Super Bowl Update

Former Troy defensive end Jonathan Massaquoi (above in the 2010 New Orleans Bowl, AP photo) declared for the NFL Draft as a junior last week. He returned my call late Monday night and I'll share some of his thoughts. He wanted to wait a few days before talking to media about his decision or sharing his public thoughts. Due to paper space and other planned stuff for the Wednesday paper, it may be a day or 2 before I can get it into newspaper form, but you guys who read this blog will get the gist of what he has to say.

On declaring: "I just had a good feeling. Before I even went to junior college, this was a vision of mine, to play in the NFL, and once it became attainable, I had to go with it."

"This was something I had set from myself from when I first got to Troy. It was something I had told coach (Richard) Shaughnessy and close friends of mine around here that I wanted to play two years at Troy, get my degree and go to the NFL."

Massaquoi got to Troy in 2009, but redshirted that year as four upperclassmen in front of him were playing that year. He graduated in December of 2011 and turns 24 in May. He hired Pat Dye, Jr., as his agent.

"I did some personal research and had conversations with him," Massaquoi said. "He knows what he's doing. I'll need some guidance along the way as I reach my future endeavors, and I feel like he's the best guy for me."

Massaquoi has been listed as an outside linebacker on some NFL Draft preview sites, and at 6-foot-3 and currently 260 pounds, he could play there or remain at defensive end.

"I'm willing to play either," Massaquoi said. "Sticking my hand in the dirt (at defensive end) is what I'm known for. We'd have to be in a 4-3 to do that, or in a 3-4 as a linebacker, I could still put my hand on the dirt. I love a hostile environment and I love playing in the trenches. I'm open to anything."

Massaquoi was aware that the NFL Draft advisory returned a grade of fourth round to free agent, and is ready for that challenge.

"I don't feel like I'm taking a chance," he said. "I feel like it's my vision and I feel comfortable with what I've attained to this point, even with getting my degree. I've exceeded all the things that they asked of me as a student-athlete and I feel like it's time to make this move in my life, not just for me but for the ones around me."

"I spent a lot of prayer and meditation time over the holiday break thinking about this decision. I'm a hard-nosed guy. I know it's not your first contract that makes you, it's your second. If you're a true baller, you keep a briefcase in your closet."

"I'm willing to grind it out and willing to transform my body any way that an organization wants me to do. Whoever decides to pursue me, as you've seen, my performance has been top-notch and my track record shows that. I had 20 and a half sacks my year in junior college, 13 and a half last year and this year, battling a lot of minor bumps and bruises, six and a half sacks."

"If I'm put into the right organization with other players who have the same mindset as me, I'm capable of being a playmaker. It was a flip of a coin, roll of the dice, but this is the path I've chosen to take."

Massaquoi expressed gratitude to Troy University and coaches for giving him his opportunity to develop and get his degree. He said he wasn't quite sure yet of his training regimen for the months leading to the NFL Draft in late April, and hopes to get invited to the NFL Combine, like teammate James Brown did. Juniors haven't been selected yet for the combine.

"As you know me, my goals are set very high," he said. "I'm not an average player, as you've seen from my work and my enthusiasm on every play. The film speaks for itself and I know what I can bring to an organization. I have high hopes, and I'm willing to obtain them by any means."