TAMPA, Fla. -- A phone call from Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht and coach Todd Bowles to Notre Dame Fighting Irish cornerback Benjamin Morrison resulted in one of the most raw and emotionally honest draft reactions caught on camera in recent memory.
"It was surreal," Morrison said of the call. "I cried like a baby."
Considered one of the top cornerback talents in the draft, Morrison underwent bilateral hip surgery that limited his 2024 season with the Fighting Irish to six games, which created some uncertainty as to where he'd be drafted. He got the call at No. 53 -- the fifth selection at his position.
The best Draft call reaction you'll see all weekend 🥲
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"Ben, we're really fired up," Licht said to him.
Morrison burst into tears, saying, "Thank you for believing in me."
"Hey, you got it, man," Licht responded. "You got it."
He then got on the phone with Bowles, who shared the same defensive backfield with his father, Darryl Morrison, when the two were with the Washington Commanders in 1993. Morrison is now the team chaplain of the Arizona Cardinals.
"I'm not gonna let you down, man," he told Bowles.
"I know you're not," Bowles responded. "I know you're not. You'll be great here."
"I promise you man," Morrison said.
Licht, Bowles and the rest of the Bucs' draft room shared a round of applause and high fives after the call ended, which included Bowles asking him to pass along a "hello" to his father.
Morrison acknowledged the frustrations of recovering from his surgeries, which still allowed him to participate in a workout four days ago for NFL teams.
"I showcased that I'm healthy and ready to go," Morris said.
"Some days are harder than others. I can't get up here and say I was a perfect guy through the process. Even yesterday, I was frustrated, but at the end of the day, you have to understand that I can't allow my desires to get in the way of what God's will is for my life. I feel like I went through a lot this past year and it made me grow up as a young man. It made me become the man that I am ..."
As for the wait, he said, "At the end of the day, this is where God has me. I can't get in the way of God's will of my life, or his plan for my life. Obviously, every kid's dream is to go first round, but look, that wasn't my story. Look, my story is a second-round pick -- [No.] 53. I'm proud to say that. I'm very proud to say that. It's a blessing that I'm in the one percentile of guys who play football in the whole world."