Justin Durant, Detroit Lions
By Ebony Nicole for After 5 Detroit Fall 2011
The Detroit Lions are making their city proud this season with a good chance of making the playoffs. We sat down with new Lions linebacker, Justin Durant, to get his insights on the team, Detroit and life in general.
Born in Florence, South Carolina, Justin's earliest childhood memories center around football. At the age of eight. Justin started playing football and he quickly realized that he had a gift. He and his team were much more advanced and talented than the competition and they had easy wins. This was also when he won his first championship.
Justin went on to attend Hampton University in Virginia. He remembers his college years as being a great experience, during which his team won three championships in a row, and he was named the defensive player of the year three years in a row. These accolades made college especially fun and memorable.
Justin's NFL career began with the Jacksonville Jaguars, where he played from 2007-2011. Then he was recruited by the Lions. For Durant, it felt great to be recruited and he was anxious to see what it would be like to start fresh and play for a new organization.
Since he arrived in Detroit and joined the Lions he has been embraced by everyone from the players to the coaches to the fans. His transition has been smooth.
When describing the overall culture of the Lions team this year, Justin says team youthfulness is on the rise, but the team also has smart leadership and veteran players. This helps everyone stay focused and on the same page with the same goals. Their ultimate goal is the playoffs.
So how does Justin get mentally and physically prepared before a game? To prepare himself mentally, he watches the films, he studies, and he reads his notes. And then he studies some more. Justin says, "People don't see behind the scenes that we work very hard to get the results everyone sees on Sunday." The entire team gets their minds right the whole week. Justin describes the process as rigorous, and he along with his teammates prides themselves on winning the game and aiming to get better each week.
Although athletes have different routines, for Justin, the weight room, extra running drills and exercises are his main areas of focus during and after practice to get him physically prepared for the game. "The biggest thing you have to do also is take care of your body, including weekly massages and chiropractic visits to keep your body aligned and in the best possible shape for Sunday because it takes a toll after every game", says Justin.
We asked Justin about his personal goals. "It's simple", he said, "team first and do whatever it takes and is asked of me to make the team successful this season. However, within the team goals I'd like to achieve this year 100+ sacks coupled with some sacks and interceptions leading to a Pro-Bowl nod representing Detroit." It appears he is man with goals that he is dead set on achieving.
When Justin is not on the field it's no surprise that he likes to find time to relax after practice by downloading music and watching movies. Justin also enjoys interacting with fans via Twitter, tweeting about random happenings that he finds amusing or commenting on hot topics of the day.Click to follow him.
With everything happening so fast, Justin has focused everything on the season and has not really had the pleasure of going out in our great city. However, he looks forward to enjoying everything Detroit has to offer in food, music, and entertainment when he finally gets some free time, which hopefully will not be until after the Lions have won the Super Bowl.
Born in Florence, South Carolina, Justin's earliest childhood memories center around football. At the age of eight. Justin started playing football and he quickly realized that he had a gift. He and his team were much more advanced and talented than the competition and they had easy wins. This was also when he won his first championship.
Justin went on to attend Hampton University in Virginia. He remembers his college years as being a great experience, during which his team won three championships in a row, and he was named the defensive player of the year three years in a row. These accolades made college especially fun and memorable.
Justin's NFL career began with the Jacksonville Jaguars, where he played from 2007-2011. Then he was recruited by the Lions. For Durant, it felt great to be recruited and he was anxious to see what it would be like to start fresh and play for a new organization.
Since he arrived in Detroit and joined the Lions he has been embraced by everyone from the players to the coaches to the fans. His transition has been smooth.
When describing the overall culture of the Lions team this year, Justin says team youthfulness is on the rise, but the team also has smart leadership and veteran players. This helps everyone stay focused and on the same page with the same goals. Their ultimate goal is the playoffs.
So how does Justin get mentally and physically prepared before a game? To prepare himself mentally, he watches the films, he studies, and he reads his notes. And then he studies some more. Justin says, "People don't see behind the scenes that we work very hard to get the results everyone sees on Sunday." The entire team gets their minds right the whole week. Justin describes the process as rigorous, and he along with his teammates prides themselves on winning the game and aiming to get better each week.
Although athletes have different routines, for Justin, the weight room, extra running drills and exercises are his main areas of focus during and after practice to get him physically prepared for the game. "The biggest thing you have to do also is take care of your body, including weekly massages and chiropractic visits to keep your body aligned and in the best possible shape for Sunday because it takes a toll after every game", says Justin.
We asked Justin about his personal goals. "It's simple", he said, "team first and do whatever it takes and is asked of me to make the team successful this season. However, within the team goals I'd like to achieve this year 100+ sacks coupled with some sacks and interceptions leading to a Pro-Bowl nod representing Detroit." It appears he is man with goals that he is dead set on achieving.
When Justin is not on the field it's no surprise that he likes to find time to relax after practice by downloading music and watching movies. Justin also enjoys interacting with fans via Twitter, tweeting about random happenings that he finds amusing or commenting on hot topics of the day.Click to follow him.
With everything happening so fast, Justin has focused everything on the season and has not really had the pleasure of going out in our great city. However, he looks forward to enjoying everything Detroit has to offer in food, music, and entertainment when he finally gets some free time, which hopefully will not be until after the Lions have won the Super Bowl.
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