NFL Draft Podcast: Alex Pihlstom and the Power of Chicken Ravioli
Join host Bo Marchionte Interview Alex Pihlstrom Illinois OL
When the pandemic began to take a stranglehold on society, plenty of things changed for all of us for a variety of reasons.
Illinois center Pihlstrom wasn’t alone in that assessment, but there was a tiny silver lining throughout it all – Chicken ravioli.
“My mom is a great cook,” Pihlstrom said. “Especially with me transitioning from tight end to o-line. I mean, she cooked so much for me during quarantine and Covid. To gain 60 to 80 pounds in a year was tough on all of us. Not just on my body but with my mom cooking. So, she was cooking all the time. I’d say chicken ravioli was my favorite. Late snack every night. I needed it. I needed the calories. Slowly and surely, we got there.”
Pihlstrom arrived at Illinois as a preferred walk-on to play tight end. He received some offers from other schools like Eastern Illinois, but he wanted to follow in his dad’s path of playing in the Big Ten.
“My dad played at Minnesota from 1984-88,” Pihlstrom said. “So, I really wanted to follow his footsteps and be in the Big Ten. Unfortunately, I really didn’t get an opportunity to go to Minnesota, but luckily, I got an opportunity with Illinois. I visited their spring practice. I really didn’t visit any other part of the campus, but I was like an opportunity is what I need. I committed right there and then to Coach Lovie Smith. It’s been a wild ride since then.”
The ride brought him aboard as a walk-on, to tight end to guard and finally to center. The ride took some odd turns and Pihlstrom faced some challenges over the course of his college career.
“It was kind of tough switching to center this year,” Pihlstrom said. “I had two years of o-line under my belt. I was kind of off and on. I didn’t have the success I wanted in my fifth year. Coach (Bart) Miller asked me to play center because we really didn’t have anyone else. It was a grind. Learning a new position. A lot of responsibilities on my shoulders. I’ll be honest, the first couple of games were tough.”
There is a famous quote that reads, “Tough times don’t last but tough people do.”
Entering the eighth game of the season, Pihlstrom finally had a breakthrough. Going up against Reese’s Senior Bowl invite Keeanu Benton of Wisconsin, Pihlstrom felt the tide had turned in his favor.
“He is a great player,” Pihlstrom said of the Badgers’ star defensive end. “I feel I had a pretty good game against him and all my coaches kind of felt the same way. Felt like I could play against anybody in the Big Ten or country. I kept gaining confidence from that.”
The Illinois Scholar-Athlete Award winner was finding his niche. Pihlstrom’s persistence was beginning to pay off. Over the course of the season, he managed to gain All-Big Ten second team (coaches) and an invitation to play at the Tropical Bowl all-star game.
“I talked to around eight to ten teams,” Pihlstrom said about his time at the Tropical Bowl. “Some good feedback. They like my versatility. They liked how I played and how smart I was because I played all five positions. That was pretty cool about the Tropical Bowl because we only had like six or seven guys in the game. So, we all kind of switch positions. It was good just to cross-train and match up against great players at the collegiate level. It was just a great week and a great game. It was a fun time.”
With his 6-foot-5 frame at 302-pounds, Pihlstrom mentioned most of the teams he spoke with view him at center or guard, but some did discuss the tackle position. His quick ascension of success at the center position attributes to a few qualities he hangs his hat on the most.
“I just think physicality,” Pihlstrom said. I kind of view myself as a technician. I might be undersized, as some people might say. I make up for that with physicality and technique. A good technique can beat a great player every time. Just pad level and footwork. I think that’s the most important thing I’ve focused on the last three years. Physicality. Teams love to see you put people on the ground. I think that’s important.”
Eating chicken raviolo and being physical can only get so far.
Pihlstrom has put the time in off the field. Hours upon hours to help the offensive line be as cohesive as possible. It might have played a factor in why he was part of the first offensive line in Illinois history to be named a Joe Moore Award finalist (annually given to the best college offensive line unit).
“I think the important thing about playing center for the University of Illinois is that I was in control of all the protections,” Pihlstrom said. All the combinations we had. Anything I saw and called was based on what they were doing off me. It's hours of film. Me coming in with coaches every week and just the rest of the four guys and kind of talking it through. How certain calls might be made to kind of help us out. I think I know my teammates pretty well. I played it to their strengths and kind of covered up their weaknesses too. So, I think that’s important.”
Pihlstrom has shown a knack for overcoming the odds. Each time a door was shut, he busted through another to prove he belongs.
After he fuels up on another plate of mom’s chicken ravioli – Who knows what other doors lie in his wake.
NFLDB Measurements:
Measurements last confirmation: JAN 24, 2023 6:06 PM EST
#75 Pos: iOL Ht: 6051 Wt: 298 Hand: 968 Arm: 3268 Wing: 7878
40: 5.11
DOB: 4/28/1999
Hometown: Glen Ellyn, IL
High School: Glenbard West
Eligibility: 2023
