Philadelphia Eagles fans ecstatic over Georgia Bulldog picks from 1st round of NFL Draft
"Georgia is welcome here. As long as you play good, Philadelphia will take you in," said one fan.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Ever since the young athletes from Georgie were called during the first round of the NFL Draft, Eagles fans say they've been celebrating.
"I think the two draft picks were wonderful," said Robin Zeoli from South Philadelphia. "I think that they must have studied it for a long time and knew what they were doing."
Inside Chickie's and Pete's on Friday night for the second round of the draft, everyone had high praise for the selections of former Georgia Bulldogs jalen Carter and Nolan Smith.
"Georgia is welcome here. As long as you play good, Philadelphia will take you in," said Zeoli.
"I love it. You take guys from an established program, Georgia, they've been the top defense for years and I don't think you can get much better than Jalen Carter," added Bryson Kemper from South Philadelphia.
Defense seems to be where Birds fans say the biggest need is.
On Friday, Carter and Smith spoke out for the first time in South Philadelphia at the NovaCare Complex.
Both say they're well aware of the expectation in Philadelphia, but add that they're prepared after back to back national championships with the Bulldogs.
"One thing we learned at Georgia is that we're selfless and everybody is on the same page," said Smith.
"Me and Nolan had a great connection at Georgia and I plan on brining that to the Philadelphia Eagles," added Carter.
During the second round of the draft, the Eagles enlisted Tyler Steen, an offensive tackle from Alabama, and Sydney Brown, a safety from Illinois.
