FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) Nathan Shepherd was out of school and away from the football field for two years, working side jobs to try to earn some money.
The big defensive lineman from Canada spent long hours toiling at a plant nursery, a printing factory and also eventually doing electrical construction. The whole time, football tugged at his heart.
Four years later, Shepherd was selected in the third round of the NFL draft by the New York Jets - the latest stop in what has been a football journey marked by uncertainty and perseverance.
''It honestly brought me to the point where I had to look myself in the mirror and decide how much football meant to me,'' the former Fort Hays State star said during a conference call Saturday night. ''It was just one of those loves that I couldn't get over. It became a matter of, do whatever you have to do to make your dreams come true.''
The 6-foot-4, 315-pound Shepherd was the first Division II player selected in this year's draft. He was also the Jets' only pick on the second day of the draft after New York took USC quarterback Sam Darnold at No. 3 overall pick on Thursday night.
Shepherd, a native of Ontario, Canada, turns 25 in October and is considered quite a bit raw because of his time away from the game and the level at which he played his college ball. He adds depth to the Jets' defensive line after they cut defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson during the offseason.
''He might be slightly older than your average prospect,'' general manager Mike Maccagnan said. ''He's got a bit of a different story than most guys, but he is, what we felt, is a very talented guy with a lot of upside. We still think he's got a lot of football left in him.''
Shepherd wondered that about himself just a few years ago, when a shot at the NFL seemed highly unlikely.
He was a 205-pound linebacker in high school, but was urged by one of his coaches to gain some weight so he could play at the next level. Shepherd redshirted his first season at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia and gained 45 pounds during that time.
He started the following season, but then couldn't afford to remain in school.
''I was looking at it in six-month intervals,'' Shepherd recalled. ''Every six months after a semester, I was like, OK, this semester I'm going to go somewhere and it didn't happen. Then, I was like, this semester, you're going to go somewhere. So, really, I wasn't looking at it like a two-year span. I was just like, my shot is right around the corner.''
It took two years, but Shepherd eventually found his way to Fort Hays State in Hays, Kansas, where he walked on to the football team.
He was back. And so was his NFL dream.
''For him, it's great he was determined to make money and go to work and go back to school because he was driven is outstanding,'' Jets coach Todd Bowles said. ''Obviously, things happen in the real world that you have to take responsibility for. He took his responsibility, he was driven to go back and he made something of himself.
''I'm actually proud of the guy.''
Shepherd immediately became a starter for the Tigers and ended up being selected as an All-America his last two seasons. He was the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association defensive player of the year as a senior and finished his three-year career at Fort Hays with 168 tackles, including 27 for loss, and 10 sacks.
No more flowers or electrical work these days.
''Man, it's surprising,'' Shepherd said. ''I just feel blessed. Rewarding? Yeah, just seeing all that hard work, it feels like this experience is kind of like back pay for everything I was doing back when.''
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