Adonis Alexander Discusses his Ineligibility

Adonis Alexander announced he will enter the NFL Supplemental Draft after he was ruled academically ineligible. NFL.com reporter Tom Pelissero spoke to the former Hokie cornerback and it's an insightful interview. Alexander is blunt about his maturity issues. And I'm left wondering how his grades were left to get so out of whack given the amount of academic resources the football program provides. In any event, I hope he gets it together and doesn't squander an opportunity. Talent isn't the issue.

"I can honestly say the past year, maturity has been my biggest thing," Alexander told me by phone. "I have been improving on discipline. Discipline is a big thing for me now, because nothing can really be done without discipline. And I understand that now."

Alexander says the academic issues date to his freshman year, when he had some instant success on the field, got "really big-headed" and stopped paying proper attention to classes. He withdrew from three classes that year to avoid failing them, Alexander says, and eventually landed on academic probation, meaning he had to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or better while taking 16 or 17 credit hours some semesters to stay on track for his degree.

"I thought I was untouchable, doing stuff I wasn't supposed to do," Alexander told me, "but as I got older, I realized the other opportunity that I was messing up. Back then, I was probably a more in-the-moment guy. I didn't really look ahead. But I can honestly say as I mature, I begin to think about my future before I make a decision."