When Ronde Barber first arrived to Virginia’s football program in 1993, he wasn’t sure he belonged. The product of Cave Spring High School in Roanoke only weighed in at 149 pounds.
He looked around and wondered if he was big enough, strong enough to play at this level of football. Barber was redshirted while his twin brother, Tiki, wasn’t, adding to Ronde’s immediate frustration.
It didn’t take long for UVA’s coaching staff to recognize that Ronde Barber was special and planned for him to start at cornerback as a redshirt freshman in 1994. He went on to win ACC Rookie of the Year and was All-ACC for the next three years before turning pro after his junior season.