TEMPE, Ariz. -- Kevin Minter used to head to the locker room soon after practice ended at LSU, but he'd see Odell Beckham Jr. head over to the JUGS machine or lobby Zach Mettenberger to throw more passes.

"He was always there forever after practice," Minter said. "I'd only catch a glimpse before I went inside. I'm not going to stand around and watch this fool do this stuff."

That "fool" became the talk of the NFL this week and "this stuff" helped Beckham haul in an acrobatic 43-yard touchdown pass from Giants quarterback Eli Manning that instantly became the best catch of the season. Beckham bent backward, far enough that the back of his head was parallel with the ground, fully extending his right arm to snag the pass.

"It was probably his best catch ever," Minter said. "But, still, I've seen a lot of that from him."

That's saying something considering Minter and Beckham Jr. were teammates at LSU from 2011-13.

"You kinda knew it from seeing him around in college," Minter said. "He was always making acrobatic catches, always doing that crazy stuff.

"It's stuff I've seen from him for a long time."

Minter said Beckham Jr.'s catches are a product of his intense focus and his hands.

When he tried to explain just how large Beckham Jr.'s hands are, Minter couldn't find the right words and tried to show a reporter compared to his own hands. The best description Minter came up with was "his hands are already pretty big."

"I wasn't surprised it was him," Minter said. "He just always had that great work ethic. And y'all are starting to see what we've all seen.

"I'm sure when they asked the other LSU guys that's been on the team with him, they probably said the same thing: It's Odell."