Sophomore defensive tackle balances football and fatherhood

By B.J. Rains

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

No longer does Jamal Greene drag race his 1984 Cutlass Supreme down the busy streets of Kansas City, Kan., with his friends to see who has the fastest car.

Now, the 6-foot-4, 301-pound sophomore defensive tackle tries to find time to hurry home in his new Lincoln LS to do something much more important — spend time with his daughter.

“She’s always smiling and wanting to see me,” Greene said. “It’s a joy to come home and see her.”

Greene, whose daughter Justice will turn 1 on Sept. 30, has been balancing a full schedule of school and football while trying to find time to see his daughter back in Kansas City.

“I wouldn’t say it was so much of a shock,” Greene said of having a child at such a young age. “It was unplanned, of course, but that’s just life. You take it how it comes. I’m not complaining. She’s a joy to my life and all my family.”

Greene has made a smooth transition to parenting, cutting back on his spending and even starting a savings fund with his parents to put money aside for his daughter.

“I look at a lot of things I do differently, knowing that I have a child and I have to put her first before me,” Greene said.

Graduating from Washington High School in 2005, Greene was listed as the third-best recruit in Kansas.

After taking a redshirt in 2006, Greene, who also has a son named Jamal Jr., played sparingly last year but showed glimpses that he would be able to contribute this year, including a three-tackle performance against Oklahoma State.

Greene started Saturday against FIU and, though he didn’t have a tackle, he made several key stops while he waited for his teammates to come up with the tackle.

“He’s stepped up a lot,” senior linebacker Joe Mortensen said. “That’s one thing about Jamal — athletically, he’s a freak. He’s a strong, fast guy. He’s the strongest guy on the team. This year, he’s put it all together.”

The past two seasons Greene learned under the tutelage of All-American James McClinton. McClinton has since departed, which means Greene finally has his much-wanted opportunity to be the impact player that he was in high school.

“All the great players want to have that role, and that’s what I’m striving to be,” Greene said. “Everybody on the defense wants to be an impact player. That’s how I want to take on the role of being a D-tackle because if everybody has that mentality, then we will have a great defense.”

McClinton was known for his dedication and maximum effort on every play of both practices and games, something that coach Mark Mangino said Greene still needs to work on.

“Jamal is a talented guy,” Mangino said. “We’re looking for consistency from him. We’re looking for him to do it play after play, series after series. That’s the challenge for Jamal.

“I think he’s matured a lot in the last year. He’s really starting to understand that you have to get after it every single snap. He’s come a long way.”

— — Edited by Andy Greenhaw

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