TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – The University of South Florida has had 30 players selected in the NFL Draft and several more go on to play professionally who were not drafted.
Two Bulls offensive linemen, William Atterbury and Marcus Norman, are hoping to add their names to that list in this week’s 2020 NFL Draft.
“For me, it was something I’ve always grownup with,” Atterbury said over a video call.
“I actually always started off with baseball. Growing up, I knew that I wanted to play professionally in some aspect of my life. Playing in front of 100,000 people was just the dream. Or playing in front of millions of people on Sunday night would just be so much fun. It shifted to football as I grew older and became more serious with that.”
“It didn’t really start off when I was young,” Norman shared on the same video call.
“It was always a dream but at first, I never thought it was an attainable dream. But as I grew older, getting a scholarship to go to college, then after my second year, I started having aspirations.”
Norma said he began to think he could make a career out of football.
“I really love the game and I really want to show people the skills that I have. After that I kind of dedicated myself to try and make it to the league,” he said.
Both Atterbury and Norman hired agents after the season and then it was all training after that, trying to get in the best shape of their lives. They both stayed in Tampa to train, but worked out at different facilities.
Since they didn’t go to the NFL Combine, they were really counting on the USF Pro Day to showcase their abilities. But that was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“It really hurts because some of us really wanted to impress in front of scouts. As the training facility I was at, we had a little mock pro day where they video taped our stuff. It helped us have a little cut-up of videos. I gave it to my agent and he sent those out,” Norman said
“But it’s not the same when you’re in front of a scout and they see your height. They see your weight. They see the way you move. They see your Florida mannerisms. They see the way you talk, walk. It kind of really hurt us both not having a pro day but I think it will still work out in the end.”
“They have all of our game film regardless of whether coronavirus ended our pro days or not. They would have already had all of that information,” Atterbury added.
“But this pro day would have just been something else to get them in front of us and allow them to see who we are, not just as football players, but as individuals.”
Seen as individuals by NFL teams, but getting through this unusual time together, has been a big plus.
Not only are Atterbury and Norman former teammates, they are also roommates and best friends, quarantined together through this draft process.
“It’s pretty fun. We haven’t been hanging out as much and we’ve been staying in our own separate rooms, but when we do get together it’s always a good time,” Norman said.
“Having someone in your own position is something that is very unique to us, that we can go out and work together. We can critique each other because we know what each other is looking for. You may not be able to spot it in yourself but you can help that other person out,” Atterbury added.
