WSSU Versatile: A Mack of all trades

Photo: #22 Jamaine Mack of the Rams is averaging 35 yards per punt and has 27 tackles as a strong safety, which is sixth on the team.

by John Dell, JOURNAL REPORTER

Jamaine Mack came to Winston-Salem State three years ago with no promises from Coach Kermit Blount.

He joined the program as a walk-on and had to prove himself every day in practice or games. Now, he’s on scholarship and is an invaluable member of the team.

Mack, a sturdy 6-1, 200-pounder from Columbia, S.C., pulls double duty as a punter and strong safety, and he’ll go into Saturday’s game against Florida A&M - the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis - with a respectable 35-yard punting average and a total of 27 tackles, good for sixth on the team.

WSSU lost one of the top punters in school history when Chad Oakley (40-yard career average) graduated in the spring. Defensive coordinator Mike Ketchum told Mack - who had punted in high school - to work on punting over the summer.

“I had forgotten that he punted in high school,” Ketchum said. “So we knew he could do it.”

Mack said he worked hard to try to win the job.

“There was some adjustment to getting back into punting again,” he said. “But I knew I could handle it.”

Even though he was a solid defensive player at Lower Richland High School, Mack didn’t have many offers to play in college. But one of the Lower Richland assistants, John Javis, encouraged Mack to visit WSSU. Javis had been coached by Blount when Blount was an assistant at Howard.
“We really found out about Jamaine because of the recommendation from John,” Blount said.

Mack said he never had much growing up but that his parents, Dudley Mack and Elonda Johnson, always provided enough for him and his six brothers.

“It wasn’t that bad, and you know everybody has their ups and downs, but we just happened to have more downs than ups,” Mack said. “I didn’t want to be a product of my environment, so I decided to come to college to play football.”

Mack said that the family support he receives makes him want to play even harder on game days.

“They go to all the games and are even going to our game this weekend,” Mack said. “So I’m always excited to see them in the crowd cheering me on. I’m the first one in my family to go to college, so they are kind of enjoying all of this as well.”

Mack said he had two choices after high school - join the military or try to walk on to the football team at WSSU. He came to WSSU in the summer of 2005, and he was so impressive in practice that he made the team and played in seven games that season.

“You can only respect a kid like that,” Blount said. “Here’s a kid who could have easily said ‘I’m not going to do this because I don’t have much’ and he could feel sorry for himself. But he’s not that kind of kid.

“I’m real happy with him, and you don’t have to worry about him academically or socially because he’s not going to embarrass anybody. Those are the kind of kids you love to have in your program.”

Mack is also taking advantage of the chance to get an education. He has a 2.9 grade-point average, he plans to graduate in the spring of 2009 with a degree in rehabilitation studies, and he’s looking ahead to graduate school.

“The more education you receive, the more money you can make,” Mack said with a big smile.

Mack can also become the first in his extended family to graduate from college.

He will take his first airplane trip today when the Rams’ charter flight leaves for Indianapolis but said he isn’t worried.

“I’m a little nervous,” he said, “but I’ll be all right.”