Sept. 18, 2010
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Just as he had done for the previous four seasons, Torell Troup accompanied his UCF to the walkthrough and hung out with buddies at the team meal Friday night.
The only difference now is that Troup is a nose guard for the NFL's Buffalo Bills and no longer a Knight.
Troup followed up a standout career at UCF by being a second-round pick of the Bills last spring in the NFL Draft. While Troup has blended in nicely with the Bills, playing about 20 plays at nose guard and on special teams in the season-opening loss to the Miami Dolphins, he's missed his former UCF teammates greatly.
``I miss these guys quite a bit, so it was good to see the team and Coach (George) O'Leary,'' said Troup, a 6-foot-3, 310-pound defensive tackle. ``I live on my own now and it's such of an adjustment to not go back to the room and have somebody there to talk to and play around with. I just love catching up with everybody at UCF again because it's like a family here.''
Troup will experience another UCF reunion of sorts on Sunday when he lines up opposite of former Knights offensive linemen Josh Sitton, a starting guard for the Green Bay Packers. Sitton played at UCF from 2004-07, mostly as a starting tackle. Troup missed UCF's game in Buffalo when he flew out to Green Bay with his Bills teammates on Saturday. But he joked that he and Sitton would assuredly be talking Knights football at times during Sunday's NFL game.
``I didn't go against him too much at UCF (in practice) because Josh was an offensive tackle and I was on the inside. But I know him well and I've been watching a lot of film on him,'' Troup said. ``So every play we'll be lined up over one another and hitting each other.''
Troup said the NFL's four-game preseason prepared him nicely for the transition from the college football to the NFL. He did injure his neck in last week's game when Miami running back Ronnie Brown attempted to jump over the pile and landed on Troup's head.
Troup said that veteran defensive linemen Marcus Stroud, Kyle Williams and Spencer Johnson have helped ease his transition to professional football. He said that he initially felt pressure to perform because Buffalo drafted him specially because it was switching defenses from a 4-3 to a 3-4, but he's learned to relax.
``The biggest difference is that everybody is better on this level and it's hard to find a weak link. You have to take a mindset at practice like it's a game because you don't want to get embarrassed,'' Troup said. ``At first I felt the pressure, but once I got there and talked to everyone and they told me about the expectations, some of the pressure kind of backed off. Some of the older guys have really helped me make the transition, so that's been nice.''
Troup, a second-team All-Conference USA selection last season, said his experience of playing for O'Leary and the Knights prepared him perfectly for the NFL. That debt of gratitude is one reason he takes advantage of every opportunity to see his former coaches and teammates when he can.
``The NFL is a business and the little things that Coach O'Leary demanded of us are expected the same way at the next level,'' Troup said. ``There's so much riding on everything at this level, so to be as prepared as I am helps a lot.''
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John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.