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KAYSVILLE — The NFL draft begins Thursday, and before it wraps up Saturday, three players from Southern Utah University are likely to hear their names called.
One of those players is James Cowser, a member of the National Honor Society at Davis High who has developed into a pass rusher that NFL quarterbacks will soon fear. Cowser is one of a dozen local college football players who expect to hear their names called during the NFL draft this week.
Cowser had three scholarship offers coming out of high school: Air Force, Weber State and Southern Utah.
The secret to success of the former Thunderbird standout is obvious, then.
“I do weird stuff with hair,” he joked. “I believe in hair.
“You know Sampson, right? The power comes from the hair? That’s this (hair) right here.”
You can’t argue with the results, though.
“That’s about as weird as it gets … I hope,” he said, before stopping. “I don’t know; maybe there’s something else.”
Jokes aside, Cowser has transformed himself from a 205-pound returned missionary for the LDS Church into a 255-pound NFL prospect. He finished his career as the all-time FCS leader in sacks and tackles for loss, and he’s preparing for the NFL draft while spending time with his family in Kaysville.
With help from Cowser and former head coach Ed Lamb, the Thunderbirds’ football program was transformed into a winner.
“I had been going to Cedar City every year because of Shakespeare,” Cowser said. “I knew how bad the football team was. They were saying some interesting stuff, but deep down, I didn’t like SUU.
“Then I went there and met coach Lamb, saw the team do a workout, and — it was weird. It was just like home; I liked what they had to say. Coach Lamb was very straightforward: he said ‘we’re going to make you a winner, we’re going to make you the best you can be, and we’re going to work really hard.’ I said, ‘Sign me up.’”
By Cowser’s senior year, the Thunderbirds had enjoyed the best season in program history with their first Big Sky championship and second FCS playoff berth in three years.
Cowser, as well as teammates Miles Killebrew and LeShaun Sims, developed into NFL draft prospects — so much that each one earned an invitation to the NFL Combine.
That’s as many SUU players at the NFL Combine as Michigan and Texas combined.
“That’s my paradigm of how the world works: if you work hard, do the right things and live the right way, success comes,” Cowser said. “Each one of us was doing that, and hopefully the success pays off next week.
“It’s just fitting. It just feels right to me.”
The hair and hard work are just part of the story. Cowser's parents Steve and Kelly have also been crucial to his success. But not in the way you would expect.
I get it all the time: you’re just a kid from Utah, with the weird, white Mormons. Yeah, it’s true; but weird, white Mormons can play football, too.
–former SUU defensive end James Cowser
His mom taught him how to throw a football, a fact that surprised scouts and other NFL reps at the Combine.
“One year we did a fantasy football league together, and we won,” said Kelly Cowser, whose father played basketball at Utah.
Steve Cowser, meanwhile, is an electrical engineer who grew up outside of the United States, where football wasn’t ever an option.
“It’s been a wonderful learning experience for me,” Steve Cowser said. “I didn’t know about it; I didn’t understand it. It’s a different game. But it’s been fun to learn.”
Football has become quite the family experience for the Cowsers.
“It’s more about the bonding and the time together than the actual game,” Kelly Cowser said. “I think (James Cowser) overplays what I taught him, but we had fun together.”
Added her husband: “We’d be lying if we said we weren’t excited; we’re very excited.”
The Cowsers' belief in their son gave a little-known Thunderbird from Davis the confidence to defy all odds and become an NFL football player.
“I get it all the time: you’re just a kid from Utah, with the weird, white Mormons,” Cowser said. “Yeah, it’s true; but weird, white Mormons can play football, too.
“I’ve been trying to prove people wrong for so long that this is just another thing.”
One thing is certain for Cowser: his football career isn’t over.
“Even if I don’t get drafted, I feel like I can at least get into a camp and show what I’m doing,” he said. “Worst-case scenario, I’m getting my opportunity. That’s everything I’ve ever asked for.”
