[CardinalSagehen]

Just for fun, I asked ChatGPT to provide some details on the NFL careers of players from our 2011 Orange Bowl team (2010 season) that last played Virginia Tech. Here's what it gave me after a lot of nudging and prompting (e.g., "didn't you forget about Ben Gardner, Sione Fua, and Chase Beeler?") This might even be missing a few players, but, man, what a list! I'd take this team against anyone.

Player | Position | Draft Status | Years in NFL
Andrew Luck | Quarterback | 1st Round | 2012-2018
David DeCastro | Offensive Guard | 1st Round | 2012-2021
Jonathan Martin | Offensive Tackle | 2nd Round | 2012-2014
Coby Fleener | Tight End | 2nd Round | 2012-2018
Zach Ertz | Tight End | 2nd Round | 2013-2024
Trent Murphy | Linebacker | 2nd Round | 2014-2021
Sione Fua | Defensive Tackle | 3rd Round | 2011-2015
Owen Marecic | Fullback | 4th Round | 2011-2013
Richard Sherman | Cornerback | 5th Round | 2011-2021
Stepfan Taylor | Running Back | 5th Round | 2013-2016
Chase Beeler | Offensive Lineman | 6th Round | 2011-2014
Griff Whalen | Wide Receiver | 6th Round | 2012-2017
Ryan Whalen | Wide Receiver | 7th Round | 2014-2015
Ben Gardner | Defensive End | 7th Round | 2014-2015
Doug Baldwin | Wide Receiver | UDFA | 2011-2018
Johnson Bademosi | Cornerback | UDFA | 2011-2020
Thomas Keiser | Defensive End/Linebacker | UDFA | 2011-2014
Konrad Reuland | Tight End | UDFA | 2011-2016
Chris Owusu | Wide Receiver | UDFA | 2012-2015
Delano Howell | Safety | UDFA | 2012-2014
Michael Thomas | Safety | UDFA | 2012-2022
Matt Masifilo | Defensive Lineman | UDFA | 2012-2016
Shayne Skov | Linebacker | UDFA | 2014-2016

As far as I know, only Zach Ertz and Tyrod Taylor (from that game, on the other side) remain active in the NFL. Amazingly, Michael Thomas also played until a couple of years ago, carving out a niche as a special teams specialist.

Considerably less talent will be on the field this Saturday, but I'm looking forward to watching our current team play hard, as they always do. My brain says to go with Vegas on this one, but I'm going to wait and see how I feel on Saturday morning (which is the absolute worst way to play this game!)

[CardinalSagehen]

Just for fun, I asked ChatGPT to provide some details on the NFL careers of players from our 2011 Orange Bowl team (2010 season) that last played Virginia Tech. Here's what it gave me after a lot of nudging and prompting (e.g., "didn't you forget about Ben Gardner, Sione Fua, and Chase Beeler?") This might even be missing a few players, but, man, what a list! I'd take this team against anyone.

Player | Position | Draft Status | Years in NFL
Andrew Luck | Quarterback | 1st Round | 2012-2018
David DeCastro | Offensive Guard | 1st Round | 2012-2021
Jonathan Martin | Offensive Tackle | 2nd Round | 2012-2014
Coby Fleener | Tight End | 2nd Round | 2012-2018
Zach Ertz | Tight End | 2nd Round | 2013-2024
Trent Murphy | Linebacker | 2nd Round | 2014-2021
Sione Fua | Defensive Tackle | 3rd Round | 2011-2015
Owen Marecic | Fullback | 4th Round | 2011-2013
Richard Sherman | Cornerback | 5th Round | 2011-2021
Stepfan Taylor | Running Back | 5th Round | 2013-2016
Chase Beeler | Offensive Lineman | 6th Round | 2011-2014
Griff Whalen | Wide Receiver | 6th Round | 2012-2017
Ryan Whalen | Wide Receiver | 7th Round | 2014-2015
Ben Gardner | Defensive End | 7th Round | 2014-2015
Doug Baldwin | Wide Receiver | UDFA | 2011-2018
Johnson Bademosi | Cornerback | UDFA | 2011-2020
Thomas Keiser | Defensive End/Linebacker | UDFA | 2011-2014
Konrad Reuland | Tight End | UDFA | 2011-2016
Chris Owusu | Wide Receiver | UDFA | 2012-2015
Delano Howell | Safety | UDFA | 2012-2014
Michael Thomas | Safety | UDFA | 2012-2022
Matt Masifilo | Defensive Lineman | UDFA | 2012-2016
Shayne Skov | Linebacker | UDFA | 2014-2016

As far as I know, only Zach Ertz and Tyrod Taylor (from that game, on the other side) remain active in the NFL. Amazingly, Michael Thomas also played until a couple of years ago, carving out a niche as a special teams specialist.

Considerably less talent will be on the field this Saturday, but I'm looking forward to watching our current team play hard, as they always do. My brain says to go with Vegas on this one, but I'm going to wait and see how I feel on Saturday morning (which is the absolute worst way to play this game!)