Following the Senior Bowl last season, Legette had a feeling he was well liked in Charlotte, and said so.
“We had three days we had to meet with teams and each day I had to meet with the Panthers,” Legette laughed while re-telling the story. “That’s when I realized, OK they really want me. And then I just kept meeting with them.”
Then, the week before the draft last April, Legette told a reporter, “I’ve met with the Panthers about four or five times. The relationship, it just keeps continuing to grow. They’re really hoping that I can make it to the second round. They keep on telling me if I’m sitting at (pick) 33, they’re going to take me.”
He’s good at a lot of things. Poker might not be one of them.
The Panthers did in fact draft Legette after trading into the first round to take the Mullins, S.C. native at No. 32 overall. When general manager Dan Morgan called Legette to tell him the good news, coach Dave Canales joked, “You didn’t have to go tell the whole world we’re going to do it though, the other day. We appreciate that.”
Now as those in Columbia prepare for the home stretch to their own draft stories, they’re keeping in mind the lesson from Legette.