Jerry Rice recalls NFL Draft worries: 'I never thought I was going to get drafted'

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The San Francisco 49ers made Jerry Rice their first-round pick in the 1985 NFL Draft out of Mississippi Valley State, which was a part of the Southwestern Athletic Conference in NCAA Division 1-AA football.

Rice was a standout receiver for the Delta Devils, setting division records for receptions and receiving yards in a single season. But the legendary wide receiver revealed in a recent interview that he was skeptical of his own stock going into the draft.

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Former San Francisco 49er Jerry Rice is seen during a ceremony honoring the 1981-82 team at Levi's Stadium on Dec. 20, 2015, in Santa Clara, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

"To be honest, I never thought I was going to get drafted," he told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. "I downplayed everything because I didn’t want that disappointment of getting up here and then come down in disappointment if it didn’t happen. A lot of my friends, a lot of people around me, were saying that, ‘Hey, you're going to get drafted, you're going to get drafted.’ But you know, I downplayed it and I got drafted by the San Francisco 49ers, and it’s just like something I’ll never forget."

He said he was in a two-bedroom apartment with his brother in Jackson, Mississippi, when he got the call.

"I have one camera guy and I get the call from the greatest coach ever, Bill Walsh. And it was so cool. Here I am, I’m on the phone and I’m just smiling to myself." Rice said. "And then after I hung the phone up, I said, ‘Oh my God, they just won the Super Bowl. They just won the Super Bowl against the Miami Dolphins at Stanford University. I’m gonna get a