INDIANAPOLIS (TNS) — Two University at Buffalo linebackers played in the NFL last season. Red Murdock is hoping to be the third.

Like former teammates Joe Andreessen and Shaun Dolac, Murdock faces an uphill battle over the next two months. Murdock was one of five Mid-American Conference players invited to the NFL scouting combine, an uptick from four last season.

But unlike Andreessen and Dolac — both of whom went undrafted before making final rosters as rookies — Murdock has a headstart. Andreessen nor Dolac were invited to the combine, and in fact, Murdock is the first Buffalo player invited since 2021.

No one expected Andreessen to receive an invitation to the 2024 combine. He played just one season of FBS football and he stunningly made the Buffalo Bills’ active roster.

Of course, many thought Dolac was snubbed when he wasn’t invited to any postseason all-star games nor the combine despite being a consensus All-American. Dolac ultimately signed with the Los Angeles Rams after the draft and made the active roster.

The NFL didn’t leave Murdock out, however. Not after catching grief about Dolac and tallying 364 career tackles and an NCAA-record 17 fumbles, breaking former UB star Khalil Mack’s record.

“Absolutely, that’s one of the fore thoughts in my brain whenever I’m on any type of national stage,” Murdock said Wednesday. “Being able to represent UB for a lot of the guys that weren’t granted that opportunity and for a lot of the guys coming up that deserve it.”

Like Dolac, Murdock was a rarity in today’s college football landscape. He had another year of eligibility. He could have stayed at Buffalo, or he could have done what most Group of 5 players with NFL aspirations do and that’s enter the transfer portal.

Murdock probably could have entered the transfer portal last season after finishing second in the nation in tackles (156) behind Dolac’s 168. Murdock’s 142 tackles this season were third in the nation and his six forced fumbles were second, one behind his NCAA single-season record from 2024.

There is some loyalty involved for Murdock. He didn’t make the varsity team at Hopewell High School in Virginia until his junior season. And a hip injury limited most of his season, although he teamed with New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson to win a state championship.

Murdock’s senior season was marred by the COVID-19 pandemic and he graduated without any Division I scholarship offers. He opted to attend Fork Union Military Academy — which has produced over 100 NFL players — after high school and Buffalo was the only school to offer a scholarship.

“I am very big on watering your grass,” Murdock said. “I’m not moved by any type of materialistic things. I want to look back 20 years and be proud of what I left at Buffalo, and I know that I did all I could to do. That’s something I can go to sleep at night and have peace with, rather than chasing any external validation.”

There is also enough evidence to say Buffalo can still send players to the NFL. Eight players who went from Buffalo to the NFL appeared in an NFL game last season, three with the Bills.

Mack remains the lone first-round pick in school history, but defensive end Malcolm Koonce was a third-round pick of the Las Vegas Raiders in 2021. If Murdock is drafted, it’s likely to come on the final day of the draft, likely in the last couple rounds.

“For the last couple of years, I’ve been getting insight from a lot of the guys that have made it,” Murdock said. “Of course, you know Dolac and Joe, but even guys like Demone Harris. Malcolm Koonce. There’s a lot of UB guys that are in the league right now and I’ve been trying to take heed to any type of advice I can get.”

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