Bears Take Gandy at #68
UHND.com - Frank Vitovitch
April 21, 2001

New York, New York (UHND) - Mike Gandy was selected as the #68 overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears.  Gandy was the first Notre Dame player selected in the draft even though Brock Williams was projected to be a late first to mid second round draft pick by Mel Kip Jr. from ESPN.  As of the time this article was published, Brock had not been selected.

Mike enjoyed a successful career at Notre Dame starting every game he played in his last two seasons.  He was a leader on the 2000 team that made it to Notre Dame's first BCS Bowl game since it started in the 1998 season.  He had been projected to be a second round pick and was rated as the 2nd best offensive guard in the draft, but he fell to the third round.

According to ESPN's depth chart, the bears have a hole at #2 left guard behind starter Rex Tucker so there is a good chance Gandy could see playing time in his rookie season.  He has the talent to play right away, and could see himself starting in a few seasons. 

Mike joins a Bears team filled with Domers on both sides of the ball.  On offense the Bears have Brad Williams and Jerry Wisne along the line.  On defense, Bobbie Howard is at linebacker, Jim Flanigan is up front, and Shawn Wooden is in the secondary.  Wisne was drafted by the Bears in the 1999 Draft and will be entering his third NFL season in 2001.  Howard was signed as a free agent as was Wooden while Flanigan has been with the Bears since he was drafted.

That's all for now, check back tomorrow for more updates on commentary on the Notre Dame players selected and not selected in this draft.