Leading up to the 2022 NFL draft, Brett Jewkes shared video clips of BYU running back Tyler Allgeier to Arthur Smith, the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, and the general manager, Terry Fontenot.
“That was a moment of joy for me, to see these young guys chasing the dream and to be a little bit a part of supporting them and to be in an organization that puts character right up there with how fast you can run and how strong you are.” — Brett Jewkes on Tyler Allgeier and Clark Phillips III now being teammates in Atlanta
Jewkes, a BYU graduate and fan, is the executive vice president and chief brand and communications officer of the Blank Family of Businesses that oversees the Falcons.
He simply relished what Allgeier did for the Cougars and thought he would fit in well in Atlanta.
Getting involved in player personnel decisions is something Jewkes had never done in his seven years in the Falcons organization.
“I do not get into football’s business — they are outstanding at what they do and I’m just the PR guy,” said Jewkes. “But I presented some information. I’m not a scout or anything. But I kept saying, ‘This guy’s a stud. He never goes down on first contact.’”
And the leaders of the Falcons assuredly gave the BYU running back a close, long look.
During the draft, Smith told Jewkes, “If your guy is there, it could be a great day.”
On the third day of the draft, Atlanta grabbed Allgeier in the fifth round.
“Sure enough, he was there, and we took him,” Jewkes said.
After the pick of Allgeier was submitted, Arthur M. Blank, the Falcons’ owner, texted Jewkes from the draft room.
“I’ll never reveal what he said to me until I write a book someday,” he said with a laugh, “but he was excited about the player and said something like, ‘This one’s on you.’”
Standing out
Smith told Jewkes one of the things that stood out in the staff’s review of Allgeier during the scouting process was Allgeier’s performance in the Independence Bowl, where he ran for 192 yards and three touchdowns.
“Coach said something like, ‘In a meaningless game, he was playing like it’s the world championship. That showed a lot about who he is,’” Jewkes said. “That’s who coach is, too. He wants guys that want it bad and that show they want to work at it. So, we draft Allgeier and I’m personally out-of-my-mind excited in the Falcons facility. But I tried to play it cool.”
Not only did Allgeier join the Falcons but he ended up rushing 210 times for 1,035 yards and three touchdowns. He broke the franchise rushing record for a rookie running back.
“Allgeier becoming a Falcon was a great moment for my family,” Jewkes said. “We were excited in Atlanta. My brother works at BYU, and he was the first one who called me. Even my dad, a lifelong Aggie, was thrilled. They love it.”
Many people probably don’t realize that Allgeier was inactive in the season opener last fall against New Orleans. He made the roster but was inactive. But after a veteran running back suffered an injury in that game, Allgeier was activated the next week and showed what he could do.
“As the year went on, he just kept doing his thing,” Jewkes said. “After Allgeier went off in his second or third game, Arthur (Smith), Arthur Blank, Terry and others started giving me a nod and as the season went on everyone was ecstatic about having Tyler here.”
So, before the 2023 draft, Smith asked Jewkes, “Who do you got? Who are your guys?”
Responded Jewkes, “No, I cashed my one chip. I’m done” with draft pick suggestions.
This year, the Falcons selected another product from the Beehive State — Utah cornerback Clark Phillips III, in the fourth round.
Breaking bread
At the Falcons’ rookie orientation dinner, Jewkes asked the community relations team to “put me at a table with Allgeier and the Ute,” adding, “I’m going to broker peace in the Holy War.”
It was the first time Allgeier and Phillips had met each other, though they played against each other in 2021, when BYU snapped the nine-game losing streak against Utah, 26-17.
So how did it go that night at the orientation dinner?
“Clark Phillips has impressed everyone in our building since the day he got here. He’s confident. In that dinner, he was locked in, listening to Mr. Blank and talking to some of our veterans and his maturity was obvious.” — Brett Jewkes on Falcons rookie and former Ute Clark Phillips
“It makes me very proud. Those are two really good young men who both came out of really good programs. Clark Phillips has impressed everyone in our building since the day he got here. He’s confident,” Jewkes said. “In that dinner, he was locked in, listening to Mr. Blank and talking to some of our veterans and his maturity was obvious.”
Of course, Jewkes couldn’t resist ribbing Phillips with some good-natured rivalry smack talk.
“Tyler and I had some fun with him that night because we won the last game. But when you get down to it, that dinner had two young studs from Utah schools,” he said. “That was a moment of joy for me, to see these young guys chasing the dream and to be a little bit a part of supporting them and to be in an organization that puts character right up there with how fast you can run and how strong you are. They are both the type of people coach Smith and Terry want on our team.”
‘You all just won the lottery’
When Atlanta drafted Phillips, a former colleague in California reached out to Jewkes and sent him a message.
“I hadn’t worked with him in 20 years. He said, ‘I know this kid and his family. You all just won the lottery.’ Or something like that,” Jewkes said. “For someone to do that for a kid he saw grow up in the neighborhood tells you everything about Clark. Obviously, our scouts had done tons of homework. I had never met him until that rookie dinner, and he was very impressive.”
Again, Jewkes isn’t a coach, but he’s optimistic about the kind of role Phillips could have with the Falcons.
“He’s going to have an opportunity — you can never have too many corners in this league,” he said.
Jewkes remembers watching Phillips play against USC wide receiver Drake London, who was a rookie with the Falcons last season.
“Drake’s a stud and that one game was a draw at worst between those two,” Jewkes said. “Drake’s got him by six inches. I’m glad they’re teammates now.”
What’s next for Allgeier
And, of course, Jewkes is looking forward to seeing what Allgeier can do in his second year in the league. Regardless, Allgeier has already earned a spot in the hearts of Falcons fans.
“Atlanta is a tough, gritty city that is often overlooked and put to the side by some. But it’s a city that has literally risen from the ashes, one that is very resilient,” Jewkes said. “There’s a grittiness to the hip-hop culture here. And yet you have the third-most Fortune 500 companies that are here. You have this eclectic, diverse place that has a little bit of a chip on its shoulder in some ways.
“If you’re a guy like Allgeier that was a walk-on (at BYU) and a fifth-round pick, who didn’t dress for his first game, and you break the (franchise) rookie rushing record, that’s special. But it was the way that he did it. People here fell in love with him.
“Opponents couldn’t tackle him. In the Cleveland game, he dragged a guy 18 yards. That highlight, we rode that thing for a week on our digital handles. It was on TV constantly here. That was really his coming out in a big way. To his credit, he’s a humble kid. I bet he’s working out right now, hoping he makes the team again.
“To me, it’s crazy that this is overlooked, but 1,035 yards and I think he had around 250 receiving,” Jewkes continued. “Not a single time did he put the ball on the ground. He didn’t fumble once. And this is the NFL — they were trying to beat the dog out of him. If you want to get into coach Smith’s heart, do it the right way, be productive and take care of the football.”
Many were surprised when the Falcons picked Texas’ Bijan Robinson in the first round, No. 8 overall. Some wondered what that would mean for Allgeier’s future.
“He’s going to be just fine,” Jewkes said. “People that are worried about the drafting of Bijan shouldn’t be. I think Tyler will end up having a big role this year. I think you’ll see both of those guys running a lot and both of those guys catching a lot. They’ll be balanced and coach Smith is one of the most creative offensive minds in the league. He’ll find ways to use their unique traits.”
Rivals united
Jewkes likes to point out to people that don’t live in Utah that they can never understand how intense the BYU-Utah rivalry is.
“People out here don’t care about that one too much because they don’t understand what it’s like on the Wasatch Front,” he said. “Likewise, if you haven’t lived in Atlanta or the Southeast, you don’t understand the Saints-Falcons rivalry. It’s way more intense than what I saw out of New York-(Philadelphia) when we live up there. It’s just brutal, but fun.”
That’s why Jewkes struggles to see Taysom Hill and Jamaal Williams, a pair of former BYU stars, playing for the Saints.
“It literally sickens me to have Taysom and Jamaal in New Orleans,” he said. “Besides Allgeier, Taysom, certainly in modern times, is my favorite former BYU player. When they signed him, that was like a gut-punch.
“He’s played really well against us the last four years. So, when I saw the transaction go across that Jamaal was going there, I was like, ‘This cannot be happening.’ At least we have one BYU guy. It’s the part for me personally that makes this fun.
“It’s fun to have Tyler on this team and it will be cool to compete against those guys, although I wish they were on any other team besides that one. It will be weird to be cheering for a Ute (Phillips) to make some big stops against those guys. But I will be.”
The BYU-Utah rivalry is alive and well, albeit on a smaller scale, and in different ways, even in a place like Atlanta.
