It is no secret that senior Wolfpack wide receiver, Bryan Underwood has been an enigma this year. Theories abound regarding Underwood’s lack of effort at times when it appears to fans that he doesn’t extend/stretch himself for passes; and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to observe that Jacoby Brissett’s struggles mightily to hit receivers more than 20 yards downfield — a zip code where Underwood often resides because of his blazing speed and ability to vertically stretch defenses.
Well, I don’t think anyone will be questioning Underwood’s heart today after this story that was just too awesome to ignore emerged from this past weekend’s senior day.
On Saturday at Carter-Finley, NC State senior wide receiver Bryan Underwood helped create a story worth smiling about. And it just so happened to involve my 8-year-old brother.
Earlier in the week, Josh submitted a photo to NC State’s #kidfographic social media campaign. State asked kids to send in hand-drawn photos of their favorite players, and Josh chose Underwood, who he called “a great receiver.”
Thursday morning, Josh’s photo made an appearance on NC State’s official football account on Twitter.
Soon after (as the story was relayed to me), Underwood was in the sports information office asking more about the boy who drew the picture.
Underwood’s family wasn’t coming to Carter-Finley for Senior Day, so he decided he wanted Josh – and his high school football coach – on the field with him. Underwood’s family came down from Ohio to attend to the Georgia Tech a week ago and wasn’t able to make the trip in consecutive weeks.
A phone call to Josh set the plans in motion, and on Saturday, my brother got a memory he’ll never forget during pre-game festivities.
Underwood punctuated his Senior Day with a 75-yard touchdown run on a reverse in the third quarter. The score made it 28-3 in the third quarter and sealed up bowl eligibility for the Wolfpack.
How fitting could it be for Underwood to deliver a 75 yard reverse for a touchdown that was an absolute thing of beauty!? You can re-watch Underwood’s sprint to the end zone on senior day below:
Additionally, Underwood shares more on the story in this interview:
