Ponder headed to New York

Willie Ponder's dream came true Sunday, but he knows it's only the beginning of what he anticipates to be a long and grueling road.

Ponder, Southeast Missouri State University's record-setting wide receiver, was picked by the New York Giants in the sixth round of the National Football League draft, the 199th overall selection.

"It's a dream come true, but this is just the start. I still have a lot of work to do," Ponder said via telephone from his family home in Tulsa, Okla., where he watched the nationally televised draft with family and friends.

Ponder is the first Southeast football player to be drafted by the NFL since defensive lineman Angel Rubio went in the seventh and final round to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1998. Rubio played only briefly in the NFL.

Giants showed interest

The Giants are one of five organizations that flew Ponder in for individual workouts, physicals and meetings with coaches prior to the draft. Ponder said a Giants official telephoned him Sunday just moments before New York was to make the first of its three sixth-round selections.

"He called and asked if I've been watching. I said yeah," recalled Ponder. "He said they're getting ready to turn my card in. He said congratulations, they just turned in my card, then after he said that, I saw my name come up there on the screen.

"I was relieved. It's a load off, knowing that a team was interested enough in me to draft me. My agent told me, for a guy who didn't get invited to the combine, who came from small school and only played there for two years, to get drafted that high is good."

Ponder said his agent will work out a contract in the next day or two and then Ponder will fly to New York Thursday for a weekend mini-camp. There will be several other mini-camps before training camp begins in the summer.

"I know I have to improve a lot, but I'm a professional football player now and I'm going to do whatever it takes to try and make the team," Ponder said. "I just have to go in there and work hard, try to contribute on special teams and hopefully I'll be all right."

All-American selection

Ponder, 6-feet-1 and 205 pounds, was selected a first-team Division I-AA All-American by three different organizations after catching 87 passes for 1,453 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior in 2002.

In his two seasons at Southeast, Ponder caught 157 passes for 2,543 yards and 26 touchdowns.

"I want to thank all my coaches at SEMO who helped me out so much and helped me get to this point, and to everybody in Cape who was so supportive of me," Ponder said.

Southeast assistant head coach Kip Shaw, who works with the wide receivers and was largely responsible for recruiting Ponder to Southeast out of Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, was with Ponder in Tulsa when he was drafted.

"Coach Shaw being here made me feel good, showing that kind of support for me," Ponder said. "I really appreciated it."

Ponder was one of just two Ohio Valley Conference players taken in the draft, the other being Eastern Kentucky defensive back Yeremiah Bell, who went to Miami late in the sixth round, with the 213th overall pick. Bell actually missed the entire 2002 season with a knee injury.