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Cowboys lead service members on road to NFL Draft

At the home of America's team, it's not uncommon to find people preparing for the NFL Draft. What is uncommon is that none of them will ever play in the NFL.

At the home of America's team, it's not uncommon to find people preparing for the NFL Draft. What is uncommon is that none of them will ever play in the NFL.

"I definitely did not see this coming at all," Quin Walker said.

Walker used to be a college football player. He dreamed of playing in the NFL, until he got injured.

“I just kinda lost hope being there cause I couldn’t practice, I couldn’t do anything,” he said.

Quin says, for a while, he was unmotivated and depressed. But soon, he found he could still serve a purpose by serving his country. That's how he ended up at The Star in Frisco.

The Cowboys recently hosted the second annual Military Combine. It's just like the NFL Combine with a 40-yard dash, standing long jump, and more. It started as a way to say thank you to veterans. Every participant is an active duty service member.

This was a qualifying round, but the winner of next month's finals will announce one of the Cowboys' draft picks in this year's NFL Draft.

"Football was the biggest thing in my life for a long time," Walker said. "For me to go what I went through and to have this opportunity, it means the world."

“It almost gives you goosebumps," Cowboys representative Terrance Wheatley said.

Wheatley played in the NFL and now works for the Cowboys. He says these veterans are no slouches. In fact, some of them will perform better than guys at the real combine.

While they're all grateful for the opportunity, they still have an attitude of service.

Erin Hutcherson is from Jersey and says her dad is a die-hard Cowboys fan. He's always wanted to see AT&T Stadium. Her only reason for competing is to make that dream come true.

“I wouldn’t be who I am, where I am without my dad," she said. "And my mom, but my mom’s not a Cowboys fan.”

But like all of us, she's definitely proud of America's team.

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