One of the most difficult realities to face as a college senior is moving on and saying goodbye to your teammates. The players gain a relationship that will last them life time and very rarely will get a chance to play alongside one another again. Well there is an exception to every rule.
West Virginia linebacker Najee Goode and cornerback Keith Tandy had the fortune of both being drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third and final day of the NFL Draft.
Goode was selected first, going in the fifth round. It was no easy path to the NFL for Goode, as he did not even receive a scholarship to play football when he first arrived in Morgantown. As a walk-on, Goode worked his way to becoming a starter and one of the centerpieces of West Virginia’s defense. At 6’0” and 244-pounds, Goode is another versatile linebacker alongside Bruce Irvin who was selected in the first round, which could fit in multiple defensive schemes.
Goode ran a 4.66 40-yard dash at the combine. Goode spent his collegiate career at West Virginia intertwining at inside and outside linebacker with Irvin. For the majority of his career, Goode played inside linebacker. He is quick enough to get pass offensive linemen and has the versatility to work as a linebacker in either a 3-4 or 4-3 defensive scheme.
One of Goode’s strengths is finding the ball carrier and creating havoc. Goode accumulated 157 tackles in his career at West Virginia, 87 of them coming in his senior year. Goode is more suited to play in the box and will be more useful against the run.
One round later, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Goode’s teammate at West Virginia, Keith Tandy, with the 174th overall selection. Tandy is going to have to be a more physical player against opposing wide receivers, using all 199-pounds to his advantage. Tandy would be better suited covering slot receivers, as he only stands at 5’10”.
At West Virginia, Tandy recorded 13 interceptions in his four-year career. Tandy came on strong in his junior and senior year, accounting for 121 tackles and 10 of his 13 interceptions in those two years.
As a sixth round pick, there is no guarantee Tandy will see significant playing time and will have to earn every minute and respect from his teammates.
Tampa Bay’s rookie head coach, Greg Schiano, is used to seeing Goode and Tandy perform on the big stage. Schiano was the head coach of Rutgers University for the past 11 years, facing West Virginia every year. Goode and Tandy were two of the players Schiano did not like to play against, and that was one reason Schiano decided he would rather have him on his side this time around.
Goode and Tandy had the opportunity to play together in college and were part of the historic Orange Bowl victory last year. Now they will try to create new memories together, hopefully ending with a Lombardi trophy.
Photo credit: Daylife.com
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