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He was a fine player at Lago Vista High School. He was tall, tireless in the weight room and always ran the hill alongside Sisemore Field long after his teammates had gone home after practice. He played offense and defense for head coach Alan Haire. He helped his team post the best finish in school history and a thrilling first trip to the playoffs.
But no college coaches seemed to notice him. Only one, in fact, saw enough potential in the 6-foot-5-inch tight end to invite Menkin to campus.
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Menkin's mother had died of breast cancer when he was 16. Marleen Menkin endured the disease for many years, trying different treatments, refusing to accept its harsh inevitabilities.
Her oldest son learned a lot from watching his mother when she was sick. She never surrendered, Menkin said. So neither did he.
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Menkin went to the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, a Division III program in Belton with a strong tradition in football. He told his father, Darryl, that he would become an All-American. He told Haire, his high school coach, that no matter what happened, he never would give up.
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Menkin became that All-American at offensive tackle. He was a four-year letterman for the Cru. And after his senior year, he snatched a piece of magic.
His coach at Mary Hardin-Baylor, Pete Fredenburg, took Menkin to the NFL pro day at Baylor. A lot of scouts were there to see Robert Griffin III.
They also saw Menkin, who bench-pressed 225 pounds 39 times. They saw him run the 40-yard dash in 5 seconds — a running back in a lineman's frame.
A scout for the Carolina Panthers drove to Belton that afternoon. He met with Fredenburg, who told him no one on his team committed more to the game than Menkin.
When he signed with the Texans, Menkin became just the second player from Mary Hardin-Baylor to make it to the NFL.
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It's the pledge he made to himself and the people who believed in him.
People like his mother. People like his coaches. People like his father, who needed his oldest son to help raise his two younger brothers after their mother died.
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Maybe this improbable football story ends and something new begins. Menkin then might have to remind himself of the address he gave last spring to the kids at Lago Vista Middle School, where he talked about dedication.
"I just spoke to them about sticking to what you do," Menkin said.
"It all comes from my mom," he said. "It starts there."
What you hear there isn't the voice of someone who waited for a path to come to him.
It's the voice of a man who went out and found one.
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