New York Jets invite Riverhead’s Mike Owen to try out

SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS PHOTO
Syracuse tight end Mike Owen, shown making a catch against
Rutgers, was invited to a tryout by the New York Jets.

In a reference to his modest receiving statistics last season, Mike Owen took a realistic approach to his view of the National Football League draft. “I’m at the bottom of the barrel,” Owen was quoted as saying by NFLDraftScout.com before the draft.
And yet, even though Owen wasn’t drafted last week, the Syracuse University senior tight end may have felt as if he was on top of the world when he received a phone call from the New York Jets.
The Jets have invited the former Riverhead High School football star to try out for the team. Owen received the invitation about 45 minutes after the conclusion of the NFL draft on Saturday.
First, one of Owen’s agents, Craig Redd, called to say that the Jets wanted him. Owen, who watched the televised draft along with his parents, Don and Pam, at his apartment in Syracuse, was speechless. “I couldn’t even say anything,” Owen said in a phone interview. “I was bouncing off the walls. I was running all over the place. I broke down in tears. It was the greatest moment in my life.”
Don Owen said his son “looked elated. I can tell you, between me and my wife, some tears broke out.”
Several teams