By By KEVIN TRAVIS, Sports Editor
As Brad Roach sat on a bench overlooking the Washington waterfront, he began to ponder his future.
By this time next week, Roach could very well be an NFL football player.
The 6-6, 250-pound All-American quarterback from Catawba College will find out his fate this weekend.
The first two rounds of the NFL Draft will be held Saturday beginning at 3 p.m., while rounds three through seven will be held Sunday starting at 10 a.m.
Roach will watch the draft from Charlotte, where his agent, Robert Walker, the CEO of Charlotte-based US Sports Management, is located. He’ll be joined by a host of family members, including parents Keith and Amy Roach, during the two-day draft.
Eight teams have been in correspondence with Roach. The New York Giants, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, Cleveland Browns, New York Jets and Miami Dolphins have all shown an interest in the quarterback.
While Roach has been getting phone calls from NFL teams for a while now, he said it doesn’t get old.
Roach had a private meeting with the Texans. He said that experience alone was beneficial.
Roach realized his junior year in college that he had the skills and make-up to play quarterback in the NFL.
Roach, who completed 608 of 1,099 passes (55.3 percent) for 7,874 yards and 62 touchdown passes in his college career, realizes he could land with any of the 32 NFL teams.
If and when his name flashes on the television screen, Roach said he’ll finally be able to relax a bit.
Roach’s name keeps popping up on various football web sites with regards to the upcoming draft. In a story on www.sportsnetwork.com by David Coulson, FCS Executive Editor, Roach is listed sixth among the top 15 small-school players with the highest potential to be drafted.
Roach is also mentioned on sportsillustrated.cnn.com in a story, written by Tony Pauline, as a possible “small-school sleeper.”
Roach does check the draft boards from time to time, but doesn’t take a whole lot of stock in them.
While Roach is ready for the next level, he still remembers where he got his start. He put up record-setting numbers with the Williamston Tigers, where he led the team to consecutive state championship appearances.
Roach is prepared for the next step, and ready to make plenty of more memories in the NFL.