Troup County native Terry Godwin was selected by the Carolina Panthers during the 2019 NFL Draft this past weekend in Nashville, Tennessee.

Godwin played four years of college football at the University of Georgia, including playing in the College Football Playoff Championship game two years ago. The Callaway High School graduate caught 133 passes and had 11 touchdowns in his career.

The fact that he gets to move on to the NFL is an incredible accomplishment, one that adjectives and adverbs cannot properly define, so we’ll try to do so with statistics. 

There were 254 college players selected in the 2019 NFL Draft. According to its website, the NCAA estimated there were 73,557 active football participants, meaning 1.6 percent of those athletes were selected by the NFL.

Godwin is in that 1.6 percent, which is a testament to his hard work, great attitude and physical abilities. 

He’ll face another challenge now — trying to make the team. The average NFL career lasts about three years and seventh round picks often deal with an uphill climb — trying to beat out veteran players, while also trying to grab one of 53 roster spots. 

However, no one in Troup County is doubting Godwin. He was a three-sport standout in high school and was even drafted by the Atlanta Braves in 2015.  Now, he’ll get a chance to follow his NFL dreams. Congratulations Terry. Know that all of Troup County is cheering you on.