John Underwood '24 Recruiting Profile

               SPEED                               EXPLOSIVE                                                      TEAMWORK                                MOTIVATED              HIGH FOOTBAL IQ

My personal statement might be a bit long, but in order to give a good assessment of who I am as a person is difficult to condense into a paragraph. I know your time is valuable, so I intend to have a shorter portion for what I bring to the field here at the beginning, and if I seem like a match,  and you'd like to know more, I'd greatly appreciate your reading on.

To the game of football, I can bring speed, explosiveness, and a high football IQ. I am an athlete and have moved all around the field to fill in gaps that needed help, on both sides of the ball. Additionally, I welcome the challenge to learn new things ad new positions. I began playing football at age 9, where I played quarterback and corner. I have been selected to play in the Blue-Grey All-American Bowl this December in Dallas as a Defensive Back. I am a hard worker, and extremely disciplined. I will always do the right thing, even when no one is looking. I love football and am continuously improving myself,  I do not settle for mediocre. I would to play with a football program that is always challenging me and pushing me past limits I had not thought possible. If your team is needing a versatile player, with explosiveness and speed, I would love to talk.

There are many other attributes in a person, besides speed and talent, that I believe are neccessary to produce winning results. While I am usually humble, (I feel actions speak louder than words) , I also understand that through this process, I have to point outsome of my finer points.  When I tell others that I am the 7th child of 14 siblings, they are often quite curious about my lifestyle. It never feels that"unique' to me, however, I have realized that growing up in a large family has taught me all the values needed for success on and off the football field. In our home, you are never lonely, and seldom bored, there is always something to laugh at and plenty of love. These are just bonuses, though, the real benefits of growing up in a large family are the values you can't help to learn and practice. TEAMWORK is the bedrock of our little society, you learn real fast that even the most difficult obstacles can be overcome when you work as a team. You learn no position is more important than the others, and we all have our roles to play in the successes and failures. You learn how to MOTIVATE others, while also learning how to be motivated by your teammates, and to do that by working with many different personalities. You learn to follow, and you also learn to lead. You learn how to earn RESPECT through your actions, while also learning how to treat others with respect and dignity. There is always a support structure, and someone pushing you towards your goals. Someone always cheering you on, and someone always to provide a little healthy competition or some milestone to beat. My parents were both athletes, and my older brother also played football at Lindenwood. They are always there teaching me the level of hard work that is necessary to succeed, and what kind of physical stamina is required to meet my personal goals, and they are always there willing to correct my mistakes and/or further develop my skills.

I was born during a time my father was on active duty in the military, and I come from a generational and intergenerational line of service to our country, which has taught me what HONOR, DUTY, and SACRIFICE truly mean. My father often worked several jobs in order for us children to have what was needed to pursue our dreams, all while pursuing his master's degree in his forties. He would often come home from work, and in between study time,  to teach us life skills like fixing our own vehicles, or repairing or upgrading the newest home project. This man worked from morning to night, without complaint, and still manage to find the time to spend with us to share a laugh or part some wisdom to us. Through him, I truly learned what HARD WORK and DEDICATION not only is but also the victories won by practicing them.

As a homeschooler, I have learned to be INDEPENDENT and SELF MOTIVATED, how to set realistic goals, and also develop plans to reach them.  I have learned through homeschooling that long-term goals are often made up of many short-term goals. Playing in the NFL, for example, may or may not be a realistic long-term goal, but increasing my vertical, or beating my current verified 4.49 seconds 40-yard dash with a verified 4.35 seconds, are completely doable in the short term if I continue to work hard. I also learn through homeschooling, that I am completely capable of learning just about anything on my own time, and have developed the tools to do so. I would appreciate you watching my film, looking at my stats, and reaching back out to me about possibly playing for your team. Thank You.