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Zone Read: Coleman Owen’s Unconventional Path to the NFL

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Life often offers a different blueprint than the road map one may envision.

For Coleman Owen, the former Higley High and NAU star, now Green Bay Packers return specialist and wide receiver, initially it was wearing a different set of shoulder pads and helmet.

“I enjoyed football when I was at Higley, I had a ton of fun,” Owen, who didn’t have a single offer out of high school, said in a recent interview with the “Zone Read.” It was a hobby of mine since I was a kid but I really didn’t think I wanted to pursue football in college at all.

“If anything, I wanted to play lacrosse.”

A Story Made for Hollywood

Instead of going past to present let’s, for the moment, flip the script.

In real time, the undrafted Owen, all 5-foot-11 and 181-pounds, is a member of one of the most hallowed professional franchises in all of sports. His far less than meteoric rise to the Packers’ 52-man roster has included post-Higley football stops in Flagstaff, Athens, Ohio and briefly, Indianapolis.

“There were so many times when I didn’t even think I was going to play college football,” he explained. “I didn’t have any scholarships out of high school and the NAU coaches came in last-minute and said, ‘Hey, we don’t have a scholarship for you but should come walk on and try it out.’

“That was one of the best decisions I ever made.”

After being named 2nd-team All-Big Sky in 2022 and ’23, Owen opted to enter the transfer portal. A decision, at least initially, he thought he may regret. For one reason or another, due to various coaching changes and other circumstances beyond his control, nearly all of his offers dried up…except for one.

“I ended up at Ohio, because it was the only FBS offer I had,” said Owen. “It wasn’t what I was expecting out of the transfer portal, I was expecting something a little bit bigger, but whatever, I’ll take it and run.”

Run he did.

In his one season with the Bobcats, the dynamic playmaker posted an eye-popping 78 receptions for 1,245 yards (the school single-season record) and eight touchdowns. He also had a punt return and rushing touchdown, earning First-team All-MAC honors in 2024. 

It was then a possible chance at the NFL started coming into focus.

“When I got to Ohio, and we were having the season we had, that’s when I started to realize, ‘Okay, shoot, this might work,’” he continued. “Once I got my foot in the door, I could make some waves and prove that I belonged.”

Despite going undrafted, Owen quickly signed with the Colts but was waived after suffering a concussion during the pre-season in August. Less than a week later, the Packers called…and a new football chapter began.

Take notes, high-level screen writers.

“It’s funny, I don’t necessarily think of it that way (laughing),” he said when asked if he’s living out a movie. “But my parents love to tell the story to everyone, and when they start talking about everything that’s happened from my time at Higley, until now, it does kind of seem like it could be a Hollywood script.”

Jacks’ Facts

While NAU didn’t have a scholarship to offer, they did have an opportunity.

“The NAU coaches came in last-minute and said, ‘You should come walk on and try it,’” Owen explained. “Thar was one of the best decisions I ever made.”

During his four years in Flagstaff, he found something in himself he once lacked: self-confidence in the sport.

“That was a big thing for me,” he said in reflection. “It was always hard to fully believe in myself just because, coming out of high school, I wasn’t heavily recruited at all.

“I was like, ‘What are these recruiters seeing that I’m not seeing myself?’ I know I was undersized. I was sort of starting to doubt my abilities.”

One NAU coach, specificially, helped break that mindset.

“Coach Junior Taylor, instilled so much confidence in me,” Owen said of the now New York Jets assistant wide receivers coach. “Nobody makes it to the highest level without an extreme confidence in themselves…just being confident in yourself that you can beat the man across from you.

“The people at NAU, especially Coach Taylor, instilled that in me, and I’m forever thankful for it.”

Studying the Science

What would terrify many, thrills Owen.

“I love returning punts,” he said without hesitation. “I’ve loved it since I was a kid…I think it’s the most fun play in football. It’s literally backyard football.

“I genuinely don’t feel like I have any kind of fear back there, which is unique. I guess, if you’re going to be a punt returner, that’s the best way to be.”

There’s also a method to Owen’s madness, most notably hours of film study dissecting the physics and trends of the punter putting foot to leather that week.

“That ball is (in the air) for a full five seconds and they can put all these different kinds of spin on it,” said the 25-year-old return specialist. “In the NFL, it’s all about reading the ball off of the foot.”

Green Bay’s Greatness

Without question the Green Packers are iconic.

So, too, is the stadium they’ve called home for nearly 70 years.

“Lambeau is so different, it’s such a cool stadium,” Owen said. “The stadium itself is old school. It has a unique feel that you don’t get at other stadiums. I mean, this whole city is so different. It’s crazy.”

Crazy in a good way. 

Quite simply, the Packer fan base is elite, and loyal to a fault. The wait list for season tickets for the only publicly-owned non-profit franchise in American major league professional sports, exceeds 155,000 names.

They know their team…the whole team.

“I have a funny story,” he begins. “This is how I know these fans are (great).

“There’s like a two-minute walk from our facility to the practice field. Most guys just drive their cars across the street. It’s like a 30-second drive. When I first got here, they flew me out, so I didn’t have my car or anything. I was like, ‘Alright, I’ll just walk to practice.’

“First day, obviously I was a little nervous, because I wanted to prove myself. As I’m walking, there were some fans in the parking lot. I was like, ‘Okay, these people are going to have no idea who I am.’ As soon as I walk out, they have printed pictures of me, from my time with the Colts, asking for autographs. I was like, ‘How do you guys even know I’m here?’ I didn’t even know that the news came out yet.

“These fans do their research. They care and they’re respectful.”

Lambeau will be rocking Sunday when the Packers host the Vikings in a key NFC North match up.

The post Zone Read: Coleman Owen’s Unconventional Path to the NFL first appeared on Sports360AZ.



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