Beatty

The former York High lineman was recovering from a broken leg just two years ago and drawing the ire of UConn head coach and Susquehannock grad Randy Edsall.

Remember those days?

Remember when Edsall admonished his starting left tackle for not stepping up to the plate in the weight room and reaching "realistic goals?"

You're forgiven if you don't recall the moment. It seems like an eternity ago -- especially after a Saturday to remember.

Beatty, 24, became the second-highest draft pick in York-Adams League history when the New York Giants made him the 60th selection of the 2009 NFL Draft. Labeled an underachiever early on in his college career, Beatty now finds his name mentioned in the same breath as NFL great Chris Doleman, the fourth pick of the 1985 draft and a former York High star himself.

Quite the circuitous route to stardom, indeed. But, as one might expect, Beatty is hardly done proving himself yet.

He impressed scouts at the NFL Scouting Combine, running a 5.16-second, 40-yard dash and holding his own in other fitness showcases. But Beatty's performance during Senior Bowl practices did not go as well, leaving his draft stock to fall, in some experts' view.
According to Ourlads Scouting Service and a Newark Star-Ledger report, Beatty's draft status suffered at the Senior Bowl when he faced off against Northern Illinois defensive end Larry English, the No. 16 pick in Saturday's draft by San Diego.

Now, some expect the 6-foot-6, 310-pound Beatty to supplant current Giants' tackle David Diehl as New York's left tackle of the future. And others are floating the idea that Beatty may fail to live up to expectations (Ourlads said this about him: "May disappoint as he is more athlete than football player").

Yet, the life-under-a-microscope reality is really nothing new for this former Bearcat. It's simply a challenge that Beatty, who realizes he has to keep proving himself, is ready to take on.

"This is what I wanted when I got to college," Beatty said in a phone interview shortly after the NFL Combine in February. "Coach Edsall had a plan for me and said I could compete with anybody. When I got into college, (making the NFL) was the plan."

A plan, you say? OK. Sure.

But even Beatty has to concede that his recent rise to NFL lineman is nothing short of remarkable.

-- Jeffrey A. Johnson is a sports reporter for The York Dispatch. He can be reached at jjohnson@yorkdispatch.com or 505-5406.