Playing the inside receiver position, Mark Andrews always seemed to be open for the Sooners, catching 112 passes for 1,765 yards at 15.8 yards per catch and 22 touchdowns. Andrews decided to leave OU after his junior year and was recently drafted in the third round, 86th overall, by the Baltimore Ravens, and thus far in mini-camp they haven’t been able to cover him there either.





Blessed with first or early second round talent, Andrews may have fallen to the third round because he is a Type-1 diabetic. Type-1 diabetes is a genetic disorder in which the body does not produce insulin on its own, and some NFL teams may have felt it was too big of a problem to risk a first round pick on.

Andrews learned he had the condition when he was nine years old, but he has never had an incident with it either in high school or at OU while actually playing sports. Only once did his condition flare up at OU when his roommate Wesley Horky found him laying on his bed, eyes staring straight ahead, yet his body was totally motionless. Horky instantly knew something was wrong and called paramedics but also called Andrews' mom, Martha, and she instructed Horky to stuff fruit chews into his mouth. That worked, as Andrews started to come around.

The 6-foot-5, 254-pound pass catcher manages his condition 24 hours around the clock and has been dealing with it for most of his life.



“I never had it affect me during football or any other sport, so it’s never been a problem,” said Andrews. “It’s something that I take extremely good care of myself, I’m very diligent about it. It’s not a problem—It’s just something I always have to be aware of. I always take care of my body, and that’s something that is always in the front of my mind.”



Of course, at Baltimore he'll have all the staff and dietary needs at his disposal so it shouldn't be an issue there, either.

Andrews won the John Mackey Award as a junior, given to the nation's best tight end after catching 62 passes for 958 yards and eight touchdowns. He'll play a big role in the Ravens offense his rookie year.

"I almost get an Oklahoma-vibe being out here," Andrews told BaltimoreRavens.com's Ryan Mink. "They love to work hard. You have to work for everything, and that's how it was at Oklahoma. It's kind of like coming home to me."