When he first met Tyrone McKenzie, Wally Burnham was skeptical.
The former defensive coordinator at South Florida wondered why the school was taking a chance on a guy like McKenzie, who had already left Michigan State and Iowa State and was talking to him about playing at USF as a junior. For a coach, one transfer usually raises a red flag. Two transfers, and you might as well slap a “radioactive” sticker on a guy.
But then, McKenzie started telling Burnham his story. How he lost his father when he was nine to cancer, and had to become the man of the house before he was a high schooler. How he needed to transfer the first time because of family issues, and taking a third-shift job working at a Hampton Inn to help make ends meet. How he needed to transfer a second time because his mother was going through a divorce and recovering from a car accident.
“‘Why should we be taking this guy?’” Burnham recalled thinking to himself at the time. “(But) as soon as he got into town, he and his Mom came over and told me their stories about her health and why he did what he did. All the stories about his maturity are true.
“T-Mac had to grow up fast in that situation. He probably didn’t get to enjoy the first couple years of his college career like most kids, because of the worries back home with his Mom. He had to step up and be the man of the house at an early age -- this role was on his even before he went off to school. He had to do a little bit of juggling all the time.”
So when Burnham heard Patriots coach Bill Belichick marvel at the 6-foot-1, 242-pound McKenzie’s maturity level shortly after New England took McKenzie with the 97th overall pick last weekend, he wasn’t surprised.
“Of all the players that I’ve talked to and we’ve interviewed this year and even through the years ... Tyrone is amongst the most impressive,” Belichick said when asked about McKenzie. “Maturity, intelligence, what he’s done with the opportunities that he’s had or that he’s had to overcome, how he’s approached them, how he’s dealt with them, how he’s made the most of them. It hasn’t been easy.
“Yet, he’s continued to excel, jump over hurdles and overcome obstacles that I think would have derailed a lot of other people and/or football players. I think he’s a very impressive, mature, humble young man.”
“That doesn’t surprise me that he would say that about T-Mac -- he’s one of the most sincere young men I’ve ever been around,” Burnham said when informed of the Belichick comment. “He’s always smiling. The glass is always half-full with him.
“T-Mac is the kind of guy who speaks from the heart. I think if you ever get to know the young man, you’ll find this out. He’ll tell you exactly what he’s thinking ... just an outgoing kind of guy. He’s always trying to be positive.”
He struggled to get playing time as a freshman at Michigan State, but as a sophomore at Iowa State, he was the nation’s eighth-leading tackler. After transferring to USF, McKenzie totaled 237 tackles the last two seasons at South Florida, including a school-record 121 as a junior. As a senior, he was a consensus first team All-BIG EAST selection, and his 116 tackles (14.5 of them for a loss) in 2008 rank as the third-best single-season total in program history.
Burnham, who took over the defense at Iowa State this past offseason, offers an off-the-chart scouting report on McKenzie, saying he’s “very coachable,” and he’ll be a “perfect fit” in the New England system.
As for where that fit might be, McKenzie said he has already had discussions with Belichick about how they plan to utilize him in the New England defense, but has been sworn to secrecy. McKenzie was used as a strong-side linebacker, middle linebacker, and weak-side linebacker at USF.
While Burnham acknowledges one of McKenzie’s strengths is his versatility, he sees McKenzie in one position with the Patriots.
“I think he’s a natural ‘mike’ linebacker. I really do,” said Burnham, who left USF for a job with Iowa State this past offseason. “Just the way the Patriots rush ends and drop ends ... I think he can do both of those things. But I think he can play inside on big people. I think he’s more of a natural ‘mike’ linebacker.”
No matter where he fits in on the field, Burnham is just happy he was able to overcome his initial skepticism. He’s proud to call McKenzie a friend.
“I just think he's a wonder -- one of the best I've ever been associated with,” Burnham said. “New England is getting an outstanding young citizen to add to its community.”
Christopher Price covers the Patriots for WEEI.com.
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