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Bret Bielema: 2012 talks with Dolphins ended over Russell Wilson

Arkansas coach Bret Bielema says he withdrew himself from consideration for the Miami Dolphins head coach job back in 2012 because they did not want to draft Russell Wilson in the second round. 
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Arkansas coach Bret Bielema told ESPN he withdrew himself from consideration for the Miami Dolphins head coach job in 2012 because they did not want to draft Russell Wilson in the second round.

Bielema had been interviewing for the job and was meeting with the Dolphins' brass when he said he promised them they would win a Super Bowl within five years if they drafted Wilson. Bielema coached Wilson for one year at Wisconsin after the quarterback transferred there for a graduate season.

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Bielema said he felt Wilson needed to be drafted by Miami in the second round to get him. But when the Dolphins felt Wilson was not tall enough to be taken that early, talks between the sides broke down.

"They all looked at me like, 'You can't say that. That's the difference between college and pro. He's undersized. He can't throw.' I was like, 'OK, all right,' and I honestly, that day, kind of pulled myself out of it," said Bielema

Wilson went on to be drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the third round of the draft, and won a Super Bowl last year in his second season in the league.

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The Seahawks face the Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday. 

- Molly Geary