Tyrone Robertson (90) of Hinds celebrates a safety against Co-Lin. (The Vicksburg Post/FILE PHOTO)

[04/23/01] Tyrone Robertson was impressive in his one season at Hinds Community College impressive enough for the Buffalo Bills to take a chance on him straight out of junior college.

The Bills picked the speedy 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive lineman in the seventh round, the 238th pick overall, on Sunday. There were 246 players selected.

Before the draft, New Orleans scouting director Rick Thompson said it was not unheard of for players to be picked out of the jucos.

What is unusual is for them to actually make it on a roster.

“I can probably count that number on two hands,” he said.

But the Saints have one of those success stories.

“We had one who went that route in the Pro Bowl (last) year,” Thompson said, referring to wide receiver Joe Horn, who played at Itawamba Community College.

Robertson, a Danville, Va., native, took a winding road to Raymond.

He first committed to Virginia Tech, but that was voided when he failed to graduate from high school. He then attended Fork Union (Va.) Academy and wound up at Georgia, where he redshirted in 1998 and played as a backup to Marcus Stroud in 1999. He started twice for the Bulldogs and had 26 tackles, four for a loss, and a sack.

Robertson transferred to Hinds for academic reasons in 2000 and collected 38 solo tackles, 22 assists, nine sacks and nine other tackles for a loss as the Eagles rode a dominant defense to an 11-1 finish and a state championship. His performance in the juco all-star game convinced scouts he could play in the NFL.

“If someone has the body and the skills, you have to check them out,” Thompson said. “Where they come from doesn’t matter. It’s the circumstances that got them there that matters.”