ANN ARBOR, MI - NOVEMBER 28: Eli Apple #13 of the Ohio State Buckeyes breaks up a pass intended for Amara Darboh #82 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first half at Michigan Stadium on November 28, 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
An anonymous scout called out Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Eli Apple on Tuesday because he apparently has ‘no life skills’ and ‘can’t cook,’ according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bob McGinn.
“I worry about him because of off-the-field issues,” the scout said. “The kid has no life skills. At all. Can’t cook. Just a baby. He’s not first round for me. He scares me to death.”
Apple, 20, played two seasons with the Buckeyes, during which he compiled 86 tackles, 17 passes defended and four interceptions. He was also named the defensive MVP of the 2016 Fiesta Bowl after recording five tackles and one pass break-up in his team’s 44-28 victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Prior to this comment, Apple had no issues off the field. The phrase “red flags” used to describe issues that could potentially harm players’ chances at future professional success clearly has taken a whole new meaning, at least for some scouts.
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Apple’s mother Annie tweeted the following on Wednesday morning:
For someone with “no life skills,” Apple seemed to handle himself rather well when a Falcons assistant coach asked him a bizarre — and possibly illegal — question regarding his sexuality at the NFL combine back in February.
“I’ve been asked a lot of weird questions,” Apple conceded during an interview last month. “I don’t know if I could say on TV. The Falcons coach, one of the coaches, was like, ‘So do you like men?’ It was like the first thing he asked me. It was weird. I was just like, ‘No.’ He was like, ‘if you’re going to come to Atlanta, sometimes that’s how it is around here, you’re going to have to get used to it.’ I guess he was joking but they just ask most of these questions to see how you’re going to react.”
Apple is considered one of the best cornerbacks in the drat.In the latest round of CBSSports.com mock drafts, he’s slated to go anywhere from 14th (to the Oakland Raiders) to 28th (to the Kansas City Chiefs). The NFL Draft begins on Thursday.
ANN ARBOR, MI – NOVEMBER 28: Eli Apple #13 of the Ohio State Buckeyes breaks up a pass intended for Amara Darboh #82 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first half at Michigan Stadium on November 28, 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
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