FRISCO, Texas -- At the time, Dak Prescott had no idea he was preparing for pro sports' toughest job: starting quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys.

Playing center field for the New York Yankees used to be in that conversation. So did being the Los Angeles Lakers' center or the Montreal Canadiens' goalie.

Those were great franchises that had star players at those positions for decades who helped them win titles.

Playing football’s most difficult position for one of the world's premier franchises tops all of that.

Prescott, though, has handled the position's scrutiny and demands better than any coach, scout or member of the Cowboys’ front office could have imagined.

Prescott credits the brief period at Mississippi State when the Bulldogs’ ascended to No. 1 in the nation for the first time in more than a century of playing football. Mississippi State, the epitome of a moribund program, was ranked No. 1 on Oct. 26, 2014 after a victory over Kentucky and stayed there until a 25-20 road loss to Alabama on Nov. 15.

“People always say there’s no way Mississippi State prepared you for all of this, and I always say, 'Y’all just don’t understand,’” Prescott told ESPN.com Thursday.

“At Mississippi State, they were wild. I couldn’t go to class. When I was in class, people were asking me to sign stuff and they were taking selfies with me on the way to class.

“In the NFL, it might be crazier on social media, but in person it’s actually easier because everyone understands it’s just my job. In college, they’re not thinking like that.”

Dak Prescott runs off the field at AT&T Stadium after the Cowboys' victory over the Redskins on Nov. 24. Tim Heitman/USA TODAY Sports

Playing quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys is like no other occupation in sports because of the franchise's history, which includes five Super Bowl championships.

Former quarterbacks such as Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman, Don Meredith, Danny White and Tony Romo have elevated the position's standard for performance so high over the past six decades that it’s virtually impossible to meet expectations.

Staubach and Aikman are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and combined to win each of the club's five Lombardi Trophies. Meredith was the team’s first star quarterback. White played in three consecutive NFC Championship Games and Romo owns every notable franchise passing record.

And we still haven't discussed the scrutiny that comes from playing for one of the world's most visible franchises.

Every time Prescott goes into a restaurant or a club, every patron with a cell phone is potentially an independent journalist ready to record his every move, whether they sell it to TMZ or post it to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

“You’re talking about the most high-profile, the most valuable franchise arguably in the world, and you’re the leader of it,” Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones said.

“When you do well, there’s nothing like it and when you don’t, you come under a lot of criticism. You’re going to get looked over.”

A DUI arrest two months before the draft -- he was acquitted in July -- also prepared prepared Prescott for the job.

“The scrutiny I went under with the DUI is a whole lot worse than anything people can say about my play in football,” Prescott said. “That’s scrutiny on my character, something I hold a whole lot higher than the athlete I am.”

Romo's presence on the roster has added another layer to the position's profile.

Although some Cowboys fans spent every night of the past few years on their knees praying to the football gods for the quarterback of the future, a faction of the fan base refuses to accept Prescott's rise from fourth-round pick to starter.

Their loyalty to Romo won't allow it.

Cowboys fans hold up a sign supporting Dak Prescott during last Sunday's victory at AT&T Stadium. Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports

Romo represents folks who have started at the bottom and achieved success because of his journey from undrafted free agent to one of the NFL's best quarterbacks.

A back injury suffered in the third preseason game kept him out for nearly three months. By the time he was ready to return, Prescott was among the league's highest-rated quarterbacks and the team was 8-1.

During an emotional statement two days after the Cowboys’ 35-30 come-from-behind win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, Romo said Prescott had earned the right to keep the starting job.

Still, critics grouse about every incompletion or missed read. Prescott, who has passed for 3,418 yards with 20 touchdowns and four interceptions, played poorly in a loss to the New York Giants 12 days ago. Immediately, chatter on sports talk radio centered on whether another poor performance would lead to Romo's return as starter.

Ridiculous.

Now, the Cowboys are 12-2 and have clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Don't ask Prescott if the last two games are meaningless.

“This game is going to matter,” Prescott said with an edge to his voice. “Any game I’m participating in, I want to win.”

It's that attitude and the intangibles forged through the teachings of his mother, who died in 2013, and the lessons learned at Mississippi State that have prepared the rookie quarterback to handle this position.

Not everyone can.

The pressure, for those who believe in that sort of thing, can be suffocating. Former Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter never figured out how to handle it after being selected in the second round of the 2001 draft.

He lasted three seasons.

“If you don’t take into account whether they can handle the scrutiny, you’re not doing your job,” Jones said. “The hardest thing to really pull out of people is the intangibles.

Jones said he has spoken extensively with scouting director Will McClay to figure out how not to miss players with unique intangibles in the future.

“Everybody is going to tell you their quarterback has good intangibles, but how do you find out that this guy is more unique and even better than most in terms of their leadership and intangibles,” said Jones, “and that’s what most people missed about Dak, including us.

“They missed how special his intangibles were, how special his leadership is.”

With Prescott starting for the foreseeable future, the Cowboys should have plenty of time to find the next man capable of holding the toughest job in sports.