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A Lion Becomes a Tiger
by Heather Tourtellotte
Abdullah standing in front of the good luck sign made by the Lions football team.
Abdullah on the football field during a game this season.
Abdullah in action.
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He wanted to play football so much that his mother told a little white lie on his Little League application so that he could play when he was only six years old.
That little indiscretion has paid off big time for Khalid Abdullah and his mother.
His dream to play on a National Football League team came true on April 27 as the phone call finally came, after a nerve-wracking, heart-pounding weekend of waiting, telling him that he had been drafted to play with the Cincinnati Bengals.
"It's a dream come true," said Abdullah, "although it hasn't hit me yet." He was relaxing the next day in Coach Tim Clifton's office at Mars Hill College, after returning from his family's home where he had waited for the call.
His mom, who is "more than a mother, she's a teacher, coach and a motivator," has had a big impact on his success. So has his older brother Rahim, who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns out of Clemson University in 1999.
Abdullah is a 24 year-old senior at Mars Hill College and has been a linebacker for the Mars Hill Lions. In December he was selected Division II All American Linebacker for 2002 by the American Football Coaches Association. Abdullah is the first player in 30 years to go to the NFL from Mars Hill College's football team. Jeff Davis was drafted by the Washington Redskins in 1973.
Abdullah had never heard of Mars Hill College while playing at Fletcher High in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Rick Stockstill, an assistant coach at Clemson University where his older brother had played, referred Abdullah to Mars Hill because he knew Jonathan Sarratt, who was then the running back coach for Mars Hill.
Division II schools have a rap for being lower level competition, but this just made Abdullah more determined to prove them wrong. "If you play ball, it doesn't matter where you come from," he said.
Growing up in a big city is totally different compared to Mars Hill. He likes Mars Hill because everyone mingles here, unlike in the city where everyone hung out with one crowd and he had to deal with lots of attitude and stereotypes.
Abdullah's major is Recreation, and he wants to open a youth center someday for troubled youth. As a recreation major he would plan activities that would give the kids something productive and good to do.
Abduallah's own father was in and out of prison most of his life, and his mother had to raise him, his two brothers, as well as two older sisters, by herself.
He was the fifth-round draft pick for the NFL, and although he is somewhat disappointed that he wasn't called earlier, he and his family are still excited.
Abdullah has been signed for a four-year contract with the Bengals and could earn $130,000 to $180,000 as a sign-on bonus. The Bengals Website calls him "a fluid runner" with "explosive quickness...to reach ball carriers at the opposite side of the field."
Abdullah will be leaving for mini-camp on May 1 and then will start the season after a two-week vacation.
"This has been a long time coming," he says. "This is an example that if you focus and get your mind set, there is nothing you can't achieve."
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