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Revision as of 20:30, 31 October 2009 by 24.219.13.201 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Template:Infobox CollegeFootballPlayer Brandon Spikes (born September 3, 1987 in Shelby, North Carolina) is an American football linebacker for the Florida Gators. Spikes is the son of NFL linebacker Takeo Spikes. He is considered one of the best linebackers in college football and is expected to be a high draft pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.
Early years
Spikes played his high school football for Crest Senior High School in Shelby, North Carolina. Coming out of high school he was considered one of the best linebacker prospects, and was rated the number one prospect in the state of North Carolina by Rivals.com and sixth overall best player in the country according to Scout.com. He was also selected to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
College career
Spikes chose to play for Florida over many other colleges including Alabama, North Carolina State, and Virginia Tech. Spikes saw limited action in 2006, playing in nine games and recording 15 tackles as the backup to Brandon Siler. He did help the Florida Gators win the BCS National Championship Game against Ohio State. In 2007 he became a starter after Siler was drafted in the 2007 NFL Draft. He started all 13 games at middle linebacker recording 131 tackles, which was second in the Southeastern Conference. He also earned First-Team All-SEC along with teammate Tim Tebow.
Spikes was a Consensus First-team All-American and First-team All-SEC selection and a team captain in 2008. He was selected as a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award and Chuck Bednarik Award. He was a starter at middle linebacker led the team with 93 tackles on the season, including 8.0 for a loss. He made six tackles in the BCS National Championship Game win over the University of Oklahoma and had seven tackles, two QB hurries and broke up one pass in the 2008 SEC Championship Game against the University of Alabama. After the season (his junior year) he decided to forgo entry into the 2009 NFL Draft and will return to Florida for another season.
In October 2009, Spikes was named a midseason All-American by The Sporting News.
Professional career
2010 NFL Draft
Spikes is widely believed to be the top inside linebacker available in the 2010 NFL Draft. He is a cousin of veteran NFL linebacker Takeo Spikes, to whom he also draws comparisons.
References
- ^ Cooney, Frank (May 11, 2009). "Who's next? Looking ahead to the best of the 2010 draft class". USA Today.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Perloff, Andrew (April 28, 2009). "Sam Bradford goes No.1 to St. Louis Rams in 2010 NFL Mock Draft". Sports Illustrated.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Tebow, Spikes make first-team All-SEC
- Spikes Staying, Harvin Going for UF
- "SN's midseason All-Americans: Defense", Sporting News, October 20, 2009
- NFL Draft - 2010 ILB Draft Prospects, CBSSports.com
- "NFL Draft Profile: Brandon Spikes", CBSSports.com