I definitely had a gang influence with friends and family growing up in South Central, and people might think that Beverly Hills definitely shielded me from some problems. But in actuality, it only opened up a whole new can of worms.
I don't bad-mouth football, but I also know that it has a long trail of tears and heartbreak and animosity built up by past players who feel that they put so much into the game and didn't get a lot out of it after.
Obviously, if you are playing against a guy who is known for an up-tempo offense, you'll probably tailor your practice a little bit to say, 'Hey, let's get a couple of fast-paced plays back to back to back to try to simulate that.'
Just growing up on 'Friday Night Lights,' other dramas, that kind of shaped my childhood. The fact that I can have one talking about my life - it's insane.
They say that when it comes to the depth chart, it can change any day and that we dictate how the depth chart goes. If one person has a great day, he might be going with the 'ones.' If a person slips up a little bit, he might be going with the 'twos' and 'threes.'
I don't get hyped when I see stars now because it's like second nature to me.
I wish football, as a culture, bred more than just a football player. It has the ability to be an incubator and transition players properly.
We prided ourselves at Oregon, where teams said they were going to try to beat us down and try to manhandle us, and maybe in the first quarter they were running with us, but it was just, 'Let's see how they are come the fourth quarter when they're tired, and they've had 70 to 80 plays coming at them non-stop.'
I've been in places that have been robbed.
No matter what schemes you have, if you're not in condition to run, you can't succeed.
South Central's been portrayed so many different ways in the media for however long.
My mom gets mad because she'll read on Twitter or some message board that Spencer Paysinger is no good, and the Giants need to get rid of him. I tell her to stop reading that stuff because, at the end of the day, the media has no say on what happens in the locker room.
Every linebacker that plays in the NFL wants to be a starter.
Miami gave me an opportunity to grow. I wanted to see if I was really a one-team guy, or if I picked up my suitcases and set up shop somewhere else, would I be able to make the team?
I've seen Jay-Z and Kanye West. I've seen actors like Tom Hanks and Nicholas Cage.
Truthfully, I think anything involving Tebow opens people's eyes.
It doesn't matter if I'm in a boardroom pitching to a group, attempting to perfect the latte heart, or stopping a running back on 4th and 2. If I'm passionate and willing to devote the time and effort to something; I'm unstoppable.
I myself have the utmost respect for Coach Coughlin.
Beverly Hills didn't save me from anything. It exposed me to a whole new world of problems I didn't know existed.
