Patrick Stevens of the Washington Times has a long profile out Wednesday about Maryland football defensive tackle A.J. Francis, who is probably known more locally for his personality than for his play. As a player, Francis is one of the more anonymous contributors on the team, thanks to being a defensive tackle whose primary job is to occupy blockers. As a human being, though, Francis is pretty awesome, and Stevens' story helps drive that home.
Here's my favorite part of it.
"My dad gave me five dollars once because I lost a game of Mortal Kombat and I threw my controller into the wall and cursed, and I was 5 years old," Francis said. "I said ‘This… sucks.’ I was 5 years old. My dad said ‘I’ve never been more proud. We don’t accept losing. Losing is not an option. Losing is the worst thing in the world.’ "
I'd love to have grown up with a family who would have rewarded me for a temper tantrum thrown because of a video game. That would have been pretty sweet.