Draft party in Blake Bortles' hometown goes nuts when Bortles is picked by Jacksonville (Video)
One of the first surprises of the 2014 NFL draft was when the Jacksonville Jaguars picked Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles third overall.
Bortles is a native of Oviedo, Fla., about two hours south of Jacksonville. When Bortles’ selection was announced at a local restaurant, the place went absolutely nuts.
Bortles went from being a relative-unknown to helping UCF reach unparalleled heights in program history. After putting up modest numbers as a redshirt freshman, Bortles threw for 3,059 yards and 25 touchdowns while also showing off his dual-threat capabilities with eight rushing touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore as the Knights went 10-4.
Bortles continued his rise last year as a redshirt junior, throwing for 3,581 yards and 25 touchdowns and running for six touchdowns while leading the Knights to a 12-1 record, a conference championship and a win over Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl.
The 6-foot-5, 232-pound Bortles has the prototypical NFL size and tools that obviously made him attractive to Jacksonville. And based on the reaction of the fans in the video, people are happy to see Bortles stick around in his home state.
(H/T College Spun)
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