Liberty wide receiver Antonio Gandy-Golden was lightly recruited coming out of Paulding County High, but went on to have a highly productive college career.
He’s hoping to impress NFL scouts at the Senior Bowl. Here’s what Gandy-Golden had to say about his football journey:
Q: Describe your ability to catch deep passes?
A: "I just always have the mindset that when the ball is in the air, it's mine. I've done it a lot in practice. My coaches have always taught me to attack the ball when it's in the air. I've made a habit of that growing up, and it's just translated."
Q: Is there another part of your game that you want other people to notice?
A: "I feel like my routes have been getting a lot better. People can take note of that. I'm a bigger guy, but I feel like my routes are improving a lot."
Q: Are you looking forward to playing against tougher competition?
A: "I'm very excited. Just being around these guys is great, but I never really had this opportunity before. I just want to make the best of it."
Q: What’s the best part of your game?
A: "Taking out the physical side of it, just my willingness to learn and just to win games. Just to do whatever I need to do."
Q: Where do you want to play?
A: "Whether if they move me to slot, special teams or whatever."
Q: What’s the best piece of advance that you’ve received through this process?
A: "Just to work hard even if no one is watching."
Q: When did you move to the Atlanta area from Chicago?
A: "I moved there when I was eight."
Q: When did you start playing football?
A: "I didn't play until high school."
Q: How fast did you take to the game in high school?
A: "Kind of slow, I would say. It was a lot different from what I was used to since I hadn't played any organized sports. It was nice. I felt like I picked it up pretty quick, once I got the ball rolling."
Q: Could you have gone to Hiram?
A: "I didn't live in that area, but we played them."
Q: How did the recruiting go once you started playing a little bit?
A: "Recruiting was kind of slow in the beginning. It started picking up towards my junior year, toward the end of my junior season. My first offer was from Mercer. That throughout the year I got a couple of more offers, and then it really started picking up my senior year."
Q: When did the NFL scouts start coming around to see you at Liberty?
A: "My junior year, there were some guys coming around. They would watch our seniors and my coaches would tell me that they had some interest in me, too. Over the course of my senior year, there were a lot more scouts coming."
Q: What do you hope to show the scouts here?
A: "That I can produce. That I can separate."
Q: Who are some of the receivers that you model your game after?
A: "My top two are Julio Jones and Larry Fitzgerald. Both are bigger-bodied guys and smart guys. They use their frames very well."
Q: What was your official height and weight?
A: "I was 6-3 and 5/8ths and 222 (pounds)."
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