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Dale Murphy made a baseball fan out of his son. Now Shawn Murphy is making a football fan out of his father.

Dale, of course, was one of baseball's best players in the 1980s for the Atlanta Braves. He appeared in seven All-Star Games, won five Gold Gloves and was a two-time National League MVP.

Shawn hopes to pursue a professional career in football. He started two years on the offensive line for Utah State and projects as a second-day selection in this weekend'sNFL draft.

Shawn tried baseball, but he gave it up after his junior year in high school to concentrate on football.

"I couldn't hit the curveball," Shawn said. "I couldn't hit the fastball, either. My frame developed into a football frame. It was the sport I had the most success at and the sport I had the most passion for."

Shawn found big shoes to fill in baseball. Not so in football.

"I can remember certain instances when they'd say, 'Dale Murphy's son is up to bat,' " Shawn said. "If I struck out, I'd hear in the stands, 'We struck out Dale Murphy's son.'

"But in football, if I get beat, they aren't going to be all proud of themselves because they beat Dale Murphy's son. He has nothing to do with this. So there's less pressure. I can do my own thing and play my own game."

Shawn misses some aspects of baseball.

"I like baseball for its qualities," Shawn said. "It was very calming to me after the football season. It was good to get in there to sit in the dugout and hang out with friends, take batting practice ...

"But when it comes time to play a sport, football really grabbed me. It was more enjoyable for me."

And he was better at it. Murphy was a second-team all-state defensive end as a high schooler in Utah. He enrolled at Dixie State Junior College and played one season there, then went on a two-year church mission to Brazil. When he returned, he enrolled at Utah State and became an offensive lineman.

Murphy, 6-4, 320 pounds, started at left tackle in 2006 and left guard in 2007. He did not allow a sack last season and became a second-team All-Western Athletic Conference selection. In the process, his father became quite the football fan.

"He loves it," Shawn said. "He's a sports fan in general. He's been to every single one of my college games no matter where it is. He's a road warrior."

As Shawn begins his own professional career, he has not closed the book yet on his father's career. Shawn believes there's one final entry that needs to be made in his father's baseball résumé – the Hall of Fame.

"There's no question about it," Shawn said. "He led the entire decade of the '80s in runs scored [in the National League]. ... On that stat alone, he dominated the '80s. He should be in there. He was the most feared hitter of the early 1980s and the youngest player ever to win back-to-back MVPs.

"I think it's a no-brainer. But there's politics involved. He didn't win a World Series. If you're going to keep some people out for their off-the-field issues, maybe you should include some for their off-field character."