Birdine was a two-sport letterwinner at Eisenhower High School in Lawton, Okla., Birdine competed in football and track during his prep career and received consensus All-state honors as a senior and totaled 147 tackles, eight sacks and 24 tackles for losses in his final two seasons..
He achieved notoriety prior to the 2005 Orange Bowl by opining that USC's offense (which was to score 55 points in the game) was merely "average".
He played 14 games (13 starts) as a senior, posting 39 tackles, 3.5 sacks, one forced fumble and two pass breakups.
Me missed the 2005 regular season due to a torn left biceps muscle but returned to play in the Holiday Bowl against Oregon.
As a redshirt freshman, he played all 14 games (1 start), totaling 24 tackles (15 solo), four sacks, one forced fumble and his only career interception.