ST. PAUL — The pass that could have derailed Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles’s path to the N.F.L. did not come on a football field. It came on a basketball court in Virginia in 2006.
Foles, who had broken nearly all of Drew Brees’s passing records at Westlake High School in Austin, Tex., was six days removed from his football team’s heartbreaking loss in the state championship when he switched gears and traveled to Virginia with his basketball team for a tournament. The trip was rushed to the point where he did not have time to buy a new pair of basketball shoes, so he wore his turf shoes instead.