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Gilyard: 'It's just all a dream'
By Paul Dehner Jr., CNATI.com Posted April 24, 2010 4:22 PM ET
After two long days of waiting to hear his name, Mardy Gilyard didn't have to wait long on Saturday. Actually, he didn't have to wait at all.
With the first pick of the day and 99th overall, the St. Louis Rams selected the University of Cincinnati wide receiver at the top of the fourth round.
"It was shocking to hear my name," Gilyard said on a conference call. "They called me before 10:00 (ET) and said, 'Hey we're going to take you. We're not going to fool around or beat around the bush.' I was just like, stoked, because now I can finally get ready to go to work. I've been waiting to go to work for forever it seems like."
Gilyard spent the last two days passing time in his hometown of Bunnell, Fla., playing with his dog, fishing, hanging out with family members and on Saturday he was about to go crabbing.
"We're actually throwing a big party for me here in a couple hours, so I've got to be the man to bring back some crabs," Gilyard said. "Everybody loves seafood."
The seafood will taste even better on a relaxed stomach. Many pundits saw Gilyard being selected in the second or third round and he openly stated his deep desire to stay in Cincinnati and play for the Bengals. But in the third round when Gilyard was still on the board and the Bengals were drafting receiver, it was the name of Jordan Shipley that was announced and not Gilyard. So he went to sleep on Friday night still without a team.
"It's just been really stressful," Gilyard said. "I thought I was going to be one of the top guys taken as far as wide receivers, but God has a plan for everybody, so I just tried to stay focused and deal with it."
Gilyard finished last season with 87 receptions for 1,191 yards and 11 touchdowns. In the past two seasons he also returned five kicks for touchdowns.
The Rams already selected quarterback Sam Bradford to invigorate their offense and now Gilyard will hope to do the same.
There are currently 10 receivers listed on the Rams roster and none have more than four years experience. The Rams passing offense sputtered last year as no wideout caught more than 47 passes. That was Donnie Avery, who had 47 for 589 yards. Danny Amendola caught 43 passes at the second receiver spot.
But the Rams were a team without a game-breaking wideout who can make plays after the catch. Thus, Gilyard's drop may have been to the perfect space.
Though, he wouldn't go so far as to say he sees himself contributing immediately.
"I'm just going to try and come in and compete my hardest and let the rest of it just sort itself out," Gilyard said, but did say he thinks he can make an immediate impact in the return game.
He doesn't plan on wasting time in developing chemistry with Bradford.
"Yeah I'm ready," Gilyard said. "I can't wait. Oh God, I can't wait."
He's endured enough waiting for one weekend.
"It's just all a dream," Gilyard said. "Now it's come true. As a kid you're always doing the little countdown, '3-2-1, I've scored the winning touchdown! I'm going pro!' It's like slim to none that kids get a chance to actually go pro. Now that I've actually heard my name called and knowing that I'm going to be a Ram, that's a blessing."
Categories: College, Featured Stories, Football, News, University of Cincinnati Bearcats
Tags: Bearcats, Mardy Gilyard, St. Louis Rams
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