BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A five-minute YouTube video was enough to make quarterback Alex Tanney an overnight sensation for displaying his uncanny accuracy.
Tanney created a big buzz last year in the self-titled "Trick Shot Quarterback" video by showing he can hit a receiver in a moving vehicle and throw footballs from across the court and swish them into basketball nets. He even banged a pass off the crossbar of an upright from 50 yards out -- from his knees.
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Now the Division III Monmouth College (Ill.) product will provide the Buffalo Bills a firsthand look to see whether he has a future in the NFL.
After being passed up in the draft last weekend, Tanney has accepted an invitation to take part in the Bills' three-day rookie minicamp that opens May 11.
"I'm from a small school, and the only thing I've ever really wanted was an opportunity to get into a camp," the 23-year-old said by phone this week. "And now I have that in Buffalo, so I'm anxious to get out there and compete for a spot."
Turns out, the Bills weren't the only team interested in the 6-foot-4, 220-pound quarterback who set an NCAA record with 157 touchdown passes over a five-year career with the Fighting Scots.
Tanney initially agreed to attend the Pittsburgh Steelers' rookie camp, but changed his mind after Buffalo extended an invite.
Tanney would rather play down his YouTube popularity and instead focus on what he did on the field.
"The success and the numbers I put up speak for themselves rather than the YouTube video," he said. "But obviously, that's what people are going to talk about."
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press
