NFL DraftProspect Interviews

2022 NFL Draft Prospect Interview: Jonathan Irizarry, OL, Mississippi Valley State University

Jonathan Irizarry the versatile offensive lineman from Mississippi Valley State University recently sat down with NFL Draft Diamonds.
Jonathan Irizarry the versatile offensive lineman from Mississippi Valley State University recently sat down with NFL Draft Diamonds.
  • Name: Jonathan Irizarry
  • Position: Center/Guard Offensive line
  • College: Mississippi Valley State University
  • Height: 6’4
  • Weight: 318
  • Twitter: @jonathan_Izz
  • Instagram: @jonathan_iz70

What makes you a top prospect at your position  in the 2022 NFL Draft?

  • I’m versatile. I’ve played and excelled at every position on the offensive line during my collegiate career.

At what age were you first interested in the sport of football?

  • I became interested in football when I was 12 years old. My middle school math teacher was a football coach, who recognized my size and potential and offered to train me for a summer. Over the course of the summer, he told me with hard work and dedication I would do big things in football.

What is one thing that NFL teams should know about you?

  • I’m an amazingly resilient player. I adapt and overcome any obstacles thrown my way. 

If you could donate to one cause in the world, what would it be?

  • I would donate to less fortunate minority kids that feel as though they have no way out of their current given circumstances. Whether their complications are at home, at school, or within their community, I believe every child should have a chance to succeed in life. Which is why I plan to create my own foundation for these children called M.O.V.E. (Motivate, Overcome, Visualize and Empower).

What is the best advice you have ever received?

  • The best advice I’ve ever received was “you have to be comfortable being uncomfortable”. I didn’t realize how far this phrase would carry me beyond the field, until recently.

Who was your childhood hero?

  • My childhood hero is my Mom. To this day I’ve never met a women as tough and hard-working as my mom.

Who is the most underrated teammate in your locker room at your school?

  • Conor Regan. Playing with him at MVSU, I think he’s the smartest quarterback I’ve played with that in my opinion, didn’t get the recognition he deserved.  

What is your biggest pet peeve?

  • My biggest pet peeves are those who are complacent and those who consistently complain.

Overcoming adversity is what defines character, what was the hardest moment in your life to overcome?

  • The hardest moment in my life would’ve been being homeless. When my mom lost our house, we were living with friends and struggled. I moved from one house to another during high-school, while playing football, working, and going to school.

Tell me something about your school and why it is so special to you?

  • Mississippi Valley State University gave me the opportunity to finish my collegiate career and I will forever show them love because of that. 

What is your favorite snack food?

  • My favorite snack foods would have to be veggie sticks, Cheez-Its, & chicken wings. They’re pretty addictive. I could probably go weeks eating wings everyday.

What is the best part of football?

  • In my opinion, the best part of football would be the discipline, brotherhood, and the fact that you can legally step onto the gridiron, suit up and take out your aggressions on people. 

If you could sell yourself in one sentence what would you say?

  • I’m a student of the craft that eats, sleeps, and breathes football. 

If you could compare your play to one player in the NFL who would it be?

  • I would compare myself to Quinton Nelson, offensive guard for the Indianapolis Colts. He’s one of the most physical lineman in the league, who like me, adores the run game. 

If you could have dinner with three people dead or alive, who would it be and why?

  • I would love to have dinner with Malcolm X, because of his cunning intellect, Muhammad Ali, wit and charismatic personality, Kobe Bryant, because of his amazingly tireless work ethic that he affectionately called the “Mamba Mentality.” 

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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