COSTA MESA, Calif. -- Austin Ekeler played college football at a higher elevation than anyone else, nearly 8,000 feet above sea level at Division II Western State Colorado University (now called Western Colorado University). He set school records running the football and in the weight room, dreaming of one day playing in the NFL.
Ekeler left college a semester early to focus on accomplishing that dream. He worked out with another future NFL star, Carolina Panthers playmaker Christian McCaffrey, finding that he could hold his own with one of the best backs in college football.