Blue White Illustrated

ON THE MOVE Hodges and Mauti, opposite page, are thrilled to be reunited in Minnesota. Hill, left, is headed to Seattle after his selection in the third round. Steve Manuel DRAFTEES PLAYER Jordan Hill Gerald Hodges Michael Mauti POS DT OLB OLB TEAM Seattle Seahawks Minnesota Vikings Minnesota Vikings OT QB CB C FB RD 3rd 4th 7th PICK 87th 120th 213th Pittsburgh Steelers Washington Redskins New England Patriots New England Patriots Carolina Panthers FREE AGENTS Mike Farrell Matt McGloin* Stephon Morris Matt Stankiewitch Michael Zordich * Attended tryout; had not signed a free agent contract at press time. to have to wait for that opportunity to arrive. He knew his name would not be called during ESPN's telecast of the first round on Thursday, April 25. He knew that if he were going to be drafted, it would be at some point on Saturday, April 27, when the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds were conducted. That was the hard part. "It was absolutely excruciating," Mauti said. "I heard so many different things. … I had three or four teams tell me they were going to take me. It's just frustration. You're just trying to get to the right place. You hope you get to the right system and a system where you fit in well." Mauti entered the draft knowing that nearly half of the league's 32 teams wouldn't even consider him due to his medical history, which included three major knee injuries at Penn State. However, he said a couple of teams did make it clear that they had serious interest in him. The Vikings eventually followed through, choosing Mauti just three rounds after they drafted fellow Penn State linebacker Gerald Hodges (and four rounds after the Seattle Seahawks made defensive tackle Jordan Hill the first Penn State player to be selected). Now that he's put to rest the speculation about his draft-worthiness, Mauti said he thinks he's found the right fit with the Vikings. He and Hodges will be working with longtime NFL assistant Fred Pagac and former Chicago Bears great Mike Singletary, who together coach the team's linebackers. "It ended up being a great situation for me and Gerald," Mauti said. "It's definitely a situation where they could use some guys, so I'm just looking forward to being a contributor in that organization." Mauti said he's eager to reteam with Hodges in Minnesota. "I called him on Saturday right when he got drafted. I just said, 'Congrats man.' I was so happy for him. Then he said, 'You're next, man. Just be patient.' Then, sure enough, as soon as I got the call, as soon as it flashed on the screen, we were turning my house upside down. We were going crazy," Mauti said. "He called me right away. We were just screaming on the phone, jumping up and down. His family was screaming in the background. I mean, it was great. It really was a special moment. "We've had so much fun playing together, and it's kind of a relief to know that you've got a guy who's a familiar face there. We're in a place where you have all new people and a whole new set of rules and everything, and it's just going to be fun going through that process with him. We've been through so much together. It's just

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