First off, what have you been up to since your playing days?
I’m the business development manager for a company that sells insurance and brokers it for the Alabama and Mississippi area. I work with retail and broker agencies to sell insurance.
How was that transition for you?
I struggled after football – I can’t remember the last time I picked up a football. After Pittsburgh I played in the CFL then the Arena League. I tore my PCL in the Arena League – it all went the opposite direction of my dream.
My friend got me the insurance job. He told me he got me in the door but I had to figure it out from there. I thought “Wow, that was rough!” Sometimes dreams take lefts and rights. It was tough to stop playing football, but my goal was to get out of Birmingham and I got out, so all is good.
How did you end up in Pittsburgh as a free agent?
I went to school at Memphis. I was originally from Birmingham, Alabama, I uses to park cars for Alabama games – that’s where I first got the knack to play.
I never considered what would happen after high school. I didn’t have a plan. My mom went to a blue ribbon high school there – it was a predominantly white school. When I got to go there there were 500 or so kids, and I was one of 12 kids of color. I was there to play ball and knew then how privileged I was to be there.
That was the same school my grandparents were bused to. That’s how it all started for me. My ninth grade coaches told me they thought I could play on Saturdays. I didn’t understand what that meant then – my mom didn’t either.
What did you do after that?
I wasn’t a school guy. I signed with Louisville when Petrino was the coach there. But my ACT scores and GPA weren’t good. So I went to a Juco school – to East Mississippi and got my grades together. I wanted to stay close to home then even though I had other offers, so I took a scholarship offer to Memphis. Clay Holton was the offensive coordinator there and after meeting with him I knew they’d throw the ball 80% of the time. Tom West was there too and coaches my cousin – Terrell Owens.
I came from a high school that ran the ball 95% of the time. I was a running back but moved to receiver. I didn’t have a lot of exposure to wide receiver expertise and coaching. My Sophomore year I dropped every pass! But they got me the ball other ways- with reverses and things. So that’s how I think Memphis found me. We were loaded at receiver then at Memphis – the opportunities with us were split between the four of us.
What did Terrell Owens teach you that helped you?
I trained with him every Spring Break. He told me I needed to get on the field and do everything I possibly could. So I did punt returns, kickoff returns – hell I think I even kicked field goals! That was how I think my name got out there in the pot for teams to even look at me.
Why sign with Pittsburgh?
I had a great pro day. I watched the draft knowing I could possibly get picked in the 7th round – maybe even late in the sixth round. But I didn’t get picked. Right after that the Browns called, then the Chiefs and Steelers.
Randy Fichtner was the receivers coach then in Pittsburgh and he was the receivers coach at Memphis before I played there. Tomlin was also a Memphis guy. I thought it would give me an opportunity to have those guys take interest in me and develop me.
That was a team that just went to a Super Bowl. Hines, Holmes were there and they just drafted Mike Wallace. Limas Sweed was there too. I thought I outperformed Sweed but the coaches told me he was a high-round pick – I wasn’t going to beat him out. That’s when I realized the politics of the game too.
How did camp go?
I caught pneumonia and missed a week of camp and fell to the bottom as a free agent. When I got back Tomlin walked by me and said “Black – it looks like you lost 200 pounds!” I lost about 10 pounds after being sick. I told my mom then that I was screwed!
At the time I was sick, at first I didn’t know what was wrong with me. I continued to practice but didn’t feel right. Then one day I went to the bathroom and passed out – Tyler Grisham was my roommate and he actually caught me as I fell. He said he heard me mumbling incoherently before then. I ended up in the hospital and Tyler ended up making the team!
What did the coaches tell you?
The trainer and Coach Fichtner checked up on me at the hospital. I came back and finished camp. I remember struggling to get the 10-yard out down correctly. The coaches were not impressed. Santonio Holmes- that was when he was going through his contract stuff – well, he stayed after practice to help me and worked with me. I really appreciated that.
What were some of those other guys like?
Hines was cool. Holmes was great. James Harrison – I didn’t know if he was serious or just screwing with us, but he wasn’t cool to be around. I didn’t get it, to be honest.
Ben was untouchable – he was big shit. I don’t blame him – I got that. The culture was pretty cool. I got a good glimpse of what it’s like to be a Super Bowl team. Most of the veteran players and coaches returned – they were riding high and Tomlin was at his height. The veterans had a big say in things then – I was surprised. They had input into practices – if they wore pads or not – and the film rooms were more conversational than a coach just telling players what was going on and what to do.
Any fun stories to share?
I remember Mike Wallace coming up to me – it was 11:30 at night at Latrobe. He told me he needed to run out to get some alcohol for the linemen. I was like “The linemen are drinking in camp?” He just said “Apparently yes!”
Well I told him if we got caught he’d be safe but I was a free agent – I’d get kicked off the team. But in the end I wanted to do it – it was a bonding thing and the coaches probably knew and were just looking the other way.
I also remember meeting Troy Polamalu. You watched him on TV and he was beast-mode. But when I heard him speak for the first time I was like “What the fuck?” It was very unexpected. I was expecting this deep voice but it was just…very gentle. I didn’t expect that.
On family day his wife drove up in a Toyota Corolla. You see all these crazy cars then the Toyota. You could see how humble they were. He was the shit. I also realized then how young I was with all of these players coming in with their wives and kids!
Another crazy one is that you had to go to the front office to pick up your checks out of a basket they had there. That blew my mind! They didn’t have direct deposit? Also – I saw Ben’s checks there from last year! He never even bothered to pick them up!
What happened at the end of camp?
Well, in full transparency, here it is. First of all, they had me workout in the morning then pulled me off the practice field afterwards. You know they already knew they were going to let me go so why have me work out?
You know it’s that time of the year when cuts happen. You’re expecting it, but then I made it through workouts and warmups so I was thinking, maybe….Then you see the grim reaper walking on to the field and wonder who he’s looking for. He called my name.
They told me then they liked what they saw in me and that I should stay in shape – that they may call me back. But they didn’t.
I had a friend drive my car up from Birmingham when I first was signed in Pittsburgh. I had some family in Pittsburgh and was able to drive and see them at times on weekends. So I had my car there. I just remember that drive back to Birmingham after they let me go was the longest drive I ever had. It was a dark time.
What advice would you give guys like yourself trying to make a team?
First, go somewhere where they have a need at that position. Veterans on their way out or that haven’t performed well. That’s the best place to make a team.
And don’t take anything personal. It’s big-boy time in camp. You don’t have friends in camp. You need to be present – it doesn’t last. You can give it 130% and have a great camp but sometimes you just don’t fit their situation.
Also, do what you can to get on film and get people behind you who can get that film to other teams. And know the difference between being hurt and being injured.
Read more by former Steelers via the book Steelers Takeaways: Player Memories Through the Decades. To order, just click on the book:
