Georgia linebacker Alec Ogletree knows he’s viewed as a character risk after his arrest last week for driving under the influence. But he’s hoping NFL teams will focus more on what he’s done on the field than what he’s done off the field.
Ogletree said at the Scouting Combine that he isn’t sure how far his draft stock has fallen, but he is determined to stay on the straight and narrow going forward.
“I don’t really know what it’s going to do, but like I said, I feel bad about it and I’m really sorry about it,” Ogletree said. “I just have to move forward and take what I get.”
Based purely on his talent, Ogletree looks like a high first-round pick. But after the DUI, and considering that he had been suspended at Georgia for a positive drug test, it’s fair to wonder whether any team wants to invest a first-round draft pick on him. Ogletree said he thinks that when he sits down with NFL coaches, he can convince them that he won’t be an off-field problem.
“Just by having a good interview,” Ogletree said. “Just being a good person and letting them get to know me and who I really am and not just what they hear about me and stuff.”
No one doubts what Ogletree can do on the field. But convincing NFL teams that he won’t be a problem off the field may be a tough sell.