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Cole Strange Thought He Was Being Pranked When Patriots Drafted Him in Round 1

Mike Chiari

Count offensive guard Cole Strange among those who were surprised when the New England Patriots selected him with the No. 29 overall pick in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.

In an interview with MassLive.com's Chris Mason on Friday, Strange's father, Greg Strange, gave an account of the conversation that occurred when the Pats called Cole to tell him they were drafting him.

Per Strange, the interaction between Cole and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick on the phone was as follows:

"[Cole] said, 'Sir, I don't mean to be disrespectful at all, but I've gotta know because I've got some crazy friends. Is this a prank?’ The guy said, 'Hold on just a second.' And then Bill Belichick got on the phone and of course, unless you've been under a rock for the last 20 years, you know Bill Belichick's voice.
"As soon as I heard Bill Belichick's voice, Cole and I both started screaming and hugging and acting crazy. Probably saying a bunch of inappropriate stuff. We were so excited. To his credit, you've gotta love the guy, Belichick is sitting there and when we got through, the first break he had, he said, 'Hey Cole, you've gotta act like you've been there, man.' It was classic to us. We absolutely loved it."

Strange going 29th overall to New England was among the most shocking picks in the draft since most draft experts didn't have anything better than a Day 2 grade on him.

That included the Bleacher Report NFL Scouting Department, which gave him a third-round grade and ranked him as the No. 98 overall player in the class.

Belichick has long had a penchant for going against the norm and getting players he likes early in the draft, even if most don't have the prospects ranked as high.

Perhaps the most comparable example occurred in 2005 when New England took Fresno State guard Logan Mankins 32nd overall despite the consensus among experts being that he was closer to a mid-round pick.

Belichick got the last laugh, as Mankins was a seven-time Pro Bowler and one-time First Team All-Pro during his 11-year NFL career.

Strange will look to follow in Mankins' footsteps after starring collegiately at Chattanooga, improving his stock during the pre-draft process and shocking pundits by sneaking into the first round.

   

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