McKeesport's Khaleke Hudson draws comparisons to Troy Polamalu

INDIANAPOLIS — Khaleke Hudson grew up in McKeesport, returned home between semester breaks at Michigan and worked out at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex with other former WPIAL players.

It’s safe to say Western Pennsylvania is a part of his DNA.

As he prepares for the NFL Draft, Hudson would welcome a chance to come home again and play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. It would fulfill his dream of playing football professionally.

It just wouldn’t be the destination Hudson envisioned when he first took an interest in the sport.

Despite his roots, Hudson grew up rooting for the Minnesota Vikings.

“I liked Adrian Peterson a lot,” Hudson said Thursday at the NFL Combine. “He was my favorite player of all time — him and Troy Polamalu. I watched Adrian Peterson at Oklahoma, and he went to the Vikings so I became a Vikings fan. Even when he left, I still liked the Vikings.”

It won’t be known until April whether Hudson, a 5-foot-11, 224-pound senior linebacker, will get drafted by his favorite team. But he acknowledged he wouldn’t mind following in the footsteps of his second favorite player, Polamalu, and play a similar role with the Steelers. Hudson met with the Steelers at the Senior Bowl and had an informal interview with them at the NFL Combine.

Polamalu reshaped the safety position in a career that led to his Hall of Fame election. Hudson, a projected mid-round talent, is trying to excel in the safety/linebacker hybrid position that has gained popularity with NFL teams.

Hudson got off to a good start at Michigan, playing the role of “viper” in the Wolverines defense.

“That’s a guy that’s a really good safety, but he could also have the versatility to be a really good nickel kind of cover guy and also the abilities of a linebacker and even a pass rusher off the edge,” Michigan coach John Harbaugh said in August. “It’s that kind of Swiss Army knife, Jim Thorpe-type player that can do all those different things that are really high-level.

“(They’re) smart because they have to come from different angles, different gaps and can come from anywhere. I think a Troy Polamalu-type player, that kind of mold.”

Hudson, 22, started 37 games at the viper position, and he played in 52 games during his four years in Ann Arbor. As a senior, he led Michigan with 102 tackles while recording two sacks and three pass breakups in addition to blocking a punt on special teams.

It was fitting end to the type of college career Hudson envisioned when he spurned offers from Pitt and Penn State, among other schools, and left home four years ago.

“It’s been the best four years of my life going to Michigan, leaving McKeesport and venturing off by myself and becoming a man,” Hudson said. “It’s made me who I am today.”

At the NFL Combine, Hudson will work out with the linebackers, but he is willing to do any defensive back drills if asked.

“Teams have been talking to me about both positions, and teams are trying to see where I best fit,” he said. “Some teams see me as a linebacker. Some see me as a safety. I’m open to playing wherever.”

If a homecoming is in store for Hudson, he would be reunited with Devin Bush, the former Michigan inside linebacker who was the Steelers’ first-round pick last season.

“I believe we’re similar as a player,” Hudson said. “We’re close to the same height, and we kind of did the same things at Michigan like blitzing and playing man-to-man and having big plays.”

Bush, though, had the type of speed, instincts and playmaking ability that made him the No. 10 overall pick. Because Hudson is viewed as undersized for an outside linebacker, his path to making an NFL roster may rely on his special teams abilities.

For Hudson, that is a positive. He had three blocked punts over this final two years at Michigan while also deflecting two others as a freshman.

“I think it’s going to help me a lot,” Hudson said. “That’s going to be the first goal of mine: to get on an NFL team where having a big impact is on special teams. I take special teams very seriously. I believe it’s the most important phase in the game, so if you’re not a starter on defense, you’ve got to be a special teams player.”