The top five worst BC sports moments of 2010-2011

#2: April 30, 2011: Mark Herzlich snubbed by NFL

Mark Herzlich showed up to Radio City in New York as part of the “2011 NFL Draft Top Prospect” group of VIPs; the thought almost universally amongst BC fans was that he wouldn’t go until late, but that someone would take a chance on him.

As the rounds passed by, however, NFL teams kept saying “no” to Herzlich and selecting players sometimes well below him on the TV network “big boards.” It became clear by the latest rounds that he was intentionally being avoided.

Herzlich’s story was one of courage and determination, and while his physical gifts had not all returned, the amount of potential to be tapped and redeveloped left him with a lot of upside. The war rooms didn’t see it that way, however, and when the draft ended, Herzlich was not in the NFL.

This was a gut-punch to BC fans who had invested a great deal of emotion in seeing him succeed, and spurred reactions of disappointment from the football fan community at large. We were getting ready to celebrate, but instead, we waited at the TV, and with each passing pick, became more resigned. This is #2 on the list because even though I don’t know the guy, and neither do most of my readers, I felt a real sense of disappointment and frustration and it was sincerely a low point.