Michael Sam is ‘nervous and excited’ about NFL draft this week
Openly gay NFL hopeful Michael Sam has spoken of his excitement at the prospect of being drafted by a team this Thursday.
Michael Sam, a University of Missouri football player came out in an ESPN interview on 9 February.
Speaking with ABC News Good Morning America, he said: “I’ve been thinking about this moment since junior year in college… It’s a very nervous time, an exciting time. So I’m ready for it.”
He said he was happy to go to any team, as long as he gets to play.
“Where I’ll go, it doesn’t matter, as long as I get to play and put a jersey on my back. It’s just awesome. I’m going to be proud wherever I go,” he continued.
On the announcement that he will receive the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, Sam said it was a “great honour”, and that he hoped to inspire other athletes.
After coming out, he said he was approached by other college and NFL players, all in the closet.
He said: “You know, on the night of my announcement — that week I had gotten so many emails, so many text messages, from college and NFL players, and other athletes in the sport industry about how courageous I was. [They] themselves are closeted homosexuals,… So yeah, I’m not the only one. There’s a lot of us.”
He also said his team were very accepting of him when he came out.
The NFL draft is on Thursday, and Sam hopes to be taken on by a team.
