Two football-playing alumni of Virginia Tech will be on opposite sidelines for the Super Bowl, to be played this coming Sunday. One is in his fourth season in the NFL and has been to the Pro Bowl twice; the other is a rookie who has only recently been elevated from his team's practice squad. Even with vastly different pro careers so far, they have been teammates, not only at Virginia Tech, but also at Maury High School in Norfolk, VA.
Kam Chancellor arrived at Virginia Tech in 2006 and played that season as a true freshman. He was a starter on defense during the following three years, playing strong safety (known as "rover" in VT parlance) in 2007 and free safety in 2008 and 2009. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks and is now their starting strong safety.
Vinston Painter joined the Hokies in 2008 and redshirted that year. From 2009 to 2011, he was a backup offensive tackle, becoming a first-stringer as a senior in 2012. His one season of regular play was enough to get him drafted by the Denver Broncos, but he was relegated to the practice squad after the 2013 preseason was over. Because of his lack of regular season experience, whether he will step onto the field is at best questionable.
Not many Hokies have gone on to play for a Super Bowl winner, but the first two Super Bowls were won by the Green Bay Packers, whose roster included Carroll Dale, who had played for Virginia Tech when our football team was called the Fighting Gobblers. Most recently, Tyrod Taylor, who had played quarterback at VT from 2007 to 2010, was on the Baltimore Ravens squad that won the Super Bowl a year ago, but as the backup QB, did not get to play.
Read more at Hokiesports.
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