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Strength From Within
Ted Ginn Jr. has developed into one of college football's most electrifying performers thanks to a determination created on the inside
Who is
Ted Ginn Jr.? It seems like no one can figure out this kid who has spent the past three years "wowing" and "amazing" college football fans across the country. To some, he is a larger-than-life personality, who, after another highlight-reel touchdown, can chest bump with the best. Or is he that student-athlete who is so shy and modest that he is more elusive in a press conference room than he is on the football field?
Truth be told, Ginn is a little bit of both. He can be flashy when playing the game, but what is witnessed on gameday is not what the average fan will notice away from the gridiron.
"I guess people would say I act like my father now as I have gotten older," Ginn said. "I guess humble. I try to be calm, cool and collected. People would never know that. I'm just always smiling and joking around."
Speaking with Ginn, it would be hard to imagine this is the same person who is a contender for the Heisman Memorial Trophy, college football's most prestigious award for the nation's best college football player. In fact, for Ginn, it is an afterthought. The Heisman hype is not that much of a concern, if it is a concern at all.
"I think the Heisman will take care of itself," Ginn said. "I'm not going to go out and base my season on the Heisman because I don't think anyone can do that. I have to go and first play for the seniors because it is their last go-round. Then I let everything else take care of itself."
In that one sentence it becomes evident. Ginn loves the game of football and most of all, he loves his teammates. What is written about him in the magazines and newspapers or said on local and national radio and television is secondary. Going out and playing for the team and those who have helped him reach this point in his career is the priority.
At the start of his journey at Ohio State, Ginn thought he would be playing on the defensive side of the ball and maybe sparingly play offense. The OSU coaching staff pointed out to Ginn he had a better chance of playing if he switched to offense. Not the ideal situation for someone who has a passion for playing in the defensive backfield at cover cornerback, but Ginn made the step and it has paid dividends.
"It was something I had to get use to," Ginn said. "Just growing up, I was in love with corner. To this day, I think it is my best position. I have to come to the understanding right now that receiver is the position for me. Now, I am just trying to make sure I do those things right. I'm just trying to learn the position from top to bottom. I think once I get that, I can move on."
Assistant head football coach and receivers coach
Darrell Hazell agrees with the transformation Ginn has undergone in three years.
"He has made astronomical strides during the three years he has been here," Hazell said. "Especially coming in and having to change positions. He has an amazing skill level and how he has developed his techniques and developed as a receiver has been great to watch in my coaching career."
With the weighted task of being a part a collegiate football program that has expectations nearly incomparable to any other program in the nation, it almost sounds ridiculous there were moments throughout Ginn's sophomore campaign when some thought he was having a down year. That perception was quite interesting considering Ginn hauled in 803 receiving yards, 782 more yards in punt and kick returns to go with seven touchdowns.
"Ted having a `down year' was such a misconception," Hazell said. "It was not a down year for Ted. Anytime you have a chance to catch 57 balls and be productive that is a good year. I don't know where that all started, but we just concentrate on getting better at the little things. The one thing he learned was patience at the line of scrimmage. Learning this already has become immensely helpful."
But Ginn would never tell you that. He would never rattle off his improvements and how the little tactical changes in his game have helped the overall plan for the team. Ginn leaves that up to the coaches, the analysts and the fans. His graciousness is innate and something he absorbed from both his parents even now as an adult.
"Just growing up, my mom and dad always taught me to be humble in everything I do," Ginn said. "If I get a big head, I won't be able to achieve the goals I was supposed to because I will think I am bigger than this. The more humble people are, the more great things come. So, that's what I try to do."
Growing up in Cleveland, Ginn encountered a few humbling moments and admits if it was not for the assistance of many people, it would be hard for him to imagine he would be at Ohio State doing what he is doing.
Ginn relates how as a child, older children around his neighborhood took him under their wing. Whether it was picking him up from school, tutoring him or making sure he did his homework before he went outside to play, there was a large contingent of people who all wanted Ginn to succeed in life.
"I was always surrounded by Glenville, from the people who were there before me," Ginn said. "A lot of the guys looked after me. I just know from when I was growing up, the most important thing is to help kids out."
So that is what Ginn did this past summer. He stayed in Columbus and committed his time to working with kids and helping them get through some of the same struggles he faced as a youngster.
From school to football, Ginn had a say for both. He went to local churches and helped his prot?g?s with their math, English, reading and writing skills. He also got on the field with his young admirers and taught them the game's most fundamental techniques.
However, it was not just a summer of paying forward, as former Buckeye coach Woody Hayes use to say, because it seemed like the right thing to do or because it would look good in the eyes of those who may have had a different view of Ginn. Rather, Ginn taking the time to guide others the way he was guided when he is younger was a sincere act that resonates with
him because he knows the impact others can have on one's life.
"I just think once kids hit the ninth grade, they lose it sometimes," Ginn said. "If they can make it through, then it is a breeze. But along that way, if you mess up, it's harder to succeed once you hit high school. That's why you have to implement the little things while they are young. I think it starts with parents first, but if you have other guys around you that helps.
It will help you achieve more.
"It's like Ohio State. From the old to the new, we all just keep helping to try and make everybody better."
Even if it is just little things, like posing in a picture with a young fan or holding a 6-week-old baby, by far one of the tiniest Buckeye fans, Ginn is eager to do it because it could make a life-changing difference.
"First thing about kids, you never know what that picture can do for a kid when they get older," Ginn said. "Knowing that `wow, I was 6 weeks or 15 weeks old and Ted Ginn held me,' that might help boost their self-esteem or help them become more active in sports or more involved in school. Down the line, that picture might mean a lot to them."
Speaking of people or events in one's life that may mean the world to someone. With all the neighborhood kids coming through and helping to mold one of the most charismatic people that have walked through the gates of Ohio State, the one person Ginn constantly alludes to is his grandmother, Ollie B. Casey.
Ginn spent a lot of time with his grandmother during the summer when he was younger. From 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Ginn was his grandmother's right-hand man, doing a variety of chores that at the time seemed mundane, but in the end were a necessity. As one of the first grandchildren to graduate from high school and go to college, Ginn recognized early on her grandmother had high expectations for the "baby" of the family.
"I think she felt like she slipped with the rest of my cousins as far as the guys go," Ginn said. "I think she just didn't want me to go down that same path. So I did a lot of things like painting railings, laying down tar on the driveway and going to the grocery store. She helped keep me out of trouble and it helped me remain focused."
Going to his grandmother's house became so routine for Ginn he automatically knew from the moment he arrived he had to sweep the front porch, whether it needed it or not, and again just before he left for the day, he had to return to sweeping what seemed like a spotless porch. Why?
"I knew I had to do it before I left or I was in trouble," Ginn said. "It has helped me even now to stay disciplined to what I know."
It is his discipline that has altered the course of his career at Ohio State. He is probably the best naturally athletic student-athlete that has come across Hazell's path and, according to the coach, he is tops in the receiver ranks.
"He is a special kid," Hazell said. "Once every 15-20 years, a kid like him comes around. He is great in practice and has an up-beat attitude, which is good for the other players. But, what he really is, is consistent. He is not an up-and-down player. He loves being out there in practice learning and he has the chance to be spectacular at wide receiver."
Some would argue Ginn is spectacular already, but one thing is for sure, he would not be one of them making such a claim. Ginn is the last Buckeye who would want to talk about his own accomplishments and that is part of the reason he has been so successful. His drive and determination have come from within and will continue to do so, because it is the only way he had done it.
In the process, he has given Ohio State fans more to cheer about than he will ever know.
That is the way Ginn prefers it.