FOLIO
by BRENTON CROZIER
I’m a diehard football fan. And as much as the anticipation builds through the six month hiatus from the sport, pre-season games don’t do much for me. I’ll occasionally tune in, perhaps check the score, but from the onset, there was something in the Jaguars’ pre-season games that demanded you take notice: Deji Karim. If you say that you were aware of him before the draft, you are either a gigantic liar or Southern Illinois alumni. The Jaguars took the running back in the 2010 draft and have immediately put him to work on kick-off returns.
Abdul-Gafar Olatokumbo Ayodeji Lamar Deji Karim (I would implore you to say it three times as fast as you can, but getting through it once would be impressive), or Deji (pronounced day-gee) for short, really does possess that explosiveness that is so coveted in the NFL. He had people talking excitedly about the Jaguars’ special teams, but sustained an injury during pre-season that left him sidelined until the Buffalo game. And what a coming out party that was: 75 yards rushing on 15 carries and 145 return yards. Woooo-eeeee! Although he hasn’t repeated that same kind of success, he has given fans that good feeling of, Gene is building a real arsenal.
We had the chance to talk to Abdul-Gafar Olatokumbo Ayodeji Lamar Deji Karim recently about Jacksonville, his off-the-field pursuits and yes, a little about football.
EU: What was your first impression of Jacksonville?
DK: I came here on a visit and I loved everything about it. And being drafted here was a dream come true.
EU: Fill in the blank: If I weren’t a professional football player I’d be ________________.
DK: I would be working in Illinois with kids.
EU: Is that a passion of yours? Is it something you want to do in the Jacksonville community?
DK: Yeah, I love working with kids. I majored in Recreation so I’ve been around a lot of kids. That’s one thing you will never hear me complain about.
EU: What would surprise fans the most about you?
DK: Probably that I have six names.
EU: Is there anybody in your life that actually uses all six names?
DK: Yeah, my grandmother. Well, not all six names, but she refers to me as a different name. When she visited from Nigeria she had to refer to me as that.
EU: Do you have a lot of family in Nigeria?
DK: Most my family is over there.
EU: Have you been?
DK: I’ve never been to Nigeria and a majority of my family is over there.
EU: Do you have a nickname?
DK: No. I’ve been called King Karim since high school and I guess it carried on. But besides that, Deji is it.
EU: Who is the funniest person alive?
DK: Kevin Heart, he is one funny dude.
EU: Guilty pleasure movie?
DK: I don’t have a guilty pleasure movie, but there are TV series that I watch with my girlfriend, Glee and Desperate Housewives.
EU: What’s your jam at the moment?
DK: Drake’s ‘Unforgettable.’
EU: What are the biggest misconceptions about the NFL?
DK: That everybody is huge. That they hit so hard you’re not going to be ready for it. I guess people think it’s more than actual football, but it’s the game of football you’ve played since you were little.
Although Gene Smith makes it a point to get good character guys that don’t have “interesting” off-the-field lives, he has managed to get guys that are enthralling where you want them to be, during gametime. The good folks at Everbank will have no problem crowning Abdul-Gafar Olatokumbo Ayodeji Lamar Deji Karim (yep, third use of the full name in one article) King Karim if he keeps sparking the special teams and making the Jaguars home to the best RB trifecta in the league.
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