McConkey takes the field with NFL's Chargers at rookie minicamp
May 14—After wearing No. 84 on his jersey during his time as a wide receiver for the Georgia Bulldogs, Ladd McConkey was back on the field Friday in a number that is a familiar one for those who watched him play back in Chatsworth.
Wearing No. 15, a number that is retired for him at North Murray High School, McConkey took the field with the Los Angeles Chargers Friday for the start of the team's rookie minicamp. McConkey, a 2020 North Murray graduate, was a second round pick by the Chargers in last month's 2024 NFL Draft.
"I just grew up and (No. 15) was my number in middle school and high school," McConkey told reporters at a press conference in Los Angeles after the team's practice on Friday. "No. 84 wasn't my choice at Georgia, but I feel like I made it my own. I just wanted to go back to 15."
Minicamps mark the first chance for newly-drafted NFL rookies to get on the field with new coaches and teammates. Wearing helmets but not shoulder pads or leg padding, McConkey and the Chargers' other rookies took part in non-contact drills.
"It's a new place and a new uniform and new people," McConkey said. "But I've still got to go out there and run routes, catch the ball, block and do all that stuff. It's different in aspects, but it's still football."
McConkey arrived in his new home in L.A. after a flight from Atlanta that was delayed for three hours, leaving the wide receiver stranded on the tarmac for a time.
"I can sleep whenever, wherever, so I was good," McConkey joked after being asked about possible jet lag from the flight.
McConkey was taken by the Chargers after four years at the University of Georgia, one of which was a redshirt year. After winning two national championships as a Bulldog, McConkey declared for this year's draft.
After going through the pre-draft process and competing in the NFL Scouting Combine, McConkey was projected by some forecasters to be selected as high as the first round in April's draft. McConkey didn't hear his name called in round one, but he didn't have to wait long in the second before the Chargers made him the No. 34 overall pick, the second pick in the second round.
"I was definitely ready to get the process over with," McConkey said. "I wanted to know where I was going and get in and develop a routine."
