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Buckeyes' Diggs to enter NFL draft
Posted: Tuesday January 04, 2000 02:57 PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Junior Ohio State linebacker Na'il Diggs said today that he will give up his final year of eligibility to enter the NFL draft. "I had been back and forth until Sunday night when my heart came to realize that this is want I really want," Diggs said at a news conference. "There was no one factor that pushed me over." Diggs, 21, led the Buckeyes with 94 tackles, 15 tackles for losses and six sacks last season. He has 18 career sacks and 37 tackles for losses, both in the top seven in school history. He sighed noticeably as he read a statement announcing his decision. "Some of the best times of my life have been realized as an Ohio State Buckeye," the statement said. His girlfriend, Vanessa Lewis, a recent Michigan graduate, said the decision was more painful because the Buckeyes fell to 6-6 and didn't play in a bowl game last year after finishing No. 2 in the country two seasons ago. Diggs' sister, Roslyn Berry, married to the father of his teammate Gary Berry, said NFL teams, scouts and general managers told her Diggs likely would be drafted in the first three rounds. "I understand that there are no guarantees in life," Diggs said. "When my mom passed away when I was 13 years of age that was made painfully evident." Diggs is the 13th Ohio State player since 1991 to leave early. Wide receiver David Boston and linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer left last year after their junior seasons. The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Diggs made All-Big Ten in 1998 when he played next to Katzenmoyer. Playing on a less talented defense on a team that finished 6-6 in 1999, Diggs was chosen for the second-team All-Big Ten. Diggs, of Los Angeles, came to Ohio State four years ago. He redshirted his freshman season and played primarily as an outside linebacker in passing situations in 1997 before becoming a starter in 1998.
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