As a high school senior, Glenn Cook dreamed of playing football for the University of Miami.  When he commited to play for the Hurricanes, he commited himself to being the best football player he could be.  He even gave up playing baseball to devote himself fully to football.

Cook played for four years at Miami, playing linebacker for the ‘Canes.  After his senior year he entered the draft and was chosen by Chicago.  Not the Bears, the Cubs.

No one was more surprised that he was drafted by the Cubs than Cook himself.  He hadn’t played baseball since he was in the 11th grade and had no expectations of having a career in baseball.  But when no teams showed an interest in him during the NFL draft, Cook was contacted by a scout that followed him in high school and was invited to a Cubs tryout.  The scout explained, “Come on out.  You have nothing to lose.”

Cook, who was trying to decide what to do for a job, took the scout up on his offer and attended the tryout.  Afterwards, he said he wasn’t sure how well he had done.  The Cubs thought he had done well enough to draft him in the 42nd round with the 1,400 overall pick.  Cook will now report to the Cubs minor league training facility in Mesa, AZ.

Glenn Cook wasn’t the only football player chosen by the Cubs.  They also selected Colin Kaepernick, a QB at the University of Nevada, and Daniel Sheppard, a high school quarterback and linebacker from Downers Grove (IL) North HS who has committed to play football at the University of Iowa.  Kaepernick, a junior at Nevada,  hasn’t played baseball since high school.  Sheppard was an outstanding baseball player in high school, but is unlikely to give up his football scholarship to Iowa.  If he doesn’t sign with the Cubs, he’ll be eligible for the MLB Rule 4 draft again in 2012.

I’m not sure if the Cubs are building a stronger minor league organization, but it’s clear they are building a very good football team.  Look out Bears.  The Cubs may have the best football team in Chicago.