ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, April 19, 1997 TAG: 9704210119
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY THE ROANOKE TIMES
NFL draft analysts are divided on where twins Tiki and Ronde Barber will be selected.
Until recently, one word never had been associated with the Barber twins of Southwest Roanoke County.
Slow.
The Barbers are used to not being tall. The one thing that set them apart, though, was their speed.
That was until the NFL testing combine in Indianapolis. After the stopwatches were put away, Tiki Barber's best time for 40 yards was 4.51 seconds and his brother, Ronde, had run 4.62.
``They see that and say, `We're not going to look at this guy anymore,''' said Ronde, who passed up his final season of eligibility at Virginia. ``People look at my times and say, `God, this guy's slow,' which is ridiculous. I think it's hurt me.''
Ronde Barber made first-team All-ACC in all three of his seasons at Virginia, but some analysts do not rate him among the top 10 cornerbacks in the draft.
``To tell you the truth, I have no clue as to when or where I'm going,'' he said. ``If you ask [draft analyst] Mel Kiper, it's nowhere.''
Kiper, in his 1997 Draft Update, predicted Pittsburgh would select Ronde Barber with the 36th pick of the sixth round (199th overall).
NFL draft analyst Joel Buschbaum disagrees. Buschbaum's mock draft for Pro Football Weekly predicted New England would draft Ronde with the first pick of the third round (61st overall).
Few players have generated as much uncertainty, except possibly his brother. Tiki, a two-time All-ACC running back and last year's ACC player of the year, was projected as an early second-round pick by Buschbaum and a late fourth-round pick by Kiper.
The Sporting News indicated Tampa Bay might find Tiki Barber's all-around skills attractive in the second round. Indeed, a Buccaneers scout called the Barbers' home Friday and left a message for Tiki to call.
Tiki Barber ran a 4.37 40 when Tampa Bay head coach Tony Dungy was in Charlottesville earlier this month.
``I wasn't going to run until I knew coach Dungy was coming,'' Barber said. ``I knew they were in the market for a running back, [but] a lot of it has to do with coach Dungy. He's a cool guy. I met him at the Senior Bowl and had a chance to talk with him a little bit. I like his personality.''
Tiki Barber, who suffered a lower-back injury Dec.27 in the Carquest Bowl, was able to play two weeks later in the Senior Bowl but carried the ball only once. He has spent the past three months watching his stock fluctuate as wildly as the Dow Jones.
``I knew it was going to happen,'' he said. ``A lot of people questioned my size [5 feet 8 5/8, 193 pounds]. It was the same kind of thing when I came to college. They question my durability, even though I ran between the tackles for three years. They obviously don't look at the tapes.''
Barber led the ACC in rushing in each of his last two seasons, but some pro scouts may not know he also led the conference in carries. He added nearly 20 pounds after his sophomore year, although he never felt it hurt his speed.
``They say that I can't run at 202 pounds,'' said Barber, who had 22 runs of 20 yards or more in the last two seasons, including six for more than 40. ``I know that's not the case. Sometimes, they get too caught up in numbers instead of looking at how people play.''
It is unlikely the Barbers will even watch the draft. While their future is being decided, they will be pursuing their latest hobby, golf. They are entered in a tournament sponsored by UVa's McIntire School of Commerce.
``I used to be really anxious about it [and] nervous,'' Tiki said. ``I was always thinking about. Now, I'm to the point where I just want it to be over with. I know I'm going somewhere.
``Ronde's had it a little worse than I have. Nobody's really told him anything.''
Ronde voices no second thoughts about leaving Virginia.
``The only regret I would have is that I didn't listen to some of the advice I got and waited to run until I got home,'' he said. ``A lot of guys like [Chris] Canty and [Shawn] Springs didn't run. I felt, in my position, I didn't have that option.
``I'm not going to make any excuses, but we had trained for only a week and a half and didn't do any speed work. To tell you the truth, I didn't think it would matter. I thought I would be in good enough condition that, even on a slow surface, I could run in the high 4.4s.''
After all, the Barbers were one-time Olympic track hopefuls.
``I'll be bitter if I fall a lot because of my apparent slowness,'' Ronde said. ``I know I'm not slow and everybody who knows me knows I'm not slow. The irony is as thick as anything.''
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. DON PETERSEN THE ROANOKE TIMES Tiki Barber (right),by CNBlast year's ACC player of the year, displayed speed and durability
at Virginia. Even so, Tampa Bay is the only team that has expressed
interest in Barber as a second-round pick. color
2. DON PETERSEN THE ROANOKE TIMES Ronde Barber (right) says he has
plenty of speed to play in the NFL, no matter how slow his latest
40-yard time is.
3. headshot of Tiki Barber color
4. headshot of Ronde Barber color KEYWORDS: FOOTBALL