Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Taking chances
Kalib Woods hoping an NFL team gives him a shot.
BOCA RATON – Kalib Woods probably wouldn’t be in this position if it never happened.
He takes full responsibility for an incident that caused him to miss half of his senior season at Florida Atlantic. However, he is holding out hope an NFL team takes a shot on him as an undrafted rookie free agent. Woods only played in six games last year after he was suspended indefinitely for his role in an offcampus fight that resulted in two pending felony battery charges.
“The biggest thing for me is I’m a good football player,” said Woods, a wide receiver. “I’m an above-average football player that can add to the team and help them in any type of way. That’s my biggest thing, just to show them that I belong with the top, elite guys in the world.”
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Woods had 24 receptions for 619 yards and four touchdowns in limited action. He was also named Most Valuable Player in the Owls’ victory against North Texas in the Conference USA Championship Game, catching for a schoolrecord 208 yards.
“I dominated when I came back,” Woods said. “I would have dominated even more. If I had more than six games, the number would have been there.”
Woods said he regrets being involved in the fight in January of 2017 that left another man with a broken jaw and internal bleeding. He was immediately suspended, and the school revoked his scholarship. Midway through the season, he was reinstated and able to participate as a walk-on.
“Just stay tough through adversity,” Woods said. “Everything isn’t the end of the world. Some people might shut down and not try to go back to school and not play football. Instead, I just buckled down … Everybody wishes something that you can take back. I just learned from my mistakes.”
Woods said he was appreciative of coach Lane Kiffin’s decision to allow him back, especially considering the two barely knew each other. Kiffin had only been on campus six months when Woods was arrested.
“I talked to [Kiffin], and he just kept telling me to stay focused,” Woods said. “He helped me show what I am.”
Woods had enough of an influence in a short time to be named one of the team’s four captains before the Owls defeated Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl. That somewhat validated Kiffin’s choice to give Woods a second chance.
“Pretty neat that they voted him captain based off only really being here half the year,” Kiffin said at the time. “It says a lot about their respect for him.”
Woods, who led the Owls with 68 catches and 934 yards in 2016, is just thankful to have an opportunity to make any professional roster. He participated in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, a showcase of players eligible for the draft, in Los Angeles in January. After the draft, he worked out for the Kansas City Chiefs.
According to draftanalyst.com, Woods “has enough skill to line up as a fifth receiver if he’s focused on his game.” He has a week to learn if any team will invite him to rookie camps, which start early as next Friday.
Woods also hasn’t ruled out playing in the Canadian Football League.
“It’s as surreal feeling,” Woods said. “It’s kind of like Christmas when you know you’re going to get a lot of presents. It’s unreal to actually think you got a shot at doing something that you’ve been dreaming about since you were little … It’s just a blessing. I thank God every day that he gave me the opportunity to get back on the field. I know a lot of people don’t get that. Not only did he let me back on the field, he also let me excel.”