Could Rashad Jennings Be a Hidden Gem for Jacksonville Jaguars?

When the Jacksonville Jaguars made Rashad Jennings their second-to-last pick of this year's NFL Draft, there wasn't a lot of fanfare.

The average Jag fan didn't know much about Jennings, who spent the last three years at Liberty, a Division I-AA school.

But there is much more to Jennings than just being a seventh-round draft pick or a D I-AA running back.

Vito Stellino of the Florida Times-Union recently did a profile of Jennings, who actually began his college football career at Pitt. There have been a number of successful running backs who came out of that school, including Tony Dorsett, Curtis Martin, and Craig "Ironhead" Heyward.

The most recent one was LeSean McCoy, who was taken in the second round by the Philadelphia Eagles.

As a freshman at Pitt, Jennings ran for 411 yards and one score on 86 carries. That included a 100-yard performance against Cincinnati.

It certainly looked like the future was bright for the young man from Forest, VA.

But when his father's leg was amputated due to complications from diabetes, Jennings decided it was more important to be closer to home than it was to continue his football career at a high profile school.

So he elected to transfer to Liberty and put up very impressive numbers. Some people might argue that he accomplished these heights against sub-par competition, but you can't argue with the production.

2006: 179 carries, 1,020 yards, nine touchdowns.

2007: 191 carries, 1,113 yards, 15 touchdowns.

2008: 264 carries, 1,507 yards, 17 touchdowns.

Jennings hoped he would go earlier than he did. The fact that he was one of the last players taken in the draft serves as motivation for the 6'1", 230-pound RB.

Another running back who felt slighted on draft day, Maurice Jones-Drew, has taken Jennings under his wing. The two actually trained together before Jennings became a member of the team.

The Jacksonville staff has been very impressed with what Jennings has done in OTAs. While the real test will come when Jennings puts the pads on, don't be surprised if he grabs the No. 2 spot behind MJD.