Wilson Central-grad Dowell drafted by Titans in 7th round

May 3—Lebanon native Colton Dowell became Wilson Central's first graduate to be selected in the NFL draft when the hometown Tennessee Titans took him with their seventh-round pick (228th overall) last Saturday.

A 6-foot-3, 215-pound wide receiver, Dowell was the only player at his position, one of need for the Titans, chosen by the team during the seven-round draft.

A four-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection at UT-Martin, Dowell holds the Skyhawks' career receiving record of 2,796 yards and is third with 19 touchdowns and 177 catches. His 12 100-yard games are also a program record. He had 67 catches for 1,036 yards and six touchdowns last fall as UTM won its second straight OVC championship. He had six 100-yard games last season, including at then-No. 3 Tennessee.

Dowell took part in a local pro day earlier this month at the Titans' facility where he and his father, recently-retired Lebanon Fire chief Chris Dowell, watched training camp practices.

He is the first Wilson Countian to be picked in the draft since Mt. Juliet's Michael Jasper was called by the Buffalo Bills in 2011, a year after his Golden Bear teammate Levi Brown was chosen in the same round by the same team. Interestingly, while Dowell is the first WIlson Central graduate to be drafted, he isn't the first former Wildcat to be chosen as Brown played his freshman season for the first-year school in 2001 before transferring to MJHS.

Dowell, if he makes the team, won't be the only WCHS grad to be employed by an NFL franchise. Newly-inducted Wilson Central Sports Hall of Fame inductee Cameron Clemmons, a undrafted free agent by the then-San Diego Chargers out of Western Kentucky, is the assistant offensive line coach for the Las Vegas Raiders.

Among players who consider Lebanon to be their hometown, Dowell is believed to be the third NFL draftee, with the previous two being from Lebanon High School. Defensive lineman Louis Thompson was taken in the fourth round by the New York Giants out of Alabama in 1967. Bob Hallum, a Blue Devil running back in the late 1940s who played collegiately for Kentucky before becoming Middle Tennessee State's career passing leader (since passed by at least a dozen Blue Raiders), was chosen in the 30th round by the Chicago Bears in 1958 but passed up his final season of eligibility at MTSC (College became University at the Murfreesboro school in 1965) and never pursued a pro career to become a Naval aviator.

Another Blue Devil of note, linebacker Danny Watkins, also came from UT-Martin and was in the Oakland Raiders' training camp as an undrafted free agent in 1978, John Madden's final season as coach.

Other Wilson Countians have also signed UFA contracts. Though this list isn't necessarily complete, Castle Heights Military Academy-graduate Kelly Averitt was signed by the New York Jets out of Tennessee Tech in 1988. Mt. Juliet linebacker Tim Bryant, a star in the late 1970s, played three games as a replacement player for the Minnesota Vikings during the 1987 players strike.

Another Castle Heights player, from the school's prep school era, played briefly before embarking on a lengthy coaching career in the NFL. John North was drafted out of Vanderbilt by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round in 1945. He played for the original Baltimore Colts in the rival All-America Football Conference before the team was absorbed into the NFL in 1950. As an aside, this is not the Colts franchise currently in Indianapolis. The original Colts folded after '50 and a replacement team was placed in the Maryland city in '53. North went on to a lengthy college and pro coaching career with saw him serve parts of three seasons as head coach of the New Orleans Saints.

Former WJB, FCS player Jones signs with FalconsDowell wasn't the only player with Wilson County ties to pick up an NFL address over the weekend.

Mike Jones Jr., who played at Walter J. Baird Middle School and high school at Friendship Christian before transferring, signed a free-agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons after the seven-round draft concluded last Saturday night.

Jones, whose father played for the Titans on their Super Bowl team before becoming a coach at several Wilson County schools, spent two seasons at LSU after three at Clemson, starting with the Tigers' national championship season in '18.

In 56 career games with 16 starts, he registered 102 tackles (55 at LSU). He graduated from Clemson and was named permanent team captain as a super senior at LSU.

A quarterback in addition to his defensive work as a freshman and sophomore at Friendship, he transferred to IMG Academy in Florida to complete his high school career.