why?

• Joe Mcknight. He was an ex-NFL player for the jets who was shot and killed in a road rage incident. He had his whole life in front of him and died because he got out of his vehicle and got into an argument with someone. That one mistake that day cost him his life. It was very tragic.

Do you love to win, or hate to lose?

• Love to win.

Who has been the biggest influence on your life and explain why?

• My Mom. She has taught me how to live life with integrity. She has instilled in me discipline and love. She has led by example and pushes me to do the best in everything I do.

Damond Talbot

NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com

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