2020 NFL Draft Prospect Interview: Austen Pleasants, OL, Ohio University

• Name: Austen Pleasants 
• Height: 6’7”
• Weight: 315
• Position: OG/OT
• College: Ohio University 
• Twitter: @groveyard_70

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

• I grew up in Ironton, Ohio and went to school ten minutes away in Coal Grove Ohio. It’s a very small community and football was a huge part of the community. It’s the type of town that has one stoplight and everyone knows everybody. The thing I love most about it is the community and the people in the community because there is always someone there who is willing to help or just make someone’s day a little better    

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

• I believe all three are equally as important to be successful at the next level. They all come down to how much you are willing to prepare for a game. Mind, body, and gameplan if you slack in any of these aspects of the game you won’t last long playing the game of football. 

What do you worry about, and why?

• I worry that I won’t get an opportunity to really show teams just how athletic and prepared I really am for the transition from college to the NFL, especially with all of the pro days around the country canceled due to the corona virus outbreak.

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

• My redshirt sophomore year I failed to earn the starting right tackle spot. I felt I was guyfor the job and that I put in the work for the job. I ended up getting scrub time and was on field goal at the beginning of the season. I was pretty upset but I didn’t let that distract me from my goal and kept grinding everyday just waiting for my name to get called. Halfway through the season due to injuries I got to be the starting right tackle and started every game since then. 

What do your teammates say is your best quality?

• Giving everything I have in me to my team and doing everything I can to help us win. 

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

• Derrek Barnnette by far. I had never played against someone so talented before and that was a huge wake up call to just how physically dominant you have to be to play at a high level. 

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

• Education/Coaching even if I couldn’t play I couldn’t see a life without the game of football in it. I’m not sure what level of football I would coach, probably highschool or college. 

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

• Desk, room, car 

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

• One family member, because family means everything and you always put family first. 

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

• Batman… Because he is Batman

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

• My biological father left when I was young. I felt like I had to put the pressure on me and be perfect. It took a long time for me to realize that I’m only human and no one is perfect. I wouldn’t be the person I am today if he hadn’t left and honestly I feel I am a better and stronger person because of it. I had to earn everything I have and what I’ve accomplished so far in my life. 

What was the most memorable play of your collegiate career?

• Scoring a touchdown my senior of college at homecoming. 

What song best describes your work ethic?

• Never Gonna Stop Me, Rob Zombie  

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

• My work ethic 

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

• My papaw, because I didn’t get to spend as much time with him as I wanted to at the end of his life. 

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

• Shake and Bake (if you don’t get it we can’t be friends) 

Who is the most underrated player in the NFL? 

• Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz, to my knowledge he has never missed a game in seven seasons and didn’t give up a single sack in the postseason.  

Would you rather be liked or respected, and why?

• Respected, because someone’s respect is harder to earn than it is to be liked. If you are liked by everybody then that means you are following the crowd and blending in. Instead of being a genuine person and standing out and leading. 

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

• I understand that life happens and people deserve second chances, but part of being a professional athlete is being a professional. This means eliminating as many of these issues as possible.  

Do you love to win, or hate to lose?

• Hate to lose 

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

• My mom because she was a single mom for a long time and she had to play the role of both parents. She worked her tail off so my brother and I could live a comfortable life and made sure we never realized how much we were actually struggling to get by at times.