NFL player tackles middle school

You know that feeling you get when you visit your old middle school? That feeling of it being a lot bigger in your memories?

Well, for Justin Blalock, who visited Carpenter Middle School on Friday morning, the feeling was the exact opposite.

"I remember it being a lot smaller," he said. "It was really cool to see all of the changes around here. The only thing that was really the same is the football field."

Pardon his surprise, but the 6-foot-4 inch, 333-pound offensive lineman for the Atlanta Falcons is not used to things being bigger than he is. And for the students of Carpenter and other at-risk students in the area, the only thing bigger than Blalock is his dedication to helping those students become successful.

Blalock met with a group of about 50 students on Friday in a session that was part question-and-answer and part walk down memory lane. He used himself as an example of where hard work and dedication to academics and athletics can take them. He said their dreams are attainable - they just have to put in the effort.

"Education was extremely important," he said. "I could walk out of here and break my leg and never play football again. Education sticks with you for the long run. The education I received here really opened the door for so many things."

He told the students that while the NFL has been good for him, they need to realize that the professional football lifestyle is fleeting at best. It is important to have skills other than athletics in order to be successful.

"Even if you are extremely fortunate to play a lot of years and finish when you are 35 or 40, you still have a long life ahead of you and have to find something to do with that time," he said. "Even in the NFL, they would need to know how to manage money, develop relationships and other skills. It's more than strapping on a helmet and hitting someone in the head."

Lawrence Mann, the Plano ISD at-risk specialist, said it was important for the children to see someone "who has walked these halls" become successful.

"To have Justin come back to his starting place where academics and sports were important in his life is good for the kids to see," Mann said. "To come back as a hall-of-famer for Carpenter and give his story on how he got a chance to play college football and eventually to play for the Falcons is great. I believe the message he sent today was a real positive one."

Shauna Koehne, Carpenter principal, said she was glad to hear Blalock highlight not only his athletic achievements, but also his academic and other extracurricular activities. She said the message really resonated with the students.

"When one of our kids asked him what the back-up plan would have been if the NFL career did not happen, it was so powerful that he said he would have been a teacher and coach," Koehne said. "This is something our kids will talk about for a while."

The visit did leave many of the students star-struck, but it also left its mark on Blalock himself.

"To think that I might have the slightest effect on even some of these students is really a humbling experience for me," Blalock said.

And Carpenter will not soon forget its star graduate who signed a poster - made of a collage of pictures of him - as he worked his way through the PISD schools. The poster will be on display in the halls of Carpenter.

Blalock came to town to promote and play in a golf tournament fundraiser for his foundation. The tournament was Friday at Sherrill Park Golf Course in Richardson.

"The tournament is for my foundation, which is to help kids prepare for their future education through SAT workshops, and it has really been a blessing the way it has taken off," Blalock said.

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