aj how much uh did play in the big ten or the physicality of the big ten prepare you for the nfl yeah i mean i think i think the big ten is uh definitely a a strong league and you go against um great d-linemen every week so i think that's that's played a huge role in preparing me for this next this next opportunity ahead andrea what were the last few minutes of the draft like you went for maybe you know teams probably called you about being a udfa to getting drafted by the super bowl champs yeah i mean i i mean it was surreal i mean i'm so i was you know i'm fired up about this opportunity and you know it's something you dream about as a child so just just having my name called you know that's something i'll remember for the rest of my life aj we are kind of joking that the rams are starting to build an all big ten offensive line here with havenstein and edwards and drafting a wisconsin guy what is your impression if you have one on some of the guys they already have on the roster and where you might want to compete uh you know as you as you sort of get in the process here yeah i mean i think it's you know i think it's awesome um there's a lot of other form of victim offensive landing in that room and i'm just ready for this this opportunity i'm gonna um go out there and compete and do the best i can to you know provide value and and find my place and find my role how much of a difference is there for you between left and right tackle i would say you know i would say they're very much the same like if i would have to flip a coin if somebody asked me like you know you get to decide which position you play i'd probably just flip a coin because there's really no um i'm sorry go ahead no that's really all i had sorry i was just gonna ask you you guys there's obviously another spartan on the ramp roster already and brian allen do you have any sort of connection to relationship with them already yeah i was i was pretty close with brian allen i was actually roommates with his uh younger brother matthew allen so so i've i've known that whole family for a while now ever since i've been at michigan state so i'm excited to reunite with him and then just as you've uh you know developed in your football career from high school to now being drafted in the nfl can you share how you've always been working to get to this point yeah definitely i feel like you know my path hasn't always been the easiest and i've gone through some adversity just as like pretty much any other player has but um i think i've always just you know known that this is a sport that i want to play and this is something that i want to do so i've always given my full effort to that and um [Music] yeah hey aj uh when andrew whitworth was playing here um he said every year he would try to get a little bit lighter and he likes playing at a little bit of a leaner weight um you've got a pretty uh tall frame and and you've got a lot of good athletic traits he tested very well so i'm kind of wondering what the balance for you is in um continuing to add that power as you get into the nfl while also keeping those athletic traits uh that you already have yeah definitely um that's something that i you know i think i'll i'll have a conversation with the um the ram staff and i think they'll be able to find that that good balance for me you know i think they have a say in what weight they'd want me at and so i'll have to wait and see about that one did you get a chance to talk with kevin harberry when they drafted you or was it just a real quick scenario yeah no i talked with him a little bit i talked to him um previously throughout this draft process and you know he seems like a great coach and i'm really excited to play for him