It's been a little over seven years since Rayshawn Askew wrapped up his collegiate football career at Elizabeth City State University.

Askew made his mark on the field, amassing more than 2,000 career rushing yards, and he made his mark in the classroom with a 3.6 GPA as a pre-med student.

Submitted photo (ENLARGE)

Rayshawn Askew

But while his Viking team mates have hung up their helmet and pads for more mundane endeavors, the dream of playing in the NFL still burns inside him.

That dream is one step closer to reality with the advent of the All American Football League. The AAFL is a professional outdoor football league which will field six teams this spring with squads representing Florida, Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama, Texas and Michigan. Askew was selected in the 14th of 50 rounds during the AAFL's inaugural draft by Team Michigan. If Askew makes the final 45-man roster he will be paid $50,000 over the course of the 10-game season.

Michigan is where Rayshawn's younger brother, B.J., played his college ball and, like Rayshawn, he was a running back in college.

But their career paths have turned out differently. B.J., who currently plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was drafted by the NFL's New York Jets out of college, while the first professional team that showed interest in Rayshawn was the Environmental Protection Agency.

"I sat out one year after college, it wasn't a bad job, but I missed football," Rayshawn Askew said.

Interestingly enough, Askew's introduction to pro football was made by the same person who recruited him to come to Elizabeth City State. Earnest Wilson was the offensive coordinator for ECSU when the first domino of Rayshawn's football destiny fell differently than he'd anticipated. His first option wasn't ECSU.

"I had given a verbal commitment to play for Purdue during my senior year of high school, but then the coach at Purdue, Jim Colletto, resigned the day before national signing day," he said. "I was going to redshirt my first year and they had projected me to be a starter the next year, but the new staff had different plans and I wound up not having an offer at Purdue."

Prior to signing day, Askew had been steadfast in his commitment to Purdue, but one could argue that sticking to his word with the Boilermakers had begun to work against him.

"Other schools in the Big Ten thought I was going to Purdue and when things at Purdue changed, they didn't have any scholarships available," Askew said.

That's when Wilson, who coached Rayshawn's older brother, Mister, while at Alabama A & M, convinced Rayshawn that it would be a good idea for him to come to Elizabeth City. Rayshawn's brother didn't stay at Alabama A&M very long and he too wound up attending ECSU.

And while there was plenty of hospitality directed towards the Ohio native, there wasn't a lot of continuity during his stay in the river city.

Three head coaches roamed the sidelines during in Rayshawn's tenure at ECSU.

"When he was here I was the linebackers coach," ECSU head coach Waverly Tillar said. "He practiced hard

and he played hard, and at the time we had a very

inexperienced offensive line, so he earned every yard that he got."

Upon graduation, Rayshawn thought about going to medical school as he toiled at the EPA.

Then, Wilson connected him with an indoor team in Lincoln, Neb. Askew didn't miss a beat and parlayed his time in the Cornhusker state into an audition with the Winnepeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. However, fate would again prove to be unkind.

"In Winnepeg, I made the cuts and it looked like I was going to be on the team, but we had a bunch of offensive lineman get injured," Askew said.

One may wonder how offensive line injuries could lead to his early exit as a Blue Bomber. It had to do with a league rule.

"In the CFL, each team is limited to 17 American players, when the lineman went down, they brought in American lineman to replace them, so they had too many American players and I was let go," Askew said.

Undaunted, he returned to the indoor game. His stops with the Ohio Valley Greyhounds, the Port Huron Pirates, the Cincinatti Marshals and the Lexington Horsemen have netted league titles, several All-Star selections, and one thing no other pro football player in history can say.

He's scored 209 touchdowns — more than Jerry Rice, who had 207. Not bad for a guy who only experienced five wins in his four years at ECSU.

Askew is also only the third running back in indoor football history to rush for over a 1,000 yards in a single season.

But, in the world of professional football, sometimes you need more than just impressive stats and athletic prowess — you need proper timing. For the most part, timing has not been on his side.

"When my brother was on the Jets, it looked like I was going to get a chance to show some of the coaches what I could do, but then they made a coaching change when Herm Edwards went to Kansas City," Askew said.

Perhaps though, things are finally falling into place for Askew. He was the second running back taken by Team Michigan, a team coached by John Fontes, brother of former Detroit Lions coachWayne Fontes.

John served on Wayne's staff when the Lions had their home games in the Pontiac Silverdome.

Now, the Lions' den is Ford Field, which is also where Team Michigan's home contests will be held. In a strange coincidence, the Lions recently hired Jim Colletto to be their offensive coordinator.

The same Jim Colletto who altered the path of Rayshawn's football life over 10 years ago.

But, Rayshawn isn't bitter — he's actually quite philosophical about his current situation, a situation which could be an important stepping stone towards the fulfillment of his NFL dream.

"A very wise person once said that if the mountain was smooth you couldn't climb it," he said.

His ascent towards the summit will continue March 13 when Team Michigan begins its training camp.