This morning, I got a text from Florida Gators wide receiver signee Ja’Juan Story.
A few weeks ago, I had contacted Ja’Juan to do a Q&A with him before his arrival on campus this summer.
The Ja’Juan Story Q&A ran last week and created a big stir on the Internet, including Deadspin.com, based on his answer to a question about his pre-game ritual.
The text said: “I’m apologizing for the inappropriate comment I made about saying ‘doodoo’ during the Q&A interview and anything else that I might have said that was inappropriate, and I’m sorry for the hassle. Blessed.”
I called Ja’Juan to talk to him about it and also to see how he was taking everything. In the most mature fashion, he told me he was sorry.
“I represent more than just myself,” Story said. “I represent the entire University and the Gators. I should have thought twice before I said the D word.”
Throughout this whole process, I’ve been beyond impressed with Ja’Juan’s maturity and refreshed with his honesty. I had hoped our Q&A would expose some of the layers of his character and personality. He is a very unique individual with much to offer, and I hope that’s what people will remember from the Q&A.
After he finished his apology, we talked about the Q&A and how he was taking all of the reactions. He was honestly surprised people found him to be so entertaining. He was just being real.
“I guess I’m weird,” he said.
And then, as only Ja’Juan could, he followed up with, “you know what hurts?”
I expected him to say something about being misunderstood or different, but he finished: “getting your cartilage pierced. I mean, I have two tattoos, and it hurts worse than those did…”
Gator Country reporter Amy Campbell can be reached at amy@gatorcountry.com. You can also follow her on Twitter at msamycampbell.
Amy Campbell Bio
While Amy Campbell is not floating around singing Disney songs…she keeps quite busy covering lots of Gator sports. Most recently, she covered the Gators men’s basketball team and followed them to Tampa and to New Orleans in the NCAA tournament. Amy has been a telecommunications major at the University of Florida for two years, but before that she spent three years as a musical theatre major. Her love for theatre and colored lights took her all the way to the Big Apple where she spent a year studying acting, dance, and singing, and of course, seeing nearly every show on Broadway. Amy has never really been great at keeping her thoughts to herself, so usually she will say (or sing) whatever she’s thinking. She just can’t help it. And since she has such a robust Broadway musical knowledge, there is a song for every occasion. She’ll never miss a Disney reference either. At the end of the day, her dream job is really to be a Disney princess.