Football: Logan Alum Gomes Drafted by Washington Redskins in NFL Draft

Former football star Dejon "D.J." Gomes is headed to the National Football League.

Gomes, a safety who graduated from Logan in 2007, was drafted with the 15th pick of the fifth round by the Washington Redskins — one round after Washington took University of Nebraska teammate and San Ramon Valley High product Roy Helu.

"Coach (Mike) Shanahan gave me a call and said, 'Congrats you're a Redskin," said Gomes, who flew back to the Bay Area from Nebraska for the weekend. "I talked to the defensive coordinator and a couple of the other coaches on staff."

Listed as a safety, Gomes started all 14 of Nebraska's games this and was named twice named Honorable Mention All-Big 12. He was second on the Huskers with 99 tackles this year and finished his two-year career with seven interceptions and five forced fumbles.

"I knew I had a chance to go (in the draft) from the fifth round and on ... and it played out that way," Gomes said. "It's definitely a dream come true and I've made every step from when I was 9 years old. From Pop Warner to high school, to junior college, to D-I and now this."

Gomes will return to Lincoln, Neb., this week where he'll take his final exams then graduate with with a degree in psychology on Saturday.

He said he wasn't sure what the next steps would be football-wise due to the NFL lockout.

"A lot of the (draft analysts) were projecting him to be a free agent, but the NFL is looking for good character guys," Logan coach George Zuber said. "We were keeping our fingers crossed." 

After missing his junior year at Logan with a broken foot, Gomes flew under the radar of Division-I recruiters. In his senior year, Zuber's first at Logan, he developed into a feared running back and physical safety.

"Playing at Logan was amazing just because we were known for having one of hte better programs in the area," Gomes said. "At the games on Friday nights we had one of the best bands in the nation and pretty much the whole town came out. It was a great feeling."

But despite running for about 1,200 yards and playing a key role on defense, it wasn't enough to create much buzz on the recruiting front and Gomes ended up moving on to nearby City College of San Francisco, where he starred for two seasons.

Gomes will join a Redskins team that finished 6-10 last year.