RALEIGH, NC - OCTOBER 16: Russell Wilson #16 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack looks for a receiver during the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Carter-Finley Stadium on October 16, 2008 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) Russell Wilson during his time at N.C. State. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

(CBS) – Russell Wilson has been silencing doubters since he first picked up a football.

At 5-foot-11, he’s seemingly too short to be a successful college – let alone NFL – quarterback.

But when Bears new head coach Marc Trestman was the offensive coordinator at N.C. State, he knew Wilson could play at an elite level.

“(Trestman) was the guy that said, ‘This guy can play.’ I already knew that,” Wilson told The McNeil and Spiegel Show. “I knew my ability, but he came up to me and he was the coach that said, ‘This guy can play. We need to offer this guy (a scholarship) right now.’ So, N.C. State offered me (a scholarship) right on the spot. Coach Trestman knew that I had the ability. I have a lot of respect for coach Trestman. I talk to him probably once a week, maybe a little bit less than that. I talk to him a good amount. We’ve always kept in touch over the years.