University of North Carolina Athletics
Miami Dolphins Visit Chapel Hill
March 31, 2009 | Football
March 31, 2009
The NFL Draft is just a few weeks away and several clubs have visited Chapel Hill recently to evaluate the Tar Heels' pro prospects. Obviously, many teams are interested in wide receiver Hakeem Nicks, who projects as a probable first- or second-round pick, but the Tar Heels have several potential draft picks this season. Last Saturday, the Miami Dolphins sent GM Jeff Ireland and head coach Tony Sparano to Chapel Hill for a visit.
"At Carolina, they do a lot of the same things we do so it's not a surprise when they get to the NFL in terms of what we're asking them to do," said Ireland. "More than anything else, they are coached the same way - the aggressiveness of the way they are coached, the urgency in the way they are coached - that's an extremely important aspect when going from college to the pros. That's the good thing about programs coached by Butch Davis. You know that they've been coached the right way and are prepared for the National Football League.
"In some of the places you go, you're not able to see a player do everything you want them to do that are relative to our game," said Sparano. "Here, when you come to North Carolina, you're able to see that on film, clearly. You're getting a chance to see and talk to these kids that are relative to us and how we do things so it's makes it a little bit easier when you're talking to the players, communicating with the players. They know exactly what we're talking about from a protection standpoint or a coverage standpoint. They're a little bit further ahead of the curve that way."
Ireland and Sparano held a private workout with Nicks, Brooks Foster, Richard Quinn, Trimane Goddard, Bryon Bishop and Garrett Reynolds. Nicks, Foster and Quinn caught passes from Dolphins' backup quarterback Chad Henne.
