D'Brickashaw Ferguson

I sat in the green room at Radio City Music Hall for the 2006 NFL Draft. At my table, I was encircled by my parents, brother, agent, former coaches and close friends.

Everyone's struggle is different. Just because I wasn't struggling on the streets, it doesn't mean I don't know what it's like to struggle.

I've been cutting my hair ever since college. I try to do that whenever it gets rough. I'm not too cheap to go the barber shop, but I mostly try to do that by myself. I try to keep my skills sharp.

Just because you used one set on one guy and had success doesn't mean you can use that exact set, that exact timing, the next time.

We have a culture in Freeport, especially in our football department. We feel that we're the best team on Long Island, in New York, hands down.

It's just a blessing from above. I can't stress that enough, because I don't feel like it's anything that I've done. For me to say, 'Well, it's because of this, this and that is why I've been able to play,' it's just a lie. I couldn't tell you why.

I don't see myself as the perfect person at all.

You begin to take on the mentality of your coach. If he feels so confident, then I feel confident.

I wouldn't mind being like X-Men and having the claws. I mean, I don't think they'd let me play football, but it would look cool.

When the season ends, I like to take a little time off from the diet I follow when I'm playing.

When a 300-pound person like me is playing, I'm supposed to drink at least a gallon of water a day.

Players have an in-season playing weight, and we have to be careful not to stray too far from it when we're not under the watchful eye of the nutritionist. This can be a problem when the food isn't being prepared and regulated by our cooking staff.

I think, growing up, I was seen as the perfect power forward. For a long time, I thought maybe I was supposed to be a basketball player.

There's a number of years that went by going from a white belt to a black belt. And I think, in a similar respect, years go by with your maturation process, and it's just as important to be disciplined with that as it was in karate.

The actual game is only part of the Senior Bowl experience - the practices are equally important.

Prior to my arrival at the Crowne Plaza in Indianapolis, my agent and I decided that it would be best not to participate in any drills at the combine. We wanted to wait until my pro day at Virginia, where I could limit the distractions and just focus on being my best.