Shortly after becoming the Detroit Lions' fifth-round selection in the 2011 NFL Draft, Syracuse linebacker Doug Hogue had a conference call with the media. Via the Lions, you can check out a transcript of that call below.
On his transition to linebacker from running back:
"Coming from running back to linebacker was a challenging thing, but I was lucky to have a good college linebacker coach who was one of the greats at Syracuse University - made it really smooth for me. It took me a little bit because I changed positions within two years; one year I played SAM linebacker, then this past year - my senior season - I played the other side. I played both sides: SAM and WILL. I excelled at it. Coach, he helped me out along the way. I spent time with him and he got me right."
On if he likes hitting people rather than being hit:
"Yeah, the funny thing about that: even when I was at running back, I was still running into people, so I really wasn't getting hit - I was always trying to do the hitting, regardless."
On what he knows about the Lions and how much they may need him:
"When I came in, I see at the linebacker position, they have some good players and whatnot, but they need help when it comes to special teams and things like that. I'm just ready to come in and contribute and work hard and earn everything I'm going to get."
On how much linebacker he played before the last two seasons:
"I've been playing football since I was seven years old. Those are the only two positions I ever played on both sides of the ball was running back and linebacker. All through high school I played linebacker - I played middle linebacker - so it wasn't really too far off from what I'm used to. But because of the different level, that's what made it different."
SB Nation has full coverage of the 2011 NFL Draft at its NFL Draft hub and NFL Draft blog, Mocking The Draft. For more on the Detroit Lions, make sure to check out Pride Of Detroit and SB Nation Detroit's NFL Draft StoryStream.