McGown's Verse and Versatility

Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 31, 2005; Page H10

At night after football practice, Navy junior cornerback Jeremy McGown takes a pen, unlocks his bedroom locker and opens the three-ring binder he has had since arriving in Annapolis. On the pages of that notebook his two passions intertwine as he translates life as a football player into rhythmic poetry.

Some nights, the words flow as he describes the pressures of playing Division I-A football and succeeding at one of the country's toughest academic institutions. Other times, he struggles for the right word to depict relationships with his peers or the challenge to grow up quickly at a place that demands it.

"Does poetry make me a better football player? I don't think so," he said. "But I need it. Sometimes I have to clear my mind. I want to be diverse by doing something other than sports, which have always been such a big part of my life. Poetry gives me a release I need, and gives me a break."

McGown began stringing stanzas together in page-long poems in eighth grade, when he started retreating to his bedroom in his Houston home. His mother, Sue, didn't know what he was doing -- until he presented her with a poem for Mother's Day. It was one of the first in a collection that eventually filled five notebooks by the time he graduated high school.

"By the time I finished, it had brought me to tears. They were just beautifully written words," said Sue McGown, the only person Jeremy allows to read his work. "He's always been an introverted kid, and this is one way he expresses himself."

His other way is through sports. McGown was kicking soccer balls at age 3, and two years later he was playing basketball, football, baseball and running track. He hung posters of Bo Jackson in his bedroom, and then replaced them with Kordell Stewart posters when McGown was starring for Langham Creek High School in Houston.

"I've always liked guys who can do more than one sport or play more than one position and do it well," McGown said. "That's why I liked those two players so much. They were versatile."

So is McGown. He arrived at Navy as a quarterback who had turned down offers from Duke, Rice and Southern Methodist. But six weeks into practice, with too many players at his position, McGown became a wide receiver and kickoff returner and returned 14 kickoffs for 316 yards during his freshman season. And just as he was picking up Navy's complex triple-option offense entering his sophomore year, he was moved to safety and proved to be a quick learner. He started every game, recording 91 tackles and returning 15 kickoffs for 309 yards.

Then Vaughn Kelley graduated and Hunter Reddick quit the team, and McGown was moved to left cornerback this fall.

"He could probably play quarterback in all honesty, if we needed him to," Coach Paul Johnson said. "He's a good athlete. I knew he could play in the secondary. He's one of our better athletes. If he doesn't make the adjustment, it's not because he's not the best we've got. That's all you can do, put the best you have out there."

For McGown, it is like a stroll through his multi-sport, multi-position past.

He can read the quarterback because he used to be one when he led his high school to district titles his junior and senior years. When the receiver makes a move the point guard in him takes over, as his swift footwork keeps his man from gaining separation.

When the receiver sprints during a fly pattern, McGown relives his track career, when he was a standout in the 200 and 400 meters. And when the quarterback put the ball in the air, it's like he's patrolling center field, reading the ball's flight just like a baseball off a bat.

"A little bit of pretty much every sport I played growing up goes into playing cornerback," McGown said. "It's turning into a natural fit for me."

And a good subject for his poetry. McGown is working on his most comprehensive work, titled, "Forever And A Day," a reflection of what he has been through at the academy; dealing with the pressure of having to master a new position every year is one of his biggest challenges.

McGown is no longer the shy kid who arrived for plebe summer a little more than two years ago.

"I remember when Jeremy first came here how shell-shocked he was since this was such a big change for him and he'd never done anything in the military before," said junior outside linebacker David Mahoney, who along with junior fullback Matt Hall roomed with McGown as freshmen. "He was just a really great guy, so we showed him the ropes like we were his big brothers."

McGown is confident now. He is pursuing a degree in economics and hopes for a commission to flight school, but right now, he is focused on the present: leading a defense that returns just three starters from last year's squad that held eight teams to 21 points or fewer, helping Navy go 10-2.

"That's why the poem I'm working on right now is still a work in progress," he said. "I'll have to see what happens this year."

Army, Dec. 3
This one's easy. The Midshipmen's game against Army is always the most important of the season. When the teams play at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, it will mark the 106th meeting in a series in which each team has won 49 times with seven ties. But Navy has dominated the annual "Star Game" recently, having won five of the past six by an average of nearly 24 points.
It's a game filled with tradition and pageantry, but it's also the only week that Navy will play in one of the nation's marquee matchups, as its game against the Black Knights will be televised nationally by CBS.
"This is the game the whole brigade lives for," Navy junior wide receiver Jason Tomlinson said. "This game is different from other rivalries at other schools because us and Army have this kinship and this brother-brother thing. There's a respect there. But it's also a game we want to win so we have bragging rights for the whole year."
This year's game is expected to be pivotal for Navy's postseason plans. Because the Midshipmen upgraded their schedule from a year ago -- replacing games against Division I-AA opponents Northeastern and Delaware with dates against Maryland and Stanford -- the Midshipmen have a smaller margin for error to earn the six victories needed to play in a bowl game.

Sept. 3 -- Maryland in Baltimore, 6
• First game against Terrapins in 40 years could change Navy's place in the state's football hierarchy.
Sept. 10 -- Stanford, 6
• Navy's defense will face major test against a offense that returns 15 starters -- 10 on offense -- from last year. Sept. 24 -- at Rice, 8
• The Owls, who fell to Navy, 14-13, last season despite rushing for 223 yards, figure to be much improved.
Oct. 1 -- at Duke, TBA
• This is a must-win game if the Midshipmen want to reach the required six victories to be bowl-eligible.
Oct. 8 -- Air Force, 1:30
• Navy is looking for its first three-game winning streak against Air Force since 1977-79.
Oct. 15 -- Kent State, 1:30
• Golden Flashes return 13 starters off last year's team, which ended the season on a four-game winning streak.
Oct. 29 -- at Rutgers, 3:30
• The Midshipmen rushed for 476 yards -- fifth-highest in school history -- in a 54-21 victory last year.
Nov. 5 -- Tulane, 1:30
• Expect Lester Richard to try to exploit the Navy secondary after completing 18 of 19 passes for 323 yards and four touchdowns in last season's 42-10 win.
Nov. 12 -- at Notre Dame, 1
• The Midshipmen have lost an NCAA-record 41 straight games to the Fighting Irish.
Nov. 19 -- Temple, 1:30
• The Owls allowed opponents to average 439.3 yards of total offense per game last fall.
Dec. 3 -- Army in Philadelphia, 2:30
• The big game.

Matt Hall Takes Over
For Fullback Kyle Eckel
Eckel rushed for 1,147 yards and 11 touchdowns last season to cap one of the finest careers in school history, during which he amassed 2,906 yards and 25 touchdowns before signing a free agent contract with the New England Patriots in April.
The 5-foot-9, 216-pound Hall outshined five other players at his position during preseason practice to earn the starting job. The junior's biggest challenge was expected to come from 6-foot-1, 240-pound sophomore Adam Ballard, but Ballard suffered a hamstring injury that forced him to be held out of practice for more than a week earlier this month.
"My biggest priority during the preseason was to establish myself as a starter," said Hall, who rushed for 63 yards on 19 carries last year. "We still have a few weeks before our first game against Maryland, and I still have to get better, but I like the position I'm in."
Navy Coach Paul Johnson has complimented Hall's play several times in recent weeks, including after the team's first scrimmage when Hall rushed for 50 yards on 15 carries and caught two passes for 37 yards.
"Matt has had a great camp and is our starter," Johnson said. "Once Adam got hurt, Matt really took control. He always runs hard, and he's pretty quick."

• DE Jeremy Chase, Sr.: Co-captain recorded 46 tackles -- 11 behind the line of scrimmage -- last year.
• OLB David Mahoney, Jr.: Posted 85 tackles, including a team-high 12 behind the line of scrimmage and five sacks, last season.
• QB Lamar Owens, Sr.: Co-captain who has thrown just six passes in three years as a backup takes over for Aaron Polanco, who amassed 2,111 yards (1,131 passing, 980 rushing) and 24 total touchdowns last fall.
• FS DuJuan Price, Jr.: First-year starter takes over for Josh Smith, who led the team in tackles (119) and fumble recoveries (three) last fall.
• WR Jason Tomlinson, Jr.: Caught a team-high 16 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown last year.

• FB Kyle Eckel: His 1,147 rushing yards led the team last season.
• QB Aaron Polanco: Led the team with 16 rushing touchdowns and was second to Eckel in rushing yards.
• SB Eric Roberts: Was third on the team in rushing and first in receiving yards.
• FS Josh Smith: Led the Mids with 119 tackles and had two interceptions last season.
• LB Lane Jackson: Was third on the team with 102 tackles.