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KAYSVILLE — Jaxson Dart's NFL draft celebration was as memorable as it could be, even if the former Corner Canyon and Roy High quarterback never hopped on a plane and flew to Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Instead, the 6-foot-2 signal caller celebrated the No. 25 selection by the New York Giants at his parents' home in Davis County, surrounded by friends, family and dozens of the most important people in his life.
When a call reached his phone after the Giants traded back into the first round to select the former Ole Miss all-time leading passer, he smiled. When NFL commissioner Roger Goodell read his name over the pulpit 1,483 miles away, he smiled and let out a guttural roar before hugging his mother, Kara, and his father, Brandon, the former Utah safety, and then made the rounds among those who came to support him.
Eventually, he'd have to get on a plane for the Big Apple, where he met the Giants media for the first time as a first-round draft pick Friday afternoon. Before that, though, he got a special message of his own from another former Ole Miss starting quarterback who was "one of the first people to reach out to me" after his name was called.
"Obviously, there's a strong connection between Ole Miss quarterbacks and the New York Giants" two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning told Dart via video message, "and I'm excited that the tradition will continue with you."
Dart has admitted how much he's looked up to Manning, whose collegiate record he broke to become the Rebels' all-time leader in wins (28) and winning percentage by a starting quarterback (.737), total offense (12,115), passing yards (10,617), passing efficiency (162.8), rushing yards by a quarterback (1,498) and total offense per play (8.14).
But there are also a couple of quarterbacks in the Giants' locker room that he admires, too — most notably Russell Wilson, the 36-year-old signal caller signed a one-year, $10.5 million contract with New York last month. Dart admitted he owned Wilson's Seahawks jersey when he was growing up, and he also looked up to journeyman quarterback Jameis Winston during his decade in the NFL.
"I think it's a great opportunity for me to learn. They've played at the highest level, won Super Bowls," Dart said. "It's a surreal experience to play here and play with those great guys at such an elite caliber. I'm just really prepared to take it day-by-day, and try to improve myself and learn from them as much as I can."
Normally, when a team trades three draft picks to move back into the first round like the Giants did with the Houston Texans, it's a signal that said quarterback is hoped to be the future face of the franchise.
That may be the case with Dart. But for now, he's content being a backup — and the Giants seemingly feel the same way after drafting the dual-threat quarterback to a four-year rookie contract with a guaranteed option for a fifth due to picking him in the first round.
"I think he's got a lot of qualities you look for in a good quarterback," Giants head coach Brian Daboll said. "He's tough, makes good decisions with the football, pushes the ball down the field, has athletic ability, played in a really tough conference, started there at USC as a young guy.
"But he did a really good job throughout this process of our meetings, board work, workouts and the tape that we liked. Look forward to working with him."
As for Dart, the Utah native has come a long way since he moved in with his aunt to transfer from Roy to Corner Canyon before his senior season, when he won a 6A state title, earned national player of the year honors by Gatorade and MaxPreps, and committed to USC — where he backed up Kedon Slovis and started a game prior to transferring amidst a coaching change to Ole Miss.
The next step starts now.
"It's special. Them being able to have that belief in me, I think as a competitor, you have that belief in yourself. When you're part of an organization that sees you the same way, it's special. I think they have an amazing plan lined up for me in the development program. Being able to learn from the vets that are ahead of me is going to be great."
Eventually, he'll be ready for the big show — sooner or later.
"I feel like any time I step on the football field, I'm going to go out there and ball — regardless of who I'm playing against," Dart said. "I have that confidence in myself. But I understand at the same time, coming to the next level, there's going to be a development piece. And that goes for anybody, regardless of where you're at in your career, as you take it to the next level."
