Detroit Lions draft: Frank Ragnow ready to protect 'Mr. Stafford'

Detroit Lions first-round draft pick Frank Ragnow should feel right at home with his new team. He loves the outdoors, he remembers lining up against old Southeastern Conference foe A’Shawn Robinson and he’s in awe of Matthew Stafford.

In fact, the former Arkansas center got a congratulatory text from Stafford on Friday, before he was introduced at a news conference.

“I actually responded saying, ‘Mr. Stafford,’ ” Ragnow said. “He said, ‘Aw, I’m not that old.’ But it’s incredible. He’s the ultimate gamer, tough player. There’s not words to describe how excited I am to block for him.”

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Yes, for a 21-year-old about to enter the NFL, a 30-year-old quarterback might seem ancient. But not as ancient as a certain distinguished defensive tackle.

“I remember him looking like he was 40,” Ragnow said of Robinson.

Ragnow is sure to get reacquainted with his old Alabama foe when training camp rolls around and the pads come on in July. That’s when everyone will get to see the first glimpses of the competitiveness Ragnow is known for.

“I take a lot of pride in how I play and how hard I play,” he said. “I take a lot of pride in finishing guys. I think that’s very important. It’s a physical game and I think that’s a very important part of it.”

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Until then, Ragnow will have time to settle in to his new city, which might not be too difficult. The Minnesota native grew up fishing and hunting with is brother and his father. He perked up when he discussed his love for the outdoors and claims a 40-plus-inch muskellunge as his largest catch.

That love and bond between the outdoors and his family led to him creating a YouTube channel called Grizzly Man Outdoors partly as a tribute to his father, Jon, who died in 2016 of a heart attack.

“We’ve always kind of had this plan that I want to play in the NFL as long as I can,” he said. “And then after that, maybe we have our own fishing show. After he passed away, me and my brother took it ourselves and kind of tried to keep it going.”

Contact Carlos Monarrez at cmonarrez@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez.