The Hoosiers have not gotten much production from their defensive pass rush, but one of the guys who has stepped up this year is junior defensive lineman Jammie Kirlew. Leading the team in tackles (35) and sacks (6), Kirlew is having a breakout year.
Through the first six games, Kirlew is ninth in the nation with sacks and has stepped up on a defense that has not performed up to its expectations through the midway point this year. After practice on Tuesday, the Indiana Daily Student spent a couple of minutes with Kirlew to get a better idea of who he is:
When did you first get involved with football? I started when I was eight years old. My dad is from Jamaica, so the first sport I played was soccer. That's when I was real small, then I started getting some real weight on me. I was like man, all that running around ... So I said let me play football and I tried that out and I fell in love with it.
Did you always want to be a defensive end? Actually, I played five positions in high school. I was a fullback, tight end, defensive lineman, linebacker and once I played receiver. But the positions I think I liked the most were defensive end and tight end. But I'd much rather be the guy delivering the hit, you know?
Do you try to model your game after any professional linemen? Oh yeah. Victor Adeyanju. I keep in contact with him. He always give me tips, tells me to stay focused and tells me things that worked out for him. He's been a role model to me.
Supposedly you go bowling a lot, is that your favorite sport besides football? I am, but I'm not the greatest at it so I don't like to tell. If you asked me my handicap, I'm going um. Probably the biggest bowlers are (Marcus) Thigpen, (Andrew) Means. They average over 200. They're ridiculous. If I break 100, I'm happy. So when we get a chance, we like to do it for fun. But I'm definitely not the best at it so I don't brag.
