TAMPA — Miami's Northwestern High was a few months removed from winning the 2007 mythical national championship, and its loaded senior class was getting ready to graduate.
Before the school year ended, the seniors — including current Bucs linebacker Lavonte David — went to the Bulls' spring game to get a glimpse at the program they were leaving behind.
What David remembers is seeing an extremely poised, soon-to-be sophomore quarterback who commanded the huddle.
Teddy Bridgewater.
"From the time he was there, we always knew he was going to be a superstar in the making," David, 24, said of his fellow Miami native.
Bridgewater has lived up to the billing. He starred at Louisville before becoming the fifth Florida high school player to become a first-round NFL draft pick at quarterback.
On Sunday, the 6-foot-2 rookie will start against the Bucs in his fourth career start for the Vikings. None of that is surprising to the Bucs who have dealt with Bridgewater in the past.
"I assumed he would be drafted high and be somebody's quarterback of the future," said Bucs coach Lovie Smith, who met with Bridgewater before this year's draft. "The future came a little bit quicker for Teddy."
It always has.
As a freshman in high school, Bridgewater watched Northwestern High bulldoze its way to a perfect season with teammates that included former Bucs Anthony Gaitor and Tommy Streeter, and former Miami Hurricanes quarterback Jacory Harris.
"You don't see too many guys who were able to do some of the things that those guys were able to do on the high school level," Bridgewater, 21, said. "I was able to sit back and watch those guys, and it just helped me get to this point."
Bridgewater got his turn the next year, when he took the Bulls to the Class 6A state title game and a matchup with Sanford's Seminole High, which included now-Bucs rookie guard Kadeem Edwards. Six years later, Edwards still remembers how calm Bridgewater was and how much the quarterback's coaches trusted him. On the first play from scrimmage, Bridgewater launched a 72-yard pass for a touchdown.
"I thought he was a senior, the way he handled himself," Edwards said.
The start to Bridgewater's NFL career hasn't been quite as smooth.
He hurt an ankle last month, and he threw five interceptions before getting his first touchdown pass, in last weekend's 17-16 loss at Buffalo. But he also threw for 317 yards in one of the Vikings' two wins, a 41-28 victory over Atlanta.
"Teddy's been a little bit up and down," Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said.
Bridgewater's passer rating, 67.4, is 35th in the league — just below fellow rookie quarterback Blake Bortles of the Jaguars — yet his average 4.8 yards per rushing attempt would rank third among quarterbacks if he had enough carries to qualify.
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Explore all your optionsBridgewater said his jump to the NFL has been a challenge, as expected. He's still learning about the game and how to treat football as a business.
Even as he goes through rookie growing pains, the Vikings remain optimistic he'll live up to the potential David and Edwards saw from the poised, polished high school phenom.
"He had a bunch of learning experiences," Zimmer said.
"I really like this kid and his mentality and his toughness, and really the way he throws the ball and the way he carries himself. We're hoping that he continues on the track that we expect him to."