A Wise Decision? : Cal State Long Beach Basketball Star Trying to Fulfill Robinson’s Hunch and Win Rams Job

The first time Francois Wise put on a Rams uniform, he felt like a guy being fitted for his first tuxedo.

He knew well enough that the helmet belonged on his head and that hip pads were connected near the hip bones.

But putting on his pants was kind of like experimenting with a cummerbund.

“I had to ask (wide receiver) Otis Grant how to put the pads inside the pants,” Wise said. “I kind of had an idea, but . . . “

No buts about it, Francois was now ready to play for the Rams.

This is no Paper Lion tale of a scrawny little writer trying to fulfill a fanatasy while collecting notes for a future book and screenplay.

The Rams signed 27-year-old Francois Wise to a honest-to-goodness contract last October, even though Wise had never played a down of football in his life.

With logic like this, can a Super Bowl be far behind?

Actually, Rams Coach John Robinson was just playing out another hunch. Once before, with tight end James McDonald, Robinson had played Professor Henry Higgins and turned a unrefined greenhorn into a polished performer.

McDonald was a basketball player at USC, but now holds a spot on the Rams roster as a tight end.

So meet tight end Francois Wise, the latest Ram experiment.

His chances of making the team aren’t good. Wise calls himself a “Long, long, long, shot.”

But, hey, that’s not the point.

“This is a once in a lifetime thing,” Wise said. “I consider this more or less a miracle. There are people who play all their lives and don’t even get a chance to try out.”

Five years ago, Wise and center Michael Wiley teamed to form a dominating front line for Cal State Long Beach’s basketball team. Wise, at 6-feet 5-inches and 240 pounds, was the enforcer. He remains the school’s career rebound leader.

But when last we left him, Wise was playing and enjoying basketball in the Philippines. After college, he was drafted by the Washington Bullets of the NBA but was later released.

Wise was playing basketball last summer in a Pro-Am league in Inglewood when he was approached by Warren Legarie, the agent who represents McDonald.

Legarie noticed Wise’s muscular physique and wondered if he had ever played played football.

Wise said he hadn’t.

Legarie wondered if he would like to try out for the Rams.

Wise said why not?

“I thought he might have been joking,” he said.

He wasn’t.

Wise got a call the following Tuesday from the Rams and before he knew it, some equipment guy was checking his hat size.

He took a leave of absence from his job at Carson Community Development and decided to take a shot at it.

But, no it hasn’t been easy.

Putting his football pants on was nothing compared to going one-on-one with a linebacker.

Last Monday, Wise did just that when he met Norwood Vann.

“He’s only 6-1 so I figured I could run him over,” Wise said. “It was a big surprise when we met head on. The first thing I said was that I must be crazy to be out here.”

Robinson can sympathize.

“When you don’t know the game,” he said, “you establish your toughness by how much of a beating you can take, rather than the beating you give out. He’s a tough guy.”

But Wise never realized there was so much paperwork involved in just making a block.

“I was reading all those Xs and Os in the playbook,” he said. “When they first gave it to me, I didn’t know what was going on.”

If Wise doesn’t make it, don’t expect him to try out again. He’ll probably return to the Philippines, the land of opportunity and no linebackers.

“After last Monday’s practice, my neck was sore,” Wise said. “I had a headache and my shoulders and sides were sore. My neck was definitely tired.

“But I’ve had a lot of fun. I’ve met a lot of guys I wouldn’t ordinarily meet. And I can say I was out here.”