For some Seahawks, it’s North vs. South
Published 9:00 pm Sunday, August 12, 2001
By Scott M. Johnson
Herald Writer
When you’re 6-foot-4, weigh 330 pounds, and answer to the nickname of Pork Chop, finding something to eat is usually a priority. So when Seattle Seahawks rookie offensive lineman Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack arrived in his new home, he was eager to feed his appetite.
One problem: Womack comes from the Deep South, where cornbread, collared greens and pinto beans are among the most popular delicacies. Finding that kind of grub in Seattle can be like finding a chicken bone in a haystack.
“It’s been mostly seafood,” Womack said of his meals in Seattle.
Asked whether he’s a seafood kind of guy, the Mississippi native responded: “I’m learning to be one now.”
Such is the dilemma for a band of southerners who have migrated to the Pacific Northwest recently. A number of young Seahawks who come from the other end of the country have found it difficult to adapt.
“Coming up here, I think I shocked a lot of people with all my sirs and ma’ams,” said defensive end John Hilliard, a product of Mississippi State University. “But it’s how I was raised.”
Over the past two NFL drafts, the Seahawks have selected six players from the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the NCAA’s hotbed for players from places like Georgia, Mississippi and Alabama. At least four other recent draftees are from other southern parts. Like some of their veteran teammates, they will eventually get used to the lifestyle in this part of the country. But for now, the transition hasn’t been easy.
“I feel out of place sometimes, but I’m not here to fit in. I’m here to play football,” said wide receiver Darrell Jackson, who played high school and college football in the state of Florida.
Among the biggest adjustments are the climate, the style of living, and – of course – the food.
“The food was kind of a big deal,” Hilliard said. “There are so many seafood places up here. We’re still looking.”
Added wide receiver James Williams, a Mississippi native: “We like home-cooked food: collared greens, black-eyed peas, cornbread. Here, they like lobster tail. There’s not enough meat.”
Of course, it’s a two-way street. Some of the Seahawks from other parts of the country have trouble adapting to their Southern contemporaries.
“Them country guys,” cornerback Shawn Springs said, shaking his head. “First of all, it takes you a while to interpret what the hell they’re saying. They’ve got a whole different language down there in Mississippi and Louisiana. You don’t know what the hell they’re talking about: ‘Mmmbh fmgh mmh.’ You’re just like, ‘Yeah, whatever you said.’”
And Springs, a Virginia native who went to college in Ohio, didn’t stop there.
“Southern cats are the worst dressers on this team,” he added. “They don’t have no style. It’s like, ‘Damn, do they have a Donna Karan or a Polo shop where you live?’”
As one would expect, the Southern Seahawks went on the defensive.
“It’s the Northern guys who don’t know how to dress,” said Williams, who grew up in Vicksburg, Miss. “They try to color-coordinate too much. They match the shoes, the socks, all of that. C’mon, nobody’s going to see the socks.
“The southern guys, we’re more laid-back. We’ll go grab a suit, and if it’s clean, we’ll wear it – that’s it. Most Southern guys don’t wear ties.”
As Williams speaks, he is wearing a baby blue University of North Carolina visor with a navy blue University of Kentucky basketball jersey. When the mismatching threads are pointed out to him, Williams laughs.
“It’s the only hat I’ve got,” he says.
When it comes to the North-South battles, running back Shaun Alexander represents the Mason-Dixon line. His family came from both sides of the Kentucky border – he grew up just south of Cincinnati, in Florence, Ky. – giving him a unique perspective. Now in his second year with the Seahawks, Alexander has taken some of the young southerners under his wing.
“You’ve kind of got to get on them,” said Alexander, a University of Alabama product. “You’ve got to make sure they understand the culture and know where to eat and all that. And also their thinking mentality. In the South, it’s just so laid-back. It’s not like that here, it’s just not. So I’ve got to rally around them and get them comfortable with some of the differences.”
The biggest adjustment?
“Words they say. That’s always fun,” Alexander said. “You know they think they’re cool in Alabama or wherever, but then everyone’s like: ‘Did you hear what so-and-so just said? You’re not in grade school anymore.’ The older guys like to rag the younger guys anyway, so that would add fuel to the fire.”
Tight end Christian Fauria, a native Californian, likes to tell the story about the time he went to a night club with former teammate Deems May, who grew up in North Carolina. They had arrived fairly early and had secured a prime table on a crowded night. Upon spotting two middle-aged women who appeared to be looking for an open seat, May told Fauria to stand up.
Trying to be a southern gentlemen, May offered the ladies their table.
“I was like, ‘Listen, we don’t do that where I’m from. First come, first serve. You don’t get a seat, that’s your own fault,’” Fauria said. “We had to stand up the whole time. He was like, ‘Well, that’s the way it was in the South.’ Yeah, great.”
Although they were close friends, Fauria and May found themselves arguing all the time about geographical differences.
“When we had grits, it was never the right kind of grits,” Fauria said. “I didn’t even know what a collared green was. We had them one day, and … I guess it’s an acquired taste.”
Now Fauria knows what it’s like to be a Southern man in the Pacific Northwest – always having to acclimate yourself to new types of food.
As for Womack, he’s still looking for a place to eat. But the Pacific Northwest definitely has its benefits.
“I don’t have to worry about the mosquitoes anymore,” he said with a smile as big as the Deep South itself.
NOTE: The Seahawks open their final week of training camp at Eastern Washington University in Cheney today. Their preseason home opener is Saturday against the Arizona Cardinals, after which they will resume camp at their Kirkland practice complex.
