West Virginia Football All-Time Draft: Pick #10

With the Tenth Pick of the draft, SmithFire13 selects...

the Mountaineer and Buffalo Bill legend, #90 Darryl Talley.

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I love that video. It shows how much of a treasure Talley is as an ambassador to the university and this state. This isn't a character contest, so I'm picking Cleveland's own #90 for different reasons. As a four year starter, Talley went on to achieve greatness at WVU becoming the team's third consensus All-American in 1983 and the school's all-time leader in tackles (only to be bested by Grant Wiley.) His efforts have been recognized locally and nationally with being inducted to the West Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1996 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008. ROOT Sports did a profile on his college career that you may or may not be able to find on YouTube in its entirety that I highly recommend.

After his time at WVU, Talley had arguably one of the most successful NFL careers a Mountaineer has ever had. During his tenure as a Buffalo Bill (1983-1994), he played in four consecutive Super Bowls and voted twice to the Pro Bowl. While tackling statistics in the NFL are shaky pre-2001, Pro-Football-Reference.com has him listed as Buffalo's all-time leader in tackles. Jim Kelly, legendary quarterback for the Bills, sat down with ESPN's Page 2 in 2010:

Who was your most underrated teammate?

Darryl Talley. By far. Darryl Talley should be in the Hall of Fame right now. ... He helped make Bruce Smith what Bruce Smith was, even though Bruce Smith was one of the great defensive players ever. Dan Marino said Darryl Talley was one of the best players he ever played against.

Dan Marino should know considering Talley was an absolute force every time he played against the Panthers and the Miami Dolphins.

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I'm taking one of West Virginia's all-time greatest game changers and, at tenth, that's a steal.

MKirchner12, YOU'RE ON THE CLOCK!