Cardinals rookie QB is unique
QB takes road less traveled to NFL
Kent Somers
The Arizona Republic
May. 29, 2007 12:00 AM
Officially, quarterback Toby Korrodi is lumped in with the other 19 rookie free agents the Cardinals signed after the draft. All came here for little or no signing bonus, their tenuous status illustrated by their shared locker accommodations. Whenever their names are written, it is done in pencil or on masking tape.
But Korrodi is unique in almost every other way. He was married in high school, has three kids and took a trucker's route to the NFL - going from his home in San Antonio, to Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D., and to Central Missouri State in Warrensburg. Along the way, he and his wife, Laura, struggled to pay the bills, raised their kids and survived a horrific accident that made Toby think about everything that was dear to him.
Toby and Laura did not have to travel this road. They each could have dropped out of school to work, and no one would have blamed them. Instead, Toby has a shot to make the Cardinals roster or at least the practice squad, and he is one semester short of a degree in criminal justice.
"We could have easily just called it quits as far as going to school," Toby said. "We had kids, we could have worked, but we were looking at the future and not at the moment."
Korrodi put up outrageous numbers in college. He started two years at Northern State before transferring to Central Missouri State after his coach, Ken Heupel, retired. In his last two college seasons, Korrodi completed nearly 70 percent of his passes for 4,861 yards and 52 touchdowns. He was intercepted just five times last year and set a conference record by throwing 214 passes without an interception.
"At the (NFL) combine, I felt, and I know the scouts felt, that his arm was as good as anybody who was there," Cardinals quarterbacks coach Jeff Rutledge said.
Toby's talent was obvious in high school in San Antonio. He was big and had a powerful left arm that drew attention from the University of Houston and Purdue.
He also was a husband and father. He and Laura married on Dec. 29 of their senior year, and Toby Jr., was born on Jan. 3.
"It was Christmas Eve when he proposed," Laura said. "I didn't want him to marry me just for the fact I was pregnant. But he said he wanted to be there. He wanted to be married before the baby came.
"We had a lot of people against us, not as far as my family, but his family was kind of against it. They didn't want us to jump into something prematurely."
College recruiters normally are not drawn to players with families, especially when those players do not have the SAT scores to qualify. But Heupel was different. He had several married players on his team, and he was willing to take a chance on Korrodi the student. Heupel immediately knew it was a good decision.
"Some of the things he did on the scout team were unbelievable," Heupel said.
The Korrodis settled into Aberdeen. Laura got a job at a restaurant, and with Toby's scholarship and financial aid, the couple made do financially. Heupel was understanding about Korrodi's family commitments.
"There were some days football wasn't the top priority for him," said Heupel, the father of former Oklahoma quarterback Josh Heupel. "He had to take care of his family. Sometimes you have to realize your priorities."
That lesson was emphasized on one game day in Toby's sophomore year.
Laura was managing game-day promotions at Northern State and was trying to figure out how to work a cannon. She got it packed with gunpowder and was trying to light the torch, when it suddenly flamed up.
Wind carried the flame into the gunpowder, which exploded a few inches from her face. Toby was getting off the bus for the game when he was told about the accident. He rushed to the ambulance and did not recognize Laura, whose face was black.
"I thought she was gone," he said. "Even though her face was pitch black, she still had the nerve to tell me, 'Go ahead, play; I'll be fine. Come after the game.' She was in the ambulance, her face swollen. I'm like, 'You're crazy.' That's how tough my wife is."
Toby missed two games to be with Laura, who was in the hospital for 11 days. After several grafting surgeries, Laura has no visible scars but still is undergoing laser treatment to remove dark residue from the gunpowder.
"I don't think it's a day I'll ever forget," Heupel said. "Talk about an extraordinary family. Laura was just a rock."
Heupel retired after that season, and Korrodi did not feel comfortable with the offense brought in by the new coach. So he transferred to Central Missouri. Laura was eight months pregnant and unable to work. Financially, that was the toughest time.
"That's when my mom was pretty much paying our bills and his mom was helping out," Laura said. "I had been working for two years and not really having to depend on anybody to help us financially. It was just crazy."
Things eventually improved. Laura got a job at a bank. Friends helped watched the kids, which saved day-care costs.
After last season, the couple moved home to San Antonio, where Toby trained for the combine, working with former NFL quarterback Koy Detmer.
Making it in the NFL is tough for a Division II quarterback. Detroit's Jon Kitna (Central Washington) was the only Division II product to start last year.
Although Korrodi has a strong arm, NFL scouts were concerned about his mobility, and at 6 foot 3 and 233 pounds, Korrodi will not make much of a living with his legs.
But he can throw, and he has made steady improvement through the Cardinals' off-season program. He is competing with Shane Boyd for the No. 3 spot, and even if he loses it, he still could land on the team's practice squad.
Meanwhile, Laura has stayed in San Antonio with the kids, living with her mother, working in a dental office and trying to explain to the little ones where Daddy is and what he is doing.
Toby Jr., who is 5, keeps saying that Dad is in "Arizona, Missouri." Jacob, who is 3, thinks Dad is in "Arizona, California." The baby, Carly, turns 2 in July and just gets whiny when she is missing her dad.
"My kids are still young; they don't know what's going on," Toby said. "Every day they're asking Mom, 'Where's Dad?' It's kind of hard. Other than that, it's a job. I have to come out here, work my tail off and try to make a living for my family."
QB takes road less traveled to NFL
Kent Somers
The Arizona Republic
May. 29, 2007 12:00 AM
Officially, quarterback Toby Korrodi is lumped in with the other 19 rookie free agents the Cardinals signed after the draft. All came here for little or no signing bonus, their tenuous status illustrated by their shared locker accommodations. Whenever their names are written, it is done in pencil or on masking tape.
But Korrodi is unique in almost every other way. He was married in high school, has three kids and took a trucker's route to the NFL - going from his home in San Antonio, to Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D., and to Central Missouri State in Warrensburg. Along the way, he and his wife, Laura, struggled to pay the bills, raised their kids and survived a horrific accident that made Toby think about everything that was dear to him.
Toby and Laura did not have to travel this road. They each could have dropped out of school to work, and no one would have blamed them. Instead, Toby has a shot to make the Cardinals roster or at least the practice squad, and he is one semester short of a degree in criminal justice.
"We could have easily just called it quits as far as going to school," Toby said. "We had kids, we could have worked, but we were looking at the future and not at the moment."
Korrodi put up outrageous numbers in college. He started two years at Northern State before transferring to Central Missouri State after his coach, Ken Heupel, retired. In his last two college seasons, Korrodi completed nearly 70 percent of his passes for 4,861 yards and 52 touchdowns. He was intercepted just five times last year and set a conference record by throwing 214 passes without an interception.
"At the (NFL) combine, I felt, and I know the scouts felt, that his arm was as good as anybody who was there," Cardinals quarterbacks coach Jeff Rutledge said.
Toby's talent was obvious in high school in San Antonio. He was big and had a powerful left arm that drew attention from the University of Houston and Purdue.
He also was a husband and father. He and Laura married on Dec. 29 of their senior year, and Toby Jr., was born on Jan. 3.
"It was Christmas Eve when he proposed," Laura said. "I didn't want him to marry me just for the fact I was pregnant. But he said he wanted to be there. He wanted to be married before the baby came.
"We had a lot of people against us, not as far as my family, but his family was kind of against it. They didn't want us to jump into something prematurely."
College recruiters normally are not drawn to players with families, especially when those players do not have the SAT scores to qualify. But Heupel was different. He had several married players on his team, and he was willing to take a chance on Korrodi the student. Heupel immediately knew it was a good decision.
"Some of the things he did on the scout team were unbelievable," Heupel said.
The Korrodis settled into Aberdeen. Laura got a job at a restaurant, and with Toby's scholarship and financial aid, the couple made do financially. Heupel was understanding about Korrodi's family commitments.
"There were some days football wasn't the top priority for him," said Heupel, the father of former Oklahoma quarterback Josh Heupel. "He had to take care of his family. Sometimes you have to realize your priorities."
That lesson was emphasized on one game day in Toby's sophomore year.
Laura was managing game-day promotions at Northern State and was trying to figure out how to work a cannon. She got it packed with gunpowder and was trying to light the torch, when it suddenly flamed up.
Wind carried the flame into the gunpowder, which exploded a few inches from her face. Toby was getting off the bus for the game when he was told about the accident. He rushed to the ambulance and did not recognize Laura, whose face was black.
"I thought she was gone," he said. "Even though her face was pitch black, she still had the nerve to tell me, 'Go ahead, play; I'll be fine. Come after the game.' She was in the ambulance, her face swollen. I'm like, 'You're crazy.' That's how tough my wife is."
Toby missed two games to be with Laura, who was in the hospital for 11 days. After several grafting surgeries, Laura has no visible scars but still is undergoing laser treatment to remove dark residue from the gunpowder.
"I don't think it's a day I'll ever forget," Heupel said. "Talk about an extraordinary family. Laura was just a rock."
Heupel retired after that season, and Korrodi did not feel comfortable with the offense brought in by the new coach. So he transferred to Central Missouri. Laura was eight months pregnant and unable to work. Financially, that was the toughest time.
"That's when my mom was pretty much paying our bills and his mom was helping out," Laura said. "I had been working for two years and not really having to depend on anybody to help us financially. It was just crazy."
Things eventually improved. Laura got a job at a bank. Friends helped watched the kids, which saved day-care costs.
After last season, the couple moved home to San Antonio, where Toby trained for the combine, working with former NFL quarterback Koy Detmer.
Making it in the NFL is tough for a Division II quarterback. Detroit's Jon Kitna (Central Washington) was the only Division II product to start last year.
Although Korrodi has a strong arm, NFL scouts were concerned about his mobility, and at 6 foot 3 and 233 pounds, Korrodi will not make much of a living with his legs.
But he can throw, and he has made steady improvement through the Cardinals' off-season program. He is competing with Shane Boyd for the No. 3 spot, and even if he loses it, he still could land on the team's practice squad.
Meanwhile, Laura has stayed in San Antonio with the kids, living with her mother, working in a dental office and trying to explain to the little ones where Daddy is and what he is doing.
Toby Jr., who is 5, keeps saying that Dad is in "Arizona, Missouri." Jacob, who is 3, thinks Dad is in "Arizona, California." The baby, Carly, turns 2 in July and just gets whiny when she is missing her dad.
"My kids are still young; they don't know what's going on," Toby said. "Every day they're asking Mom, 'Where's Dad?' It's kind of hard. Other than that, it's a job. I have to come out here, work my tail off and try to make a living for my family."
