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Giants Rookie OT William Beatty can cook, draw and sew better than you

OT William Beatty with Giants Director of Scouting Marc Ross (Photo: Newsday.com)

There is an interesting article in yesterday’s New York Times about rookie OT William Beatty, the University of Connecticut product and 2nd-round pick of the New York Football Giants in this year’s draft.

Beatty – who stands 6’6″ and 305 lbs – is going through is first NFL mini-camp this weekend at the Giants’ facilities in New Jersey.  Described by the Giants staff as a having “raw athletic ability”, Beatty is a bit of a late bloomer, but there is plenty of reason to be excited about his upside.  The Giants project him as a possible starter at left OT.

But the NYT article also reveals Beatty as something of a renaissance man.  Raised by parents in the ministry, Beatty studies the bible, respects his elders, and has a wide variety of talents outside of football:

Many sports teams welcome rookies in rituals that include meals, so Beatty may have an edge. He cooked for his teammates in college and said he hoped to do so as a professional. Beatty specializes in soul food.

Charcoal drawing by William Beatty

“I do the fried chicken, the baked chicken, the baked fish,” he said. “I like to make the sweet potatoes and the yams and the macaroni and cheese, the collard greens, the cabbage, the rice puddings, the cheesecakes. Stuff like that.”

One college offered Beatty an art scholarship, which he kept from his parents until he had accepted the Huskies’ offer. “I was winning some art contests,” Beatty said. “I had like a raw talent that they could build on.”

Beatty likes to learn new skills. He used to date a nursing student, he said, and he bought a sewing machine to make scrubs for her in fabrics and patterns she liked. At home, he tailors his father’s dress slacks.

In the NFL, his cooking and sewing skills will only get Beatty so far.  Its his blocking skills that are going to matter.  Since he’s joining one of the best OLs in the league, Beatty should have a chance to learn from the veterans and develop his game at the next level, without too much pressure right away.

And lest you be concerned that Beatty is something of a “nancy boy”, his coach at UCONN, Randy Edsall, is quick to dispute that notion:

“He does have a mean streak,” Edsall said. “Our guys didn’t like going against him too much in practice. They would all look around to see if Will was getting downfield to block — always legally. They hated it.”

If Beatty is going to make an impact on the field with the Giants, that mean streak could serve him well.   But either way, I wouldn’t mind getting a taste of some of that Soul Food he cooks up.