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Irish Commit Cane Berrong Gains Valuable Insight From NFL Receiver

Hartwell (Ga.) Hart County tight end and Notre Dame commit Cane Berrong had a workout scheduled with Terrence Edwards, who has the most receptions (204) in Georgia Bulldogs history, on a Sunday a few weeks ago.

That is a pretty typical occurrence, although workouts have been shut down recently due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

What was unbeknownst to Berrong was another wide receiver who would participate.

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Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman training with Notre Dame tight end commit Cane Berrong
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman worked out with Berrong a few weeks back. (Mike Singer)

Berrong caught a touchdown pass in Hart County’s 39-7 win last season against Elbert County. Likely the biggest name football player to come out of Elbert County is Mecole Hardman, who caught 26 passes for 538 yards and six touchdowns for the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in 2019.

Hardman played his college ball at Georgia, the same as Edwards, and worked out with Berrong at the Terrence Edwards Wide Receiver Academy that same Sunday.

“Everyone in my town knows who he is,” Berrong said of Hardman. “Me and him exchanged numbers, so I’m sure whenever he’s in Elbert County, we’ll work out together and stuff like that.”

Berrong has met Hardman before, although the on-the-rise NFL receiver may not remember that interaction. While still in school at Georgia, Hardman visited Hart County and talked to some of the students. Berrong was in the eighth grade at the time.

As a four-star tight end, Berrong has many players he looks up to at the professional level, which would include five-time Pro Bowl selection Travis Kelce, a teammate of Hardman with the Chiefs.

Hardman gave Berrong several pointers throughout the workout session, including some things that Kelce has perfected as a dominant tight end.

“He said that when I come out of my routes, I need to always keep my hands moving,” Berrong said. “He was explaining some of the things Kelce does in his routes.”

Berrong feels that he improved a lot as a blocker in 2019, an aspect of his game he takes very seriously.

“[Hart County tight ends coach] Coach [Steve] Horton has really helped me to become more physical,” Berrong said. “You have to be physical to play tight end at the next level. My quarterback's arm was hurt last year, so we couldn't really throw the ball much. So I feel like I really improved my blocking.”

Berrong committed to Notre Dame last summer over Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas and others.

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