Anybody who came up in school has probably read or at least heard the classic folktales of characters like Paul Bunyan, John Henry, or Pecos Bill. Fictional men who completed ridiculous feats of physical strength that were the stuff of legends. At times watching Khalil Mack play, it feels like he belongs in that category. So much of what he does seems like it belongs in a folktale.
As it turns out, every great folk hero has an origin story and Mack’s might be one of the best you’ll ever hear. Jon Greenberg of The Athletic did an extensive look back on the star pass rusher’s rise from smaller MAC college Buffalo to NFL superstar. It turns out he came exceedingly close to not playing football at all.
He was purely a basketball guy for the first three years of high school.
Not until Waides Ashmon arrived to take over the football program in 2008 did thing change. His first order of business was trying to convince Mack to play. When he saw the kid for the first time, interrupting a class to do so, he was blown away. He knew he had to do anything possible to get Mack in shoulder pads.
The biggest obstacle was the kid’s father who hadn’t let him play football to that point. Ashmon knew he had to make a convincing argument, so he did something risky. He made a promise that if Khalil was allowed to play football, he’d end up getting a scholarship to attend college for free. He said this without ever having seen the kid actually suited up.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Ashmon needn’t have worried. What happened next erase any doubts.
Early in Mack’s first spring practice, there was already a problem. Mack told Ashmon he needed to leave early because his mom was taking him to a Saturday class at a community college. Undeterred, Ashmon stopped practice and set up a drill to see if Mack could really hit.
“He was playing stand-up ’backer,” Ashmon says. “He bullied the offensive lineman and destroyed the running back. I said, ‘You can go to class. I’ve seen enough.’ It was one of those things where I only needed to see him one play and that one play was phenomenal and I knew he was a player.”
Khalil Mack still has plenty of feats left to accomplish
From there his legend only grew. Another story followed at Buffalo. Before a game against Ohio State, Mack and his teammates were having a prayer circle at midfield. That’s when some Buckeye player walked right through the circle including quarterback Braxton Miller saying they need to find another place to do that. According to teammates, Mack was just a teeny bit furious.
His rebuttal? A pick-six off miller and 2.5 sacks on the afternoon. He dominated Ohio State. That game is what started his ascent to eventually becoming the #5 overall pick in the 2014 draft. Now he’s with the Chicago Bears and these stories just make him that much more badass. A reminder of why the team traded for him. Guys like this go to the Hall of Fame.
Will the team hang onto him long enough?
There is serious speculation that the Bears could look to blow the team up next offseason. Some are even going so far as to say they might trade Khalil Mack while he still has value. Truth be told that feels unlikely. His contract is massive and difficult to trade anyway. Besides, he’s still often the best player on the field for this defense. Chicago should just let him continue to do his thing. Don’t make the same mistake they did with Brian Urlacher.