During their days as teammates at BYU, linebacker Rob Morris and offensive tackle John Tait were as inseparable as Siamese twins. So, naturally, they were together again Saturday in Provo when Morris was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft — No. 28 overall — by the Indianapolis Colts.
Fittingly, it marked the first time in history a Cougar player has been picked in the first round in back-to-back years. Tait, taken No. 14 overall by the Kansas City Chiefs, was BYU's first-round selection last year.
And, as fate would have it, Indianapolis opens the 2000 season on Sept. 3 at Kansas City, and Morris couldn't resist ribbing his best friend and former roommate about it.
"So you'll all have the chance to see me take care of John like I did in practice (at BYU)," he joked at a news conference held at Cougar Stadium Saturday afternoon. The event was attended by Tait; Morris' and Tait's agent, Ethan Lock; and members of Morris' family, including mom Vicki and dad Don.
Not long after the news conference, Colt owner Jim Irsay's private jet was to pick him up and whisk him away to Indianapolis for meetings with team officials. With the Colts, Morris will be reunited with former BYU teammates Larry Moore, the Colts' starting center, and Spencer Reid, a backup linebacker.
"I'm excited about this new part of my career," Morris said. "I think it's going to be a good fit with me and the Colts."
Morris and Cougar defensive end Byron Frisch, a third-round pick of Tennessee, were the only local players chosen through the first three rounds on Saturday. The draft will continue Sunday with rounds 4 through 7. Frisch was the second-to-last pick of the third round, No. 93 overall.
"It's awesome to play with a team that's just been in the Super Bowl," said Frisch, who spoke via phone with Titan coach Jeff Fisher. "I'll be able to learn a lot. When it came down to the final 10 picks of the third round, I thought, I sure don't want to do this again tomorrow.' Then I heard from Tennessee."
While Morris will open his NFL career at Kansas City, he and the Indianapolis organization hope his rookie season will end at the Super Bowl. Last season, Indianapolis claimed the NFC East title with a 13-3 record, losing to Tennessee in the NFC championship game, and is a favorite to win the AFC in 2000.
"It's a great team, a great offense. It's a young team, an upstart team," Morris said. "The Colts are real close to that championship piece. There's a chance to go to the Super Bowl, hopefully."
Morris will play no small role in that quest. The Colts have already projected him as a starter at middle linebacker.
"That's our intention," said team president Bill Polian. "We will put him in there and let him get his feet wet."
Mike Barber, last year's starting middle linebacker, was released earlier this year and his backup, Jeff Brady, is coming off major knee surgery.
"We feel like (Morris) is a young man who can provide us with great stoutness in the middle," Polian said. "He's an attacking type of football player. We feel very fortunate to get a shot at him, and, obviously, he fills a need for us. The best thing that can happen to you on draft day is to have a good player with a need. That's what occurred. He told us back in February (at the NFL combines in Indianapolis) that the Colts were his choice, and this is where he wanted to come. That's nice. It's nice to know you have a player who thinks highly of your organization and wants to be here. We're looking forward to having him."
"From the time I sat down with Bill Polian, (director of football operations) Dom Anile and some of the coaches at the combines, I felt really good about the situation," Morris said. "I knew they had an interest in me. I obviously had a great interest in a team of this caliber that is going be in the Super Bowl. I knew going into the draft that a lot of different things could happen. I didn't know what was going to happen. I just waited, and I am glad the Colts felt strongly enough about me to draft me that high."
Several prognosticators speculated that Seattle might grab him with the 22nd pick. When that didn't occur, Morris, who was watching the draft on ESPN with friends and family, couldn't take it anymore. "When I didn't get any phone calls, me and my brothers went into the other room and started playing Nintendo," he said. "That took my mind off it. I was getting sick of sitting in the room and waiting. I figured if someone was going to draft me, someone would come and get me."
A few picks later, Polian phoned Morris to inform him he would be a Colt. "I was excited," said Morris, who also spoke with coach Jim Mora.
At the news conference in Provo, Tait, who flew in from Kansas City camp for the occasion, videotaped the proceedings with a hand-held camcorder and looked like he was enjoying it as much, if not more, as Morris.
"This is his day," Tait said. "He's worked really hard to get to this point. He's got a great future."
Any advice?
"I just told him to enjoy the journey. There's a lot of ups and downs," said Tait, who experienced a well-publicized holdout before signing with the Chiefs. "You only do this once."