30 SUMMER 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED
W
hen Tampa Bay Buccaneers
general manager Jason Licht
told Notre Dame Fighting
Irish cornerback Benjamin
Morrison he was drafting him, Morrison
broke down in tears.
Licht passed the phone to Bucs head
coach Todd Bowles, who played with
Morrison's dad, Darryl, with Washing-
ton in 1993.
"How's it going, Coach?" Morrison
choked out, tears streaming down his
face. "I'm not gonna let you down, man.
I promise you, man."
Morrison put down the phone, col-
lected himself and yelled, "Tampa!" He
jumped up and down, celebrating with
former teammates Christian Gray, Kar-
son Hobbs and Jaden Mickey. And in
doing so, he showed once again that his
surgically repaired hip is ready to go.
"Obviously, there are some protocols
and stuff we have to follow, get with the
Buccaneers' medical team for them to
do their examinations on me," Morrison
said in a conference call with Tampa re-
porters after being selected. "But I feel
great. Better than ever. I showcased that
four days ago."
Morrison was referring to a private
WORTH
THE WAIT
Projected as a first-rounder
before a hip injury,
Benjamin Morrison
looks to prove doubters
wrong with the Buccaneers
Morrison became the highest-drafted Notre
Dame cornerback since Bobby Taylor in
1995, getting selected at No. 53 overall in
the second round by Tampa Bay.
PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER
