The prank call that highlighted Shedeur Sanders’ unprecedented fall down the draft board has been identified, and the culprit was Jax Ulbrich, son of former defensive coordinator and interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich.
In a statement released by the Falcons (where Ulbrich is now their DC) on Sunday afternoon, the 21-year-old Jax acquired the Colorado quarterback’s phone number “off an open iPad while visiting his parents’ home.” Jax then apparently wrote down the number and used it to prank call Sanders as he was still waiting to be drafted, posing as Saints general manager Mickey Loomis.
Shortly after the Falcons released the statement, Jax posted one of his own via social media, telling Sanders that what he did was “selfish and childish.” Per his statement, he has spoken to Sanders since and explained his “inexcusable” mistake.
The admission by Jax also clears the air on a rampant rumor that Syndey Schoen, the daughter of Giants general manager Joe Schoen, was the culprit behind the phone number leak, but Sunday’s revelations effectively extinguished that baseless claim.
Sanders, widely expected to be one of the top picks in the draft, slid all the way to 144th, where he was selected by the Browns on Saturday as the sixth quarterback taken in the draft. Once he was selected, he told reporters that he wasn’t bothered by the prank.