[Reafnartefs]

Forgive me if this was already posted somewhere but I couldnt find it

Some one is going to take him, but can you imagine the stigma

An offensive tackle from a small Division II Christian school, Tony Washington went to Indianapolis virtually unknown. After top performances at the NFL Combine, the Abilene Christian standout has seen his draft stock climb as high as the second round. But he bears the burden of a troubled past – one that’s causing some NFL teams to think twice.

Washington is a registered sex offender.

Until now, he has not publicly addressed the specifics of his situation, but in a statement provided exclusively to SportsFanLive.com, he confirmed what is likely to haunt him for the rest of his life.

“I made a mistake at the age of 16, and for that, I am deeply sorry,” Washington said. “I will not try and excuse or justify anything. I have worked extremely hard to do everything right so that I might have an opportunity to give back. I only hope that someone in the NFL will give me the same opportunity that Abilene Christian and Trinity Valley gave me.”

In May 2003, Washington was convicted of having sex with a relative that multiple NFL and college sources say was his 15-year old biological sister. The act was consensual, according to his college coaches and two NFL scouts, who spoke to him about the incident. The sister does not wish to speak publicly on the case, according to Washington’s agent, who added that the siblings are now on good terms and talk often. Washington received five years probation and did not serve jail time.

Due to the nature of the crime and Washington’s status as a juvenile, records specifically related to the crime itself could not be obtained in requests made to both the Texas Department of Public Safety and the New Orleans Police Department. But if this had been "sexual assault," Washington’s report on the sex-offender registry would have listed a different offense.

Inside the interview rooms at the Combine, scouts questioned him at length about his past. Some are willing to give him a chance. After all, Washington had the best broad jump among offensive lineman at 9 feet, 6 inches and the sixth-best time in the three-cone drill. Despite that talent, other scouts may not be so forgiving.

Trinity Valley Community College coach Mark Sartain faced the same challenge back in 2005, when he met Washington, then a high school senior.

“He e-mailed me several times asking for an opportunity to play and finally sent me a grainy tape,” Sartain said. “You could barely see him in it.”

The only evidence of his potential as a football player was the massive 6-7, 300-pound frame he carried. Everything else, including his home, was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

“Katrina was a total disruption of his life and his high school career,” said Sartain, a coaching veteran of 26 years and father of two, who now heads up the football program at East Texas Baptist University.

Then Washington told him: “Coach, there’s something you need to know.”

Although it was unsettling, Washington’s confession did not cause Sartain to shy away from his young recruit. In fact, because Washington volunteered the information, Sartain realized “this young man deserves a second chance.”

The product of what Sartain calls a “dysfunctional” family, Washington arrived in Athens, Texas, with emotional needs that had long been neglected. “I don’t want to say he was emotionally ‘crippled,’ but with that traumatic time in his life, he skipped a phase, so to speak, in his emotional development,” the coach said.

His unique situation required authorities in both New Orleans and Texas to accept his transfer of residence, something law enforcement officials in his home state of Louisiana initially refused to do. It meant Sartain and his staff had to jump through hoops to get Tony into their program.

“They were ignoring him and not returning calls because they didn’t want to deal with him,” Sartain said. “We had to fight for a couple weeks to get that whole thing done.”
http://www.sportsfanlive.com/sflrepo...sive_lineman_s