Alek Torgersen: Penn studies are first, NFL hopes second

Alek Torgersen allocated time last week to writing a paper on the Affordable Care Act for a public policy class. He also needed to put thought into whether there should be an open market for babies so he's up to speed for a Fairness and Altruism course. And don't forget the hour he spent in a Samba ensemble for his Brazilian drumming class.

This is not how the lead-up to the NFL draft is spent for some other quarterback prospects, who make football their full-time jobs even before they have an employer. But Torgersen, one of the top quarterbacks in Penn history and a two-time first-team all-Ivy League passer, decided to spend his final semester at Penn . . . being a student at Penn.

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"I came to Penn because I wanted a great education, and I'm so close to getting [my degree] that it's right in front of me, so why take a semester off and put that on hold?" Torgersen said.

If Torgersen gets drafted, it would be in one of the final rounds. He also could find a team as a free agent if he goes undrafted. As long as Torgersen is competing in a training camp this summer, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound California native will take his chances. Even with a Penn degree, he is not considering law school as a Plan B. He's focused on making football work.

Torgersen knows that other quarterback prospects might be at private facilities focusing all their attention on the draft. Torgersen considered that route, but instead he decided that he can exercise the same athletic/academic balance during his final semester that he used the previous 31/2 years at Penn.

He still works out each morning and trains with a private quarterback coach on his throwing mechanics and footwork. Before his pro day, he went to a facility in South Jersey to focus on scouting combine-related activities. (Torgersen was not invited to the combine. He played in the East-West Shrine Game in January.) He doesn't own a car in Philadelphia, so he's often at the mercy of friends for rides.

A three-year starter for the Quakers who accumulated 2,231 passing yards and 17 touchdowns as a senior, Torgersen impressed onlookers at the Shrine Game to boost his stock. His pledge to coaches and scouts who talk to him is that his Penn background can be an asset as a rookie. Even though he didn't play in the Southeastern Conference on Saturdays, spending Monday to Friday with peers whose idea of the SEC is the Securities and Exchange Commission could mollify the learning curve of a playbook.

"I feel like coming from a school like Penn," Torgersen said, "I'm at an advantage because I'll be able to learn faster and pick things up a little easier because of the education I've received."

Ryan Fitzpatrick was the only Ivy League quarterback on an NFL roster last season, and Torgersen is hoping to change that. Torgersen said the NFL seemed like a realistic post-Penn route after his junior year, and he's spent the last year believing he could make the jump in competition.

"I knew I had the size, I knew I always had the skill set - it was just a matter of exposure at that point," Torgersen said.

By this point, the NFL is aware of Torgersen. And he has a few more weeks before he can look forward to a life without term papers on Obamacare, and all of his attention can turn to learning an offense and trying to prove that he can take a different path to the NFL.

"I haven't been able to dedicate my entire four years here to just football," Torgersen said. "I have academic responsibilities I have to take care of before football. I try to explain to them, my ceiling is only halfway there. I haven't spent all this time pounding football in my mind."