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Jimmy Graham is arguably UM’s most unlikely football great. Although Graham never played at the Orange Bowl, he attended many games as a fan. He originally enrolled at the University of Miami in the fall of 2005 as a 4-star basketball recruit out of Wilson, North Carolina. The 6-foot-7 Graham played power forward for the Canes basketball team, where he was known as a scrappy player who was a fine rebounder, defender and would dive on the floor for loose balls. Because his offensive game was limited, Graham had little to no chance of playing professional basketball.
After graduating in 2009 with a double-major in marketing and management, Graham stayed at UM to enter graduate school. But he needed something to do to keep himself busy. In the fall of 2009, he decided to join the football team. Graham had not played competitive football since he was a freshman in high school. Because he played 4 years of basketball at Miami without redshirting,, he had one year of eligibility to play a different sport. Graham had to learn the basics of football on the fly. When he showed up to practice for the first time, he didn’t even know where or how to line up correctly. But it was obvious, he had a gift of catching footballs. His 6’7, 255 pound frame made him a matchup problem for defenders. Graham became a quick study. Although he had some struggles early in the season with some drops, he earned significant playing time, catching 17 passes for 213 yards and 5 touchdowns in his only football season as a Cane.
Graham had begun to draw attention from NFL scouts. He wanted to follow in the footsteps of Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez, who were former college basketball players who became successful tight ends. Drafted in the 3rd round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints, Graham would become one of the league’s most prolific pass catching tight ends. In his second season, he caught 99 passes for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns. It was the first of 5 Pro Bowl seasons. He currently plays for the Chicago Bears. During his NFL career, Graham has caught 703 passes for 8,403 yards and 82 touchdowns. His numbers dwarf other former Cane tight ends who went on to the NFL including Bubba Franks, Jeremy Shockey and Kellen Winslow II. Only Greg Olsen has better career NFL numbers. To read more articles about Orange Bowl history, visit us at https://www.facebook.com/
