Behind the Facemask: Jordan Futch

June 24, 2011

CORAL GABLES, Fla.– They are stories of perseverance. Stories about growing up, becoming men and being a part of a family. One-by-one, we hear from them. These are the Miami Hurricanes…

Jordan Futch | Linebacker | Senior | Hollywood, Fla.

Playing football has given me more confidence to do what I want to do in life, the will to succeed, and a strong mindset to overcome any obstacles.

When I was six years old, I loved hanging out with my mom and dad. They were my biggest inspiration. I always wanted to be like them.

The U is a family. It’s more than just a school. It’s relationships, it’s a passionate environment, and it’s filled with hard workers and success stories.

Competition is what I live for. It makes me a better person, a better man. It allows me to grow spiritually, emotionally, and physically. It’s what everyone comes to the U for. If you don’t like competition, you need to find another school.

I secretly wish that I was a billionaire (laughs).

My experience is breathtaking, it’s almost death-defying. Because I feel like it’s not something everybody can do. I do what everybody wishes they could do, and I do what people have dreamed of doing. I live life to the fullest, because this is my experience.

Chaminade Prep was a stepping-stone. It was base work. It got me prepared for where I am now.

I’m afraid of heights. I hate heights. I enjoy rollercoasters though; it’s so weird, because I feel safe in a rollercoaster. I can do anything, but I hate heights. I can’t stand leaning on balconies or leaning out windows (laughs).

Redshirting is something I’m happy I didn’t do. It allows me to be a lot hungrier right now, and it makes me work harder knowing that I don’t have any more chances.

A big hit becomes almost instinctual. Adrenaline takes over to the point where your body is moving but your mind is almost not focused on the exact thing you’re doing. You have an out-of-body experience, where you’re looking at yourself doing the motion. You make the read and your body just goes. Instinctual. I’m running, I see the open hole, and I just feel the hit. I feel like I’m in the stands watching it. And then after you come back into your body you realize what happened.

Everybody can criticize everybody. Everybody has their own opinion. But when you put in the hard work, the opinion of yourself is what really matters. You have to have a strong self-confidence, and that’s what we call swagger. You have to believe in yourself when nobody else will believe in you. You have to be strong-minded at all times.

I didn’t think I would make it this far. I went through some hard times through my process here. I had some long days, some long nights, a lot of tears, and some injuries. I didn’t think I would make it this far, but I praise God that I have, and I’m where I want to be and I’m happy with where I’m going.

I was raised in a two-parent household, thankfully, with two sisters. I love my family. I was raised to believe in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and He is who keeps me up. My family is what keeps me going.

If I could wake up anywhere in the world tomorrow, I’d be on Greentree Practice Fields. Getting better. This is my job. This is my life. I don’t want to be anywhere else but here with my boys trying to win a championship. Right now it’s all about this Greentree and these 100 guys that are counting on me.

You never know what life’s going to bring you. That’s why you have to just learn to take every day one step at a time. You have to be able to learn from your mistakes, and learn to move forward from them. Because you never know what the next second is going to bring. It might bring joy, it might bring sadness, but you have to take it in stride and be a strong-minded and strong willed person.

I’ll never forget knocking off Stephen Sylvester’s helmet at Dolphin Stadium and hearing thousands of fans screaming my name. I remember seeing it on ESPN. That was the best. <Click to watch the hit>

I want to leave a legacy here, and I want to continue a legacy at the same time. The one I want to leave is that I was enthusiastic, I worked hard, and I was one of the hardest hitters to come through the University of Miami. I want to continue that legacy by keeping the tradition of linebackers alive, and making sure the young guys that come after me and Sean Spence know that this is “Linebacker U” for now and evermore.

Coach D’Onofrio is absolutely out of his mind, and I love him for it. He’s made me a lot tougher mentally. Physically, I’m learning how to use all 6-3 and 240 pounds of me to the best of my ability, and not being soft. I feel like he’s taught me the base work of being a linebacker, along with Coach Barrow. He’s one of the best defensive coordinators in the game.

The Golden Coaching staff are a group of guys in their 30’s and 40’s. That allows for a better mesh because they’re only 10-20 years away from us. They know what we’ve been through, they all played ball, they know how we feel. It’s not such a big gap when you have older coaches who have been out of the game, who aren’t on Twitter, who don’t know how to operate a computer. These coaches know exactly what we go through. They have their own lives, and you feel like they’re walking in your shoes. You don’t feel like you’re being coached by a leatherhead. It’s the truth, it’s a big difference. You need that unity and work to win championships.

This place has always been built on conditioning. It’s always been about being able to run faster than everybody else and being better conditioned. It’s a different way of conditioning now, but the guys are taking well to it. It’s nothing new to us. This is what we do, this is our life, and this is how Canes are made.

I’m going to go out with a bang as far as haircuts go. I might hold out until a little later in the season and find something to put in my head. I might put Coach Golden on my left-hand side, put Coach D’Onofrio on the right-hand side, and put Coach Barrow in the back. On the top I’ll shave the words “thank you.” (laughs).

Make sure to check in for a new Behind the Facemask profile each and everyday in preparation for the Hurricane football season opener. For a review of all past profiles, check out Behind the Facemask Central.