If former Nebraska running back Rex Burkhead has a bucket list, he probably got to cross off a few things this weekend. On Saturday, Burkhead was taken in the sixth round of the NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. Less than 48 hours later, Burkhead was at the White House shaking hands with the president.
"He knew what was going on with the draft," Burkhead said of President Obama, according to the team's official website. "He asked me when camp started up and he said he had watched a couple of Hard Knocks so he felt like he knew what training camp was like. He asked me, 'What's the next step?' and I told him I had a rookie minicamp next weekend (May 9-12) and some OTAs after that."
Of course, sixth-round draft picks don't normally get invited to the White House and Nebraska didn't win the BCS title last season, so if you're wondering why Burkhead was in Washington D.C., here's why: The former Cornhusker was there with 7-year-old friend Jack Hoffman. If you don't remember Hoffman, he's the brain cancer patient who stole the nation's heart in early April when he scored on a 69-yard run in Nebraska's spring game.
"It was just great to see Jack interact with the president and the knowledge the president had of the situation," Burkhead said. "He saw the touchdown on ESPN's top-10 plays. The visit is really going to give pediatric brain cancer more awareness and that's the goal of Jack, his family and the Nebraska football team's Uplifting Athletes chapter."
You can read about Jack's visit to the White House here.
As for Burkhead, the president left him with some words of encouragement for the upcoming season.
"He told me he'd be on the lookout and wished me the best of luck," Burkhead said. "Hopefully I'll be back if we win the Super Bowl."
Obama may have had his fingers crossed when he wished Burkhead the best of luck, that's because the Bengals open up the 2013 season against the president's beloved Chicago Bears.
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