Login | Member Center | Contact Us | About Us | Site Map | Archive | Alerts/Photos | Subscribe to the paper | knoxnews.com

Home › Football Recruiting

News Sentinel Top 10 in Tennessee, No. 9: Greg King of Memphis Melrose

By Josh Ward (Contact)
Originally published 11:28 p.m., July 6, 2008
Updated 11:28 p.m., July 6, 2008

Greg King never knew how much football meant until it was almost taken away.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound linebacker from Memphis Melrose High School started playing football when he was in the sixth grade.

It was a year later when King's football career almost ended.

King, who is the News Sentinel's ninth-best prospect in the state, said a group of men approached him about joining their gang when he was 13 years old.

When King refused, they attacked him, leaving him with an elbow so badly broken that it's still supported by a rod, two steel plates and eight screws.

King said the incident left him scared, but that wasn't his biggest concern.

"I just wanted to know if I (would) play football," King said. "All I asked was, 'Can I still play football?' "

Not only did King return to football, but he brought with him a new determination.

King said the incident gave him an appreciation for the game he loved to play.

"It made me work even harder," he said. "It made me a better person because I feel if somebody is trying to take something from me I'm going to work harder for what I'm striving for."

King's work has earned him scholarship offers from about 10 schools, including Tennessee, Alabama, LSU, Miami, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Memphis.

King said he hasn't narrowed his list but plans to take all five official visits allowed by the NCAA.

"I'll want to see if I feel comfortable around the people and if it's the best place for me," he said. "I'll see if I feel that's the best place for me to stay for the next four years."

King said UT and Memphis have recruited him the hardest recently.

While King said Memphis seems like an unlikely destination, UT could have an advantage as the in-state school.

"I would love to play at Tennessee," he said. "They tell me this and that about how good it is.

"I'm going to have to see on my own. I'll go and see how I enjoy myself."

King said he's unsure when he will take his visits but he doesn't want them to interfere with his season.

King said he's more focused on helping Melrose win a state championship, which hasn't happened since 1998.

Melrose coach Hubbard Alexander said if the Golden Wildcats win a title this year it will be because of King's leadership.

"The kids listen to him before they listen to me," Alexander said. "He's with them in the trenches and in the foxhole. They say, 'If he does it, I'm going to do it.' "

King said his leadership comes from his mother's guidance. It's a role he's always accepted.

"Everyone always told me, 'You're going to be a leader one day,' " King said. "I just try my best to do the best.

"That's all. I just take it to the limit."

It's a limit King has pushed since his father signed him up for football in the sixth grade.

King said he still remembers the first time he put on pads.

"From there forward it's been a dream come true," he said. "It's the best thing to ever happen to me."

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.

       15 Comments

Posted by givehim6 on July 6, 2008 at 11:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)

A leader? sounds great. If he can git the rest of the team fired up to do there best ever game, let's get him! Go VOLS!

Posted by volster on July 7, 2008 at 6:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I like the trait of a 13 year-old standing up to a gang. Sounds like a real winner.

Posted by Kosmo on July 7, 2008 at 6:59 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Is he related to Burger King?

Posted by richvol on July 7, 2008 at 7:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Volster, you hit it on the head...it took a lot of courage at 13 to refuse a gang. Then he made it into something positive with his determination to succeed on the field and in the classroom.

We need this young man. He is already a great leader for others.

Posted by RichRollin on July 7, 2008 at 9:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Nice story. His team listens to him before they listen to the coach, if he goes they go. I'm lovin' the sound of that!! He is a pretty good player.

Posted by HotlantaVol on July 7, 2008 at 9:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)

It's a great story regardless of where he goes to play. It's an even better story if he comes to Tennessee.

Posted by vol4gzus on July 7, 2008 at 10:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Kosmo stop star gazing or should I say Whopper ?
Size of lb or rush end by college time with 30lbs added.

Posted by marc_ash on July 7, 2008 at 11:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Would love to see him fill up the middle. Come to UT young man. One of the best things a young man can do is get away from home. UT will welcome you and make it your new home.

See you soon...

Go Vols.

Posted by thesavageorange on July 7, 2008 at 1:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)

This young man is very underated.He runs a 4.5 and benches in the 320 range.If we lock him up, and grab 4* Jerod Askew, we will be in good shape at LB for yr's to come.Here's something Askew said recently:

Tennessee is hoping to lure Askew a bit to the southwest.

"That's a linebacker school right there," he said. "They said they lost some linebackers and need some bigger ones, so that may be a good fit for me."

My favorite DT out there is Darrington Sentimore out of (LA).I have maintained that we have a solid shot b/c of playing time and he confirmed that again recently.

Sentimore:"It's the same with LSU; I'm not going to go there just because they are nearby. I've got to find the right place for me."

There is one clear cut way for a school to make a lasting impression upon his decision.

"Playing time will be a factor, and I don't know much outside of that," he said. "I'm not really worried about who a school has put out and stuff. I still have to do the work and prove I've got the talent to be one of those guys.

Posted by sjt18 on July 7, 2008 at 4:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Savage, I know some of the out of state DT's are getting alot of love but something tells me that UT will be making a mistake if they pass up instate guys like Cathey, Worthen, and King.

Posted by RichRollin on July 7, 2008 at 4:45 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Sjt18 hit the nail on the head. Since we have struggled with depth at DT, the instate guys should be a no-brainer. Anything on top of that is great.

Posted by sjt18 on July 7, 2008 at 5:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)

The caveat DaddyVol is academics. The open rumor is that Curtis King will be difficult to qualify. Not sure about the other two.

Seems like there's a decent prospect in Nashville as well but he may have borderline SEC talent.

Posted by pdhuff on July 7, 2008 at 9:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Any DT that has prospect by his name is royally welcome.

Posted by BGVOL on July 7, 2008 at 10:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Anyone know the high school Melrose beat for the Championship that year??

Post a comment
(Requires free registration.)

Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.

Username:

Password:
(Forgotten your password?)

Your Turn:
Recent Vol videos

Please download the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, or enable JavaScript for your browser to view the video player.