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FIVE QUESTIONS FOOTBALL ALUM AND ACC LEGEND PATRICK KERNEY Patrick Kerney ('99) went from being a football walk-on to an All-American defensive end to the Atlanta Falcons' first-round pick in the 1999 NFL Draft. As a fourth-year, Kerney ranked second in the nation with 15 sacks, which tied the school record set by Chris Slade in 1992. After signing with Atlanta, he began a streak of starting 105 consecutive games, and in 2007 with Seattle he was voted a Pro Bowl starter. Kerney will be honored as an ACC Legend Dec. 5. CAVALIER CORNER: In what way did your time at Virginia prepare you for your career in the NFL? KERNEY: "I think the coaches I had — includ- ing Ty Smith, my defensive ends coach my senior year, and [strength and conditioning coach] Barry Johnson — built a work ethic in me that was distinct from a lot of players I came across in the NFL. "It was something you grew used to instead of a daily challenge." CAVALIER CORNER: You received a lacrosse scholarship from Virginia. What prompted you to become a walk-on with the football team and did you ever dream you would attain the level of suc- cess that you did in the NFL? KERNEY: "Honestly, the only reason I walked Kerney, a former football walk-on, ranked second in the nation with a school-record- tying 15 sacks in his fourth year on campus and then was selected in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. PHOTO COURTESY ATLANTA FALCONS