Quinn Porter, rookie running back for the Green Bay Packers, has the nickname "Pompoms."
He also has an interesting story, shared today in the New York Times.
How many running backs in the NFL spent their freshman year in college on the sidelines as a cheerleader?
By the way, Porter prefers the term "stuntman."
Whatever you call him, Porter is an unusual rookie, even by the standards of undrafted free agents, who often take circuitous paths to N.F.L. training camps.
But it is not just his unusual back story that has turned heads. Porter has been among the highlights of training camp, earning praise from Packers Coach Mike McCarthy for the spark he often provides and for commanding a large share of the carries in the team’s preseason opener Saturday against Cleveland.
...As a stuntman, Porter did back flips, tosses and the like, and Wilson said he “made it cool to be a male cheerleader.” It allowed him to be around the football team and travel to games, where he multitasked, studying the opposing teams’ personnel between stunts.
The next year, Porter, who is 6 feet and 205 pounds, joined the football team as a wide receiver. He eventually persuaded the coaching staff to let him play running back, and — with the nickname Pompoms — he made the most of the opportunity, rushing for 2,788 yards and 24 touchdowns in 37 games and adding 68 receptions for 887 yards and 12 more touchdowns.
...The more word of his unusual résumé has spread, Porter said, the more he has been ribbed by his teammates. An official at the U.S.A. Federation for Sport Cheering said he believed Porter is the first male cheerleader turned N.F.L. player, at least in recent history.
“But if there’s anyone else,” Porter said, grinning, “please step up and join this journey.”
I'm cheering for Quinn "Pompoms" Porter to make the Packers.
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