Cougars Bender, Boose Have Come A Long Way

Former Washington State defensive linemen Leon Bender and Dorian Boose have made careers out of getting the last laugh. Soon they’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.

Bender, who was teetering on the edge of academic oblivion two years ago, could hardly contain himself Saturday afternoon when the Oakland Raiders made him the 31st pick in the NFL draft.

“I told my wife that once I got kicked out of school, I was going to come back to school and get drafted in the first round and I was going to turn a lot of heads and I was going to get the last laugh,” said Bender, speaking from his family’s home near San Diego.

Bender was actually chosen with the first pick of the second round, a choice awarded to the Raiders by the NFL when free-agent defensive tackle Chester McGlockton signed with Kansas City last week.

But Bender wasn’t about to sweat the details.

“All I did was see my face (on TV) and see the reaction of all my family and hear all the eruption in the house,” the 6-foot-5, 318-pound tackle said.

Boose, a slender junior-college basketball player and part-time punt returner four years ago, was at least as excited when the Jets announced that they had taken him midway through the second round with the 56th pick.

“I love it - I love the fact that I get an opportunity to show what I have,” the 6-6, 280-pound end said, speaking from his Pullman apartment. “This was the most stressful day of my life, just waiting around and hoping that what I did impressed somebody.”

Jets coach Bill Parcells said Saturday night that he had intended to take Bender with the 41st pick, but Bender’s selection at No. 31 prompted him to trade down to the 56th spot - where Boose was waiting.

“He’s going to have a good opportunity to play,” Parcells told ESPN.

Bender was considered an NFL prospect almost as soon as he arrived at WSU in 1993, but some felt he lacked the self-discipline to survive in the classroom. He became ineligible after the 1994 season and spent the next year at the Clarkston campus of Walla Walla Community College.

By all accounts, marriage and fatherhood helped Bender get his priorities straight, and he became eligible just in time for the ‘96 opener at Colorado. By last season, he had emerged as one of the best defensive players in the Pacific-10 Conference.

Bill Doba, WSU’s defensive coordinator, recognized Bender’s talent from the start.

“I told him when he was a sophomore, if he could get his act together and get on the field that he could take care of himself and his family and his parents for life,” Doba said. “Because when he was a sophomore, at 285 pounds, he could beat wideouts on some of the agility drills. He could change directions and you knew it was all there.”

Bender was equally adept in the interview room, where his irreverence made him a media favorite while making his coaches cringe. The highlight probably came after WSU’s 37-34 victory over UCLA in the ‘97 opener, when Bender called Westwood a place where people “go to become soft.”

The Raiders have become soft in recent years, last making the playoffs in 1993. But Bender praised the organization’s tradition and said he’s looking forward to lining up next to fellow San Diego native Darrell Russell, Oakland’s promising second-year defensive tackle out of USC.

“It’s the San Diego connection all over,” Bender said.

The Pullman connection was at least as strong Saturday as Bender, Boose and Ryan Leaf combined to give the Cougars three picks in the first two rounds, a WSU first. Tailback Michael Black and offensive lineman Jason McEndoo, among others, are likely to be chosen when the final four rounds are conducted today.

Washington had five players selected, four in the second round and one in the third.

Receiver Jerome Pathon was the first of the Huskies taken, going to the Colts with the 32nd pick.

Safety Tony Parrish (35th, Bears), tight end Cam Cleeland (40th, Saints), center Olin Kreutz (64th, Bears) and tailback Rashaan Shehee (88th, Chiefs) were also selected.