Maysonet signs with Philadelphia Eagles
Sorry Giants fans, Riverhead’s Miguel Maysonet has signed with the rival Philadelphia Eagles.
Soon after being passed up in the 2013 NFL Draft, the 2009 Riverhead High School graduate received a phone call from the Eagles, offering him a chance to make the team as an undrafted free agent. Stony Brook University announced Saturday night that Maysonet has inked a deal.
Should he make the team, Maysonet will become the fourth Riverhead High School graduate to sign with an NFL team and the second to play for the Eagles. Ted Wegert, Class of 1951, played two seasons with Philadelphia in 1956 and 1957.
The Eagles, which did not select a running back in the draft, called him expressing interest earlier Saturday and even hinted they might use their final pick on him. The team ultimately selected Oklahoma defensive end David King in the final spot.
Maysonet will now head to Philadelphia’s rookie camp looking to earn a backup spot behind All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy. Second year players Bryce Brown and Chris Polk are the only other halfbacks listed on the Eagles’ roster.
McCoy played in just 12 games and scored only five touchdowns in 2012 after his breakout 2011 season that saw him total 20 scores. Brown scored four touchdowns in 16 games for the Eagles last year, and Polk did not play after signing as an undrafted free agent following last year’s draft.
Maysonet and his agent received several phone calls Saturday from other teams interested in signing him, he said. The Buffalo Bills, San Diego Chargers, New Orleans Saints, Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins all called Saturday, he said.
Maysonet hung up after one phone call from a team and jokingly said “I don’t even know what team that was,” after earlier telling the caller he’d “love to be there.” He later said he thinks the team was the New York Giants.
Just before the final pick was called, ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr., mentioned Maysonet as one of the best players still available.
“He has ability, he showed it against Army, he showed it against Syracuse,” he said.
About 70 friends and family members gathered along with media at the Hubbard family home in Riverhead to watch the draft Saturday. They applauded their friend as the final pick was called.
Maysonet, who helped lead the Blue Waves to an undefeated season his senior year of high school, capped off his college career at Stony Brook University with a jaw-dropping senior season that landed him the Big South Conference Offensive Player of the Year award for the second straight season.
[Related: As NFL draft unfolds, Maysonet takes it all in stride]
Maysonet was one of three finalists for the Walter Payton Award as the top player in the Football Championship Subdivision. He ended up second in the voting, which was announced during a ceremony Dec. 17 in Philadelphia.
Maysonet was named to a bevy of All-American teams following the season, including the Associated Press first team.
At 5-foot-10, 209-pounds, Maysonet rushed for 1,964 yards this season, tops in the FCS. He scored 23 touchdowns to join former Stony Brook running back Brock Jackolski as the only players in Big South history with a 20-touchdown season.
His rushing total was the 11th most yards in a season in FCS history.
He helped lead Stony Brook to a 10-3 season that ended in the second round of the FCS playoffs against Montana State. Maysonet scored two touchdowns in the Seawolves’ playoff victory over Villanova.
Ed Danowski (Class of 1930) and Scott Mersereau (Class of 1983) join Wegert as the only two Riverhead players to make an NFL team.
