Axl_sued_me
Starter
Good to see that his relationship with the staff and program is still good.
http://www.thecherokeean.com/news/2009/071...t_page/001.html
It is not hard to notice all 6'1, 246 lbs. of Cody Glenn. Walking to the T.J. Rusk
Hotel on a sweltering Texas day, that fact is obvious as cars pull away from the square, slowing down to catch a quick glimpse of a young man the city of Rusk watched grow up.
"What's up, 'pretty boy?'"
"Hey, Cody Glenn!"
He smiles and returns their greetings, whether shouted from a moving car or delivered face to face through hugs and handshakes.
It's just another day for a man who considers himself the "kid of the whole city."
The former Rusk running back returned home for a month of rest and relaxation before heading north to his new job: linebacker for the Washington Redskins. Mr. Glenn, who played linebacker at the University of Nebraska, was taken in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft as pick #158.
While Mr. Glenn didn't mind talking a little football, he saved his biggest smiles for discussing his hometown.
"It's good to be at home," Mr. Glenn said. "I miss seeing the country. You could give me a house out here and a fishing boat and I'd be happy."
Welcome home, Mr. Glenn
Eleven weeks after the NFL Draft, Mr. Glenn returned home to a hero's welcome, especially from his family and his four-year-old daughter, Makayla.
"It was great to see my family and my little girl, to see their smiles and know how happy they are," he said. "I didn't have it the easiest, but putting smile on my mom's face was enough for me."
Mr. Glenn attributes much of his recent success to Makayla, who was born just before he enrolled at Nebraska.
"Being a father has helped me a lot," he said.
"It's kept me grounded, which is the reason that I'm in this position right now. I knew I only had one way to go, and I had to make sure that she had whatever she needed."
Daddy and daughter will soon spend even more time together, as Mr. Glenn said that Makayla would move to the DC area with him in either September or October.
Coming home wasn't entirely easy, since Mr. Glenn had to get used to the Texas heat once again.
"I came home after a while of not being here wearing some jeans," he said. "As soon as I got off the plane, I knew I needed to go to the mall and get some shorts. No matter what you're doing down here, you're sweating the whole time."
The heat does help his conditioning for the rigors of an NFL season.
"It's good to work out in this heat so I'll be prepared when I go back to Washington," he said.
'I just wanted to help the team win'
The journey from Rusk running back who ranks sixth all-time in rushing yards in Class 3A to Redskin linebacker took its turn while in Lincoln.
After three seasons at running back for the Cornhuskers, a discussion with head coach Bo Pellini helped Mr. Glenn switch to defense.
"I always loved carrying the ball, but I wanted to play more and contribute to the team," he said. "In my junior year, we didn't have a great record at Nebraska (the Cornhuskers finished 2007 5-7), so I wanted to do whatever I could to help the team win, even if that meant sacrificing what I loved to do.
"Coach Pellini talked to me and said that he felt I had the potential to be the first player taken from Nebraska (in the 2009 draft)."
Mr. Glenn's first game at linebacker came against Western Michigan, where he notched 12 tackles, three tackles for loss and three pass breakups in the Huskers' 47-24 win.
"When I first got out there on defense, I wasn't sure what I would do," he said. "Going out there and being able to make plays, I knew I could play and be good at it."
Mr. Glenn's senior year hit a setback when he was suspended for the team's final four games for violating a team rule. He said that since then, however, he has learned from it.
"Coach Pellini and the coaching staff and I decided that it was best to keep the matter in house," he said.
"I made a mistake, but everyone makes mistakes. I've learned from it, and it made me a stronger person. I still talk with the entire coaching staff, and we all grew closer because of it."
The Huskers finished the 2008-09 season 9-4 with a win over Clemson in the Gator Bowl.
Coach Pellini proved to be a bit clairvoyant, as Mr. Glenn was the first of three Cornhuskers selected on draft day. In truth, Mr. Glenn said, he wasn't thinking about getting drafted at linebacker.
"I really didn't think of what would happen after Nebraska," he said. "I just wanted to help the team win and be known as one of the guys who turned Nebraska football around.
"I felt like doing this would show my teammates that we all needed to be able to sacrifice for the good of the team."
Mr. Glenn said that there were some similarities between Rusk and Lincoln that he enjoyed and would miss.
"It's a lot like down here," he said. "In Nebraska, people know you, but it's throughout the entire state.
"The people in Nebraska are nice, too. You could walk around and people would say 'hi' to you and you wouldn't have any idea who they were."
There were some differences between life in Texas and life in Nebraska.
"When you get to Nebraska, it's pretty much cornfields, a lot of small towns and then Lincoln and Omaha," he said. "Plus, everyone up there is laid-back. Raised down here in Texas, I always learned to say 'yes, sir; no, sir; yes, ma'am and no, ma'am.'
"In Nebraska, they're so laid-back that a lot of people called their parents by their first names."
Making the leap
Although he's in the NFL now, Mr. Glenn said that there were a lot of things about his time at Nebraska that he would miss.
"I loved the family atmosphere at Nebraska," he said. "We would train together, work together, sweat and bleed together, and we built a camaraderie.
"I could call any one of the coaches right now if I needed anything. I could even call (former head coach) Tom Osbourne if I needed him. It's good to know that the entire Nebraska family has your back."
Mr. Glenn also said that he'd miss the atmosphere at Memorial Stadium on game days.
The seating capacity is 81,067, but Nebraskans filled the stadium with an average of 85,070 fans in 2008, a figure that would give the stadium the third highest population in Nebraska behind Omaha and Lincoln.
Life in the NFL
Mr. Glenn said that life as a rookie in the NFL hasn't changed much from life at Nebraska.
"I still get up early, I still go work out and I still work hard," he said. "The only difference is that now, it's a business. I have to consistently take care of my body, manage things and learn how to say 'no' to some things."
There are a few things that Mr. Glenn finds hard to resist.
"I had to give up a lot of food I loved," he said while eating a grilled chicken salad. "We had a barbecue and it was hard to see all that crawfish, fried chicken and all that good soul food that I grew up on, knowing that I couldn't eat it."
Although Mr. Glenn is currently walking around at 246, the Redskins want him down to 238 by the time he gets to training camp on July 30. Even though he misses the food he used to eat, he has a pricey incentive to lose the weight.
"We get fined $475 every day for every pound that we're overweight," he said. "All that food looks good, but I know I've got to stay away from it or else it will hurt my pocketbook."
Pow-wow with the Skins
Mr. Glenn signed a four-year deal with Washington in June, but says he knows that the contract means his work is just beginning.
"You pretty much have to be a bust to get cut once you sign with the team, but it's still no guarantee," he said. "I know I have to go out there, do what the coaches tell me and help the team any way I can."
Mr. Glenn said that he thinks highly of his teammates.
"We have a good group of guys and had a good draft for what we wanted to do, which is get depth on the defensive side of the ball," he said. "Our offensive line will be solid with Chris Samuels and the addition of Derrick Dockery and we have depth at linebacker for a defense that is already strong."
The season promises to be an interesting one, since the Redskins face their NFC East foes - the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants - a total of six times.
"The NFC East is a tough division," Mr. Glenn said. "It's competitive and every team has gotten better. It makes you work harder in camp in order to be the best in the division, because you know they're doing the same thing."
Washington opens their regular season on Sept. 13 against the Giants. What does Mr. Glenn intend to do when faced with the Giants' running back corps of Brandon Jacobs (6'4, 264 lbs.) and Madison Hedgecock (6'3, 266 lbs.)?
"I'm going for those kneecaps and hoping my boys are behind me to back me up," Mr. Glenn said with a laugh.
The other games Mr. Glenn looks forward to are on Nov. 22 and Dec. 27 against his childhood team, the Cowboys.
"I was a Cowboys fan until April 26 (the day he was drafted)," he said. "I know this is Cowboys country, but I'm hoping people will change and become Redskins fans."
'Kid of the whole city'
In the end, despite being an NFL linebacker, Cody Glenn is still the same person he was while he lived in Rusk, a fact that he credits to the people around him, including the late Eddie Harris.
"He showed me the way and showed me how things could be," Mr. Glenn said. "He taught me to go down the right path and, without that, I wouldn't be where I am today.
"If I can make a difference like that in someone's life, I'll be happy with everything that I've accomplished."
The things he learned in Rusk served him well in college. In May, Mr. Glenn graduated with his degree in sociology with a minor in education. He said that if the NFL had not come calling, he still had a plan.
"I would have gotten a job somewhere in Nebraska before coming back to Texas to coach and teach somewhere," he said.
"Getting drafted is good because it will allow me to network throughout my career.
"If I play for 10 years, I'll be lucky, but even when my career ends, I always want to be around football."
What if his old high school came calling?
"Oh, I would coach at Rusk in a heartbeat," he said with a grin. "I've always felt like the kid of the whole city. It would be an honor to come back if they wanted me."
As Cody Glenn, the NFL player, finished his grilled chicken salad, Makayla jumped into his arms, embracing Cody Glenn, the father.
"Daddy, I want some ice cream," Makayla said.
"We'll go to Dairy Queen, then," the proud father answered.
Five minutes later, Makayla changed her mind.
"I want some chicken-fried rice," she said.
Mr. Glenn - kid of the whole city - looked at his own kid and laughed.
"We'll get you some, then," he said with a smile.
http://www.thecherokeean.com/news/2009/071...t_page/001.html
It is not hard to notice all 6'1, 246 lbs. of Cody Glenn. Walking to the T.J. Rusk
Hotel on a sweltering Texas day, that fact is obvious as cars pull away from the square, slowing down to catch a quick glimpse of a young man the city of Rusk watched grow up.
"What's up, 'pretty boy?'"
"Hey, Cody Glenn!"
He smiles and returns their greetings, whether shouted from a moving car or delivered face to face through hugs and handshakes.
It's just another day for a man who considers himself the "kid of the whole city."
The former Rusk running back returned home for a month of rest and relaxation before heading north to his new job: linebacker for the Washington Redskins. Mr. Glenn, who played linebacker at the University of Nebraska, was taken in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft as pick #158.
While Mr. Glenn didn't mind talking a little football, he saved his biggest smiles for discussing his hometown.
"It's good to be at home," Mr. Glenn said. "I miss seeing the country. You could give me a house out here and a fishing boat and I'd be happy."
Welcome home, Mr. Glenn
Eleven weeks after the NFL Draft, Mr. Glenn returned home to a hero's welcome, especially from his family and his four-year-old daughter, Makayla.
"It was great to see my family and my little girl, to see their smiles and know how happy they are," he said. "I didn't have it the easiest, but putting smile on my mom's face was enough for me."
Mr. Glenn attributes much of his recent success to Makayla, who was born just before he enrolled at Nebraska.
"Being a father has helped me a lot," he said.
"It's kept me grounded, which is the reason that I'm in this position right now. I knew I only had one way to go, and I had to make sure that she had whatever she needed."
Daddy and daughter will soon spend even more time together, as Mr. Glenn said that Makayla would move to the DC area with him in either September or October.
Coming home wasn't entirely easy, since Mr. Glenn had to get used to the Texas heat once again.
"I came home after a while of not being here wearing some jeans," he said. "As soon as I got off the plane, I knew I needed to go to the mall and get some shorts. No matter what you're doing down here, you're sweating the whole time."
The heat does help his conditioning for the rigors of an NFL season.
"It's good to work out in this heat so I'll be prepared when I go back to Washington," he said.
'I just wanted to help the team win'
The journey from Rusk running back who ranks sixth all-time in rushing yards in Class 3A to Redskin linebacker took its turn while in Lincoln.
After three seasons at running back for the Cornhuskers, a discussion with head coach Bo Pellini helped Mr. Glenn switch to defense.
"I always loved carrying the ball, but I wanted to play more and contribute to the team," he said. "In my junior year, we didn't have a great record at Nebraska (the Cornhuskers finished 2007 5-7), so I wanted to do whatever I could to help the team win, even if that meant sacrificing what I loved to do.
"Coach Pellini talked to me and said that he felt I had the potential to be the first player taken from Nebraska (in the 2009 draft)."
Mr. Glenn's first game at linebacker came against Western Michigan, where he notched 12 tackles, three tackles for loss and three pass breakups in the Huskers' 47-24 win.
"When I first got out there on defense, I wasn't sure what I would do," he said. "Going out there and being able to make plays, I knew I could play and be good at it."
Mr. Glenn's senior year hit a setback when he was suspended for the team's final four games for violating a team rule. He said that since then, however, he has learned from it.
"Coach Pellini and the coaching staff and I decided that it was best to keep the matter in house," he said.
"I made a mistake, but everyone makes mistakes. I've learned from it, and it made me a stronger person. I still talk with the entire coaching staff, and we all grew closer because of it."
The Huskers finished the 2008-09 season 9-4 with a win over Clemson in the Gator Bowl.
Coach Pellini proved to be a bit clairvoyant, as Mr. Glenn was the first of three Cornhuskers selected on draft day. In truth, Mr. Glenn said, he wasn't thinking about getting drafted at linebacker.
"I really didn't think of what would happen after Nebraska," he said. "I just wanted to help the team win and be known as one of the guys who turned Nebraska football around.
"I felt like doing this would show my teammates that we all needed to be able to sacrifice for the good of the team."
Mr. Glenn said that there were some similarities between Rusk and Lincoln that he enjoyed and would miss.
"It's a lot like down here," he said. "In Nebraska, people know you, but it's throughout the entire state.
"The people in Nebraska are nice, too. You could walk around and people would say 'hi' to you and you wouldn't have any idea who they were."
There were some differences between life in Texas and life in Nebraska.
"When you get to Nebraska, it's pretty much cornfields, a lot of small towns and then Lincoln and Omaha," he said. "Plus, everyone up there is laid-back. Raised down here in Texas, I always learned to say 'yes, sir; no, sir; yes, ma'am and no, ma'am.'
"In Nebraska, they're so laid-back that a lot of people called their parents by their first names."
Making the leap
Although he's in the NFL now, Mr. Glenn said that there were a lot of things about his time at Nebraska that he would miss.
"I loved the family atmosphere at Nebraska," he said. "We would train together, work together, sweat and bleed together, and we built a camaraderie.
"I could call any one of the coaches right now if I needed anything. I could even call (former head coach) Tom Osbourne if I needed him. It's good to know that the entire Nebraska family has your back."
Mr. Glenn also said that he'd miss the atmosphere at Memorial Stadium on game days.
The seating capacity is 81,067, but Nebraskans filled the stadium with an average of 85,070 fans in 2008, a figure that would give the stadium the third highest population in Nebraska behind Omaha and Lincoln.
Life in the NFL
Mr. Glenn said that life as a rookie in the NFL hasn't changed much from life at Nebraska.
"I still get up early, I still go work out and I still work hard," he said. "The only difference is that now, it's a business. I have to consistently take care of my body, manage things and learn how to say 'no' to some things."
There are a few things that Mr. Glenn finds hard to resist.
"I had to give up a lot of food I loved," he said while eating a grilled chicken salad. "We had a barbecue and it was hard to see all that crawfish, fried chicken and all that good soul food that I grew up on, knowing that I couldn't eat it."
Although Mr. Glenn is currently walking around at 246, the Redskins want him down to 238 by the time he gets to training camp on July 30. Even though he misses the food he used to eat, he has a pricey incentive to lose the weight.
"We get fined $475 every day for every pound that we're overweight," he said. "All that food looks good, but I know I've got to stay away from it or else it will hurt my pocketbook."
Pow-wow with the Skins
Mr. Glenn signed a four-year deal with Washington in June, but says he knows that the contract means his work is just beginning.
"You pretty much have to be a bust to get cut once you sign with the team, but it's still no guarantee," he said. "I know I have to go out there, do what the coaches tell me and help the team any way I can."
Mr. Glenn said that he thinks highly of his teammates.
"We have a good group of guys and had a good draft for what we wanted to do, which is get depth on the defensive side of the ball," he said. "Our offensive line will be solid with Chris Samuels and the addition of Derrick Dockery and we have depth at linebacker for a defense that is already strong."
The season promises to be an interesting one, since the Redskins face their NFC East foes - the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants - a total of six times.
"The NFC East is a tough division," Mr. Glenn said. "It's competitive and every team has gotten better. It makes you work harder in camp in order to be the best in the division, because you know they're doing the same thing."
Washington opens their regular season on Sept. 13 against the Giants. What does Mr. Glenn intend to do when faced with the Giants' running back corps of Brandon Jacobs (6'4, 264 lbs.) and Madison Hedgecock (6'3, 266 lbs.)?
"I'm going for those kneecaps and hoping my boys are behind me to back me up," Mr. Glenn said with a laugh.
The other games Mr. Glenn looks forward to are on Nov. 22 and Dec. 27 against his childhood team, the Cowboys.
"I was a Cowboys fan until April 26 (the day he was drafted)," he said. "I know this is Cowboys country, but I'm hoping people will change and become Redskins fans."
'Kid of the whole city'
In the end, despite being an NFL linebacker, Cody Glenn is still the same person he was while he lived in Rusk, a fact that he credits to the people around him, including the late Eddie Harris.
"He showed me the way and showed me how things could be," Mr. Glenn said. "He taught me to go down the right path and, without that, I wouldn't be where I am today.
"If I can make a difference like that in someone's life, I'll be happy with everything that I've accomplished."
The things he learned in Rusk served him well in college. In May, Mr. Glenn graduated with his degree in sociology with a minor in education. He said that if the NFL had not come calling, he still had a plan.
"I would have gotten a job somewhere in Nebraska before coming back to Texas to coach and teach somewhere," he said.
"Getting drafted is good because it will allow me to network throughout my career.
"If I play for 10 years, I'll be lucky, but even when my career ends, I always want to be around football."
What if his old high school came calling?
"Oh, I would coach at Rusk in a heartbeat," he said with a grin. "I've always felt like the kid of the whole city. It would be an honor to come back if they wanted me."
As Cody Glenn, the NFL player, finished his grilled chicken salad, Makayla jumped into his arms, embracing Cody Glenn, the father.
"Daddy, I want some ice cream," Makayla said.
"We'll go to Dairy Queen, then," the proud father answered.
Five minutes later, Makayla changed her mind.
"I want some chicken-fried rice," she said.
Mr. Glenn - kid of the whole city - looked at his own kid and laughed.
"We'll get you some, then," he said with a smile.
