The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Catching up with Cedric Griffin
04.09.2007 | Football
How has life been now that you've gotten through your rookie year? Life has been great. It has been a dream to do this, to play in the NFL. To be able to play for the full season and to go out there and contribute for my team has been pretty good. Just being on my own and stuff that feels good. Everything has been pretty good this year.
Talk about life in Minnesota. Going up there you knew it was going to be cold. Are you getting used to that? Nah, I'm never going to get used to this. I am from Texas and the south, period. I need that heat. It has been really cold. I was in a blizzard the other day and the snow was about 10 inches high. It was crazy. I don't really like that. Other than that, Minnesota is pretty good. The people are good out here and the state is pretty good overall.
How has the off-season come together? What do you have planned? We are starting slow right now. I'm just now getting back into the weight room so I'm not really working out hard right now, but probably in the beginning of April I will start lifting hard.
What the biggest difference has been between the college game and the pro game? I think the athleticism and the competition are all the same, but you have to learn how to prepare your body and preserve your body.It's a long season despite what anyone says. Even being young it's a long season. So you have to know how to take care of your body and pace it so you come off strong in the end.
How did it feel getting your first starts in? Oh man that felt pretty good. Just coming in and working hard and really just being given the opportunity. I stepped in and added some quality work, so I stayed there. I was happy about that.
It was only a preseason game, but how did it feel to be on the opposite side of Michael Huff when you played the Raiders? That was funny, but it was cool. Playing in the same game as another Texas player. It's neat seeing two Texas players playing in the league. I was happy for him and I'm pretty sure he was happy for me at the same time.
On that same note, from your draft class a lot of guys have gotten early playing time. How does it make you feel to see guys succeeding from that same draft class? It makes me feel great. Coach Brown has done a great job with 18-year-olds and developing them, and we are showing everybody that we can play football in Texas. I am loving it really.
How did you feel blending in with new teammates up? It is just like college your freshman year. You just have to see and mix with them. It's all new and it's an experience.
How do you see the direction of the team going as a whole? We have a good team and we have a future in place. As long as we continue to do what we do, I'm pretty sure we will be fine. We are going to try to get to the playoffs and we are striving for that direction right now.
Texas is probably going to end up with three DBs being drafted this year. How do you feel for those guys and the program as a whole to see over the last couple of years there have been five or six DBs make it in the NFL? It makes me feel good because I am part of a tradition and what Coach Akina is doing there. Coach Akina is really teaching us how to be men and how to be football players. He is really disciplined, but that is what 18 and 19-year-olds need at the time. He is the man for that job. He has been doing a great job there and he has been doing it for years. I think that is the reason why we are so successful as DBs coming out of Texas right now. I am telling everyone about it, so I'm letting them know what Coach Akina is doing down here.
With Aaron Ross, Texas has now had back-to-back Thorpe Award winners. That is crazy right there. The funny thing about it is that you never know what is going to happen. A-Ross, he's always talking about how hard he is going to work and it finally came true for him. I am proud of him. A-Ross is a good guy.
What was it like to represent Texas at a champions banquet at this year's National Championship Game? They asked me to come out and represent Texas, and I said sure I will. It was a good deal. We just went out there and watched the game and went to a lot of events and mingled with people. We just got our names out there and crossed paths with a lot of people.
Did you get to follow Texas much this past season? Oh yeah. I watched all the games; I recorded them all on TV. I was watching those guys and critiquing them and telling them what people are saying about them. I keep them informed and tell them to keep working and doing their thing. I'm really looking out for them.
A lot of people who go to the NFL they realize how much of a business it is. Is that something you've recognized too? Oh yeah, it's a job and you have to treat it that way. I've been given the opportunity to come out here and play for them, and we go out there and perform. That's what it's all about. As long as we do our job, I think everybody will be happy. That's what we do, we are athletes and we perform. We go out there and we do our thing. I think it's all good, to be honest.
What would you say your best moment from the season was? I don't know. I would have to say the season as a whole, from training camp on to the end of the season. I was happy about my maturity level, and I think it has risen a little bit especially being around these older guys, like Antoine Winfield and Ronyell Whitaker, guys like that just helped me along and I feel good about myself.
Was there anytime maybe early on when you found yourself out on the field looking across from a certain name and it hit you that you were on the next level and getting it done? Brett Favre, when we played Brett Favre in the Metrodome and played those guys. After the game, he came up to me and said I played a good game and I was happy. That's one of the guys I watched on TV when I was young, so it was kind of crazy to watch him play.
Is there anything else about your experience up there that really stands out to you? I'm in my house and I have my son, Swayde, and Kelly. Hopefully we will be engaged pretty soon. Other than that I'm just happy with what I have right now and I'm thankful right now.
