Latest news with #IrrelevantWeek
Los Angeles Times
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
‘Just go with it': Irrelevant Week to mark 50 years of roasting and toasting NFL's last draft pick
Football fans traveled in packs to go to the NFL draft, with an estimated 600,000 people attending over the three days last week. The draft doesn't end until a new Mr. Irrelevant is named, that title being bestowed upon the last player selected. Paul Salata, who was a wide receiver at USC before going on to play for the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL, cooked up the idea to celebrate the last selection. A tradition was born in 1976, when Dayton wide receiver Kelvin Kirk was taken by the Steelers with the 487th pick. How appropriate it was that when the 50th member of the Mr. Irrelevant club was chosen on Saturday, April 26, it occurred in the shadow of iconic Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. Memphis cornerback Kobee Minor became the milestone man when the New England Patriots made him the 257th and final player taken. Melanie Salata-Fitch, daughter of the late Paul Salata and the chief executive of Irrelevant Week, discussed the celebration making it to the half-century mark, opening with a dose of the family's trademark humor. 'In 50 words or less?' she quipped, as if the story could be told as such. Salata-Fitch said her father, who died a day shy of his 95th birthday in 2021, would be 'flabbergasted' to realize that the party has gone on this long. 'When it became 20 years, he really thought that was long,' Salata-Fitch said. 'We tried to get [the past Mr. Irrelevants] all back. Some of them were not alive anymore, surprisingly. … At the 20th year, four of them were already gone, for whatever reason. Twenty years, it is really long, and then 25, he thought was long. I mean, 50 is really long. 'My friends know never to ask me to go anywhere the last week of April or anytime in June because I'm planning Irrelevant Week, I'm at Irrelevant Week, or I'm at the draft. The draft always falls on my birthday.' Mr. Irrelevant is as much a term of endearment as it is a good-natured ribbing, and through the decades, those who have held the title have gained a following in Newport Beach, which serves as home base for the annual Irrelevant Week. The week's happenings include the Lowsman Banquet, at which Mr. Irrelevant has been handed a trophy depicting a player fumbling the football. It has also often seen the Newport Beach mayor present a key to the city. There is usually an evening reserved for a pub crawl. Mr. Irrelevant also receives a surf lesson, drawing attention from the community to see how he takes to the local culture. Ed Fitch, Melanie's husband, compared his father-in-law to Don Rickles, the stand-up comedian. While he said he fit in well as a football fan and USC graduate, it took thick skin to be that close to the fun-loving Salata. 'I would try to throw a little bit back at him, and it was no contest,' Fitch said. 'You just got to roll with the punches, and I do. I have no problem with that. It was actually a lot of fun, but I was the butt of a lot of jokes.' That's sound advice from a man who spent a lot of time in the presence of the founder of Irrelevant Week, which has a well-earned reputation for roasting and toasting its honorees. When the first Mr. Irrelevant selection was made, the draft consisted of 17 rounds. It shrunk to a dozen rounds the next year, eight in 1993, and it has been seven rounds since 1994. There are a handful of Mr. Irrelevants actively playing in the NFL, including Brock Purdy, who was the starting quarterback for the 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. Ryan Succop became the first Mr. Irrelevant to hoist the Lombardi Trophy, when he served as the kicker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV. The odds were stacked against Matt Elliott when he was taken with the final selection (336th overall) by the Washington Redskins in 1992. Elliott, an offensive lineman who also went on to play for the Carolina Panthers, holds the distinction of the final 12th-round selection in NFL history. It wasn't until halfway through his fifth year at the University of Michigan that Elliott thought he might have a shot at playing professional football. Every pick of the NFL draft is televised nowadays, but back then, Elliott said he woke up on the final day of the draft and watched the picks come in on the ESPN ticker at the bottom of the screen. The programming that day included motocross and professional wrestling, he recalled. When he got the call from the Redskins, Elliott got tipped off about what was coming his way. Coach Joe Gibbs and Mike Hagen, the scout who had contacted Elliott in college, had similar advice: 'Just go with it.' Soon, Elliott was out in Southern California, where the festivities included a Runnin' Gunnin' Golf Tournament. Depending who's telling the story, they will detail different twists among the holes. 'There were some holes that were timed,' Elliott said. 'There was a hole where you had to use a left-handed 7-iron the whole time. I think one of them, you had to tee off with your left foot up on a box. The 18th green, I think they had Hooters girls throwing water balloons at you while you tried to putt. Just absolutely outlandish stuff like that. 'Certainly, if they did it, it fit the attitude of the event itself. Don't take yourself too seriously. Let's have some fun, right?' Lowsman Banquet arrivals have provided plenty of opportunity, too. No sooner had Grant Stuard, a Buccaneers draft pick, arrived on deck than he was greeted by Captain Jack Sparrow in 2021. The following year, Purdy was flanked by showgirls in feather costumes in recognition of the fact the draft had taken place in Las Vegas. Salata-Fitch also recalled Ryan Hoag — selected by the then Oakland Raiders in 2003 — being an easy mark with Hoag Hospital servicing the local community. 'We had him come in an ambulance,' Salata-Fitch said. 'In the back of the ambulance, he's on a gurney, and he has cheerleader nurses next to him. It was a fun kickoff.' Irrelevant Week is known for taking requests and trying to accommodate them for their man of the hour. Hoag said he hoped to appear on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' 'They made it happen,' Hoag said. 'They had me as the announcer on the Jimmy Kimmel show. Steve Harvey was one of the guests, and they interviewed me, essentially, alongside Steve Harvey on the Jimmy Kimmel show live. That is pretty special.' Hoag, who has since made appearances on 'The Bachelorette,' and, more recently a game show called 'The Floor,' figures he has attended about a dozen Irrelevant Weeks. Salata used to joke that the Mr. Irrelevant fraternity was a more exclusive club than winners of the Heisman Trophy, given annually to the top player in college football. The Lowsman Trophy is a parody representation of that hardware, which displays a ball carrier posed as delivering a stiff arm. 'Seventh-rounders are always kind of afterthoughts because you have an 11% chance of making the roster as a seventh-round pick,' Hoag said. 'Then there's us as Mr. Irrelevants. How lucky are we that Paul Salata 50 years ago decided, 'You know what? It's irrelevant that you were last. I think it's relevant that you were drafted, and I'm going to make a big deal about it. Let's put a party on for you,' and then the NFL took it and ran with it.' Those who have gone along with the program have received a lot of goodwill. Elliott said he is still affectionately referred to as 'Casper,' a ghostly nickname he was given by Salata for his pale Midwestern complexion on his initial visit. 'They're going to rib you a little bit, but the focus is you and celebrating you,' Elliott said. 'Hoping for your success is what they're doing. It's a lot of fun. It will make it even more fun if you just try to have fun. I think it's one of the neatest things that surrounds the draft.'
Boston Globe
28-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
From one Mr. Irrelevant to another: Patriots' first final pick, Marty Moore, has some advice for Kobee Minor
'First off, congratulations to him on just getting drafted. That's the most important thing,' said Moore, who played eight years in the NFL, seven with the Patriots. 'The next thing? Wear that badge with some honor. The people in Boston will love you if you do that. Embrace it. 'It's tough enough to get drafted these days, especially with the level of competitiveness out there,' he added. 'And it increases tenfold every year, with the offseason workouts and everything else that has gone into the game since I retired. But the thing he should do is take that badge and use it to his advantage. People will root for him.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Moore certainly figured things out. He played in 16 games a year in his first four seasons in the league, and was a part of the 1996 AFC champions. A hard-hitting linebacker, he ended up sticking around for 112 games in the NFL before finishing his career with New England on injured reserve during the 2001 season. Advertisement 'I can still claim to be the first Mr. Irrelevant to win a Super Bowl,' he said. 'I'll also say I was the first Mr. Irrelevant to start a game as a rookie. I started that year in the opener against Miami. That gave me some accolades. Advertisement 'But I kind of took it as an opportunity to work and make the team, and then I turned it into a career.' Mr. Irrelevant is one of the most noteworthy draft storylines every year, particularly after San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy — who was taken No. 262 in 2022 by the Niners — helped guide San Francisco 'We established Irrelevant Week to drive home an important message — that it's not a negative to be picked last in the NFL Draft; rather, it's an honor to be drafted at all,' said former NFL player Paul Salata, who came up with the award in 1976. 'The last draft pick's demonstration of perseverance is a lesson that resonates not only with NFL players and fans, but also with people everywhere.' Marty Moore celebrated at Disneyland in June 1994, following the Patriots making him the final selection in that year's NFL Draft. Boston Globe Archives Minor arrives in the NFL after stops at Texas Tech, Indiana, and Memphis. The 6-foot, 190-pounder had his best collegiate season last year with the Tigers, where he totaled 38 tackles, 6 passes defensed, 2 forced fumbles, 2 sacks, and 7 tackles for loss — all career highs. 'You're going to get a hard worker, a guy that does everything right on and off the field,' Minor said Saturday. 'You're getting a good football player and a better person.' Related : The Patriots ended up with the last pick in the draft after a deal with the Chiefs. That was all right with Minor, who sounded like someone who was ready to embrace the 'Irrelevant' honor. Advertisement 'I love it because I've never been a highly recruited guy. I've never been one of the top guys. So, really this isn't anything new to me,' he said. 'I'm going to just go out here and do what I got to do, put my head down and grind, like I always have. 'It's just fuel to my fire. I'm going to just continue to work and I'm excited for this opportunity.' Over the years, Moore has connected with some of the other members of the fraternity, including offensive lineman Matt Elliott, who was taken last in 1992. The two ended up working in medical sales together. 'Really, it was great for me,' Moore said. 'I was in Sports Illustrated. I was getting interviewed all the time. I still get calls about it. When Brock Purdy went to the Super Bowl, people were calling me. That's 30 years after I was drafted.' Moore, who was a teammate of head coach Mike Vrabel during the 2001 season in New England, sounded an optimistic note about the future of the franchise. 'All the guys I played with are now coaches,' he said with a laugh. 'Now, I'm seeing all my teammates' kids get drafted. That's the crazy thing; when you start to see your teammates' kids get drafted. 'But it's a cool experience. I'm very happy the Patriots got the pick. I hope the kid does well. We could definitely use some juice in that locker room this season. I'll be rooting for him.' Christopher Price can be reached at
CNN
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
New England Patriots make Kobee Minor this year's ‘Mr. Irrelevant'
With the 257th and final pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots selected cornerback Kobee Minor from the University of Memphis. As the last player selected in the draft, Minor joins one of the most unique fraternities in sports and becomes the newest man to earn the nickname 'Mr. Irrelevant.' 'I love it. I've never been a highly recruited guy. I've never been one of the top guys so really this isn't anything new to me,' Minor said on a video call shortly after being drafted by the Patriots. 'I am just going to go out here and do what I got to do, put my head down and grind like I always been.' A fifth-year senior, Minor finished his collegiate career with the Memphis Tigers after initially playing for the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Indiana Hoosiers. Last season, Minor has 38 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles, and six pass deflections for the Tigers. While the final pick in the draft doesn't always enjoy great success on the field, there are plenty of other perks that come with the dubious honor. In 1976, the late Paul Salata, who himself had been a 10th round draft pick in 1951, decided that he wanted to give the last draft pick something to smile about. He invited the 487th pick Kelvin Kirk to Newport Beach in California and the concept of 'Mr Irrelevant' was born. It's since become one of the most endearing concepts in sports. The event known as 'Irrelevant Week' is now run by Salata's daughter, Melanie Salata-Fitch, who was in Green Bay to announce Minor's selection on Saturday. Salata-Finch told CNN that planning for the week begins from backstage as soon as the draft is over. Irrelevant Week takes place in Newport Beach, featuring a parade in honor of the draftee, a 'roast and toast' dinner and a golf tournament. The festivities are tailored to each athlete, and they are encouraged to submit a wish list. There are VIP trips to Disneyland and the Playboy Mansion, players have met celebrities like Will Farrell and Jimmy Kimmel and driven the cars of their dreams. At the end of the week, the players leave Newport Beach with more than just fond memories. Stuffed into their luggage is the Lowsman Trophy, a tongue in cheek reference to the Heisman Trophy given to the best NCAA player every season. The player on the trophy is depicted fumbling the ball. But occasionally Mr. Irrelevant has found success on the football field. San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy, Mr. Irrelevant in 2022, had an immediate impact for the 49ers. In his rookie season, he was pressed into the starting role due to injuries and engineered a five-game winning streak that was instrumental in the team's run the NFC Championship game that year. The next season, Purdy earned the starting quarterback role and led the team to a Super Bowl appearance, where the 49ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime. Another notable Mr. Irrelevant was kicker Ryan Succop, the final pick in the 2009 draft by the Chiefs. Succop went on the enjoy a 14-year NFL career, winning a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021. Following his selection, Minor posted on his Instagram story, 'Mr. Irrelevant. I'll take it.' Time will tell what awaits for Minor in his NFL career, but it's sure to be an exciting ride for the Dallas, Texas, native.
CNN
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
New England Patriots make Kobee Minor this year's ‘Mr. Irrelevant'
With the 257th and final pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots selected cornerback Kobee Minor from the University of Memphis. As the last player selected in the draft, Minor joins one of the most unique fraternities in sports and becomes the newest man to earn the nickname 'Mr. Irrelevant.' 'I love it. I've never been a highly recruited guy. I've never been one of the top guys so really this isn't anything new to me,' Minor said on a video call shortly after being drafted by the Patriots. 'I am just going to go out here and do what I got to do, put my head down and grind like I always been.' A fifth-year senior, Minor finished his collegiate career with the Memphis Tigers after initially playing for the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Indiana Hoosiers. Last season, Minor has 38 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles, and six pass deflections for the Tigers. While the final pick in the draft doesn't always enjoy great success on the field, there are plenty of other perks that come with the dubious honor. In 1976, the late Paul Salata, who himself had been a 10th round draft pick in 1951, decided that he wanted to give the last draft pick something to smile about. He invited the 487th pick Kelvin Kirk to Newport Beach in California and the concept of 'Mr Irrelevant' was born. It's since become one of the most endearing concepts in sports. The event known as 'Irrelevant Week' is now run by Salata's daughter, Melanie Salata-Fitch, who was in Green Bay to announce Minor's selection on Saturday. Salata-Finch told CNN that planning for the week begins from backstage as soon as the draft is over. Irrelevant Week takes place in Newport Beach, featuring a parade in honor of the draftee, a 'roast and toast' dinner and a golf tournament. The festivities are tailored to each athlete, and they are encouraged to submit a wish list. There are VIP trips to Disneyland and the Playboy Mansion, players have met celebrities like Will Farrell and Jimmy Kimmel and driven the cars of their dreams. At the end of the week, the players leave Newport Beach with more than just fond memories. Stuffed into their luggage is the Lowsman Trophy, a tongue in cheek reference to the Heisman Trophy given to the best NCAA player every season. The player on the trophy is depicted fumbling the ball. But occasionally Mr. Irrelevant has found success on the football field. San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy, Mr. Irrelevant in 2022, had an immediate impact for the 49ers. In his rookie season, he was pressed into the starting role due to injuries and engineered a five-game winning streak that was instrumental in the team's run the NFC Championship game that year. The next season, Purdy earned the starting quarterback role and led the team to a Super Bowl appearance, where the 49ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime. Another notable Mr. Irrelevant was kicker Ryan Succop, the final pick in the 2009 draft by the Chiefs. Succop went on the enjoy a 14-year NFL career, winning a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021. Following his selection, Minor posted on his Instagram story, 'Mr. Irrelevant. I'll take it.' Time will tell what awaits for Minor in his NFL career, but it's sure to be an exciting ride for the Dallas, Texas, native.
Boston Globe
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
‘I love it:' Meet Mr. Irrelevant Kobee Minor, the final pick of the 2025 NFL Draft and the newest Patriot
Nobody had a longer wait to hear their name called than Minor, who finally went at No. 257 to New England on Saturday. Advertisement 'It's just a blessing,' Minor said. 'I've been waiting all day, I didn't know if I was going to get the call or not, and I ended up waiting to the last pick and ended up getting that call. My heart was racing ... so I'm thankful.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Kobee Minor (center, in air) transferred from Texas Tech to Indiana to Memphis. Darron Cummings/Associated Press Minor has bounced around quite a bit, both on the field and off of it. He started his college career at Texas Tech before transferring to Indiana and later finishing his college career at Memphis. He started out as a safety at Texas Tech, moved to corner, and his played all over the secondary. 'I would say I tackle very well, I can come up in run support,' Minor said. 'I'd say I'm a technician, I can play man coverage, and I feel like I'm versatile on the back end, I can play whatever DB position or help out on special teams, whatever I need to do to help the team out.' Advertisement In 11 games last season, the 6-foot, 190-pound cornerback recorded 38 tackles, including seven for loss, and forced two fumbles. The Patriots have franchise cornerstone Christian Gonzalez leading their cornerback room but have struggled to find depth at the position. The Patriots selected Mr. Irrelevant for the third time in franchise history. The Patriots previously drafted Mr. Irrelevant in 1994 (Marty Moore) and 2005 (Andy Stokes). Moore, a special teamer, went on to become the first Mr. Irrelevant to play in the Super Bowl, when he competed in Super Bowl XXXI. What is Mr. Irrelevant and Irrelevant Week? The title of Mr. Irrelevant was created when former USC and one-time pro football player Paul Salata decided in 1976 he wanted to honor the last pick in the NFL Draft. Salata had been a 10th round pick as a receiver in 1951, and 15 years later, 'Mr. Irrelevant' and 'Irrelevant Week' were born when Salata invited 487th pick Kelvin Kirk to celebrate with him in Newport Beach in California. To this day, Irrelevant Week takes place in Newport Beach, California, featuring a parade in honor of the draftee, a 'roast and toast' dinner, and a golf tournament. The invited athlete is encouraged to submit a list of activities they want to include in their special celebration. At the conclusion of the festivities, the player receives the Lowsman Trophy, a nod to the NCAA's Heisman Trophy — though Mr. Irrelevant receives a prize that depicts him fumbling the ball. Advertisement The Patriots have drafted Mr. Irrelevant three times: in 1994 (Marty Moore), 2005 (Andy Stokes), and now 2025 (Kobee Minor). Moore, a special teamer, went on to become the first Mr. Irrelevant to play in the Super Bowl, when he competed in Super Bowl XXXI. Amin Touri can be reached at
