Fins' draft pick exhibits strength of character
Those close to Ted Ginn insist the Dolphins couldn't have drafted a more well-rounded person.
BY MICHAEL WALLACE
MEET TED GINN
• Position: Wide receiver
• Hometown/birth date: Cleveland/April 12, 1985
• Ht./Wt.: 6-0, 180
• College: Ohio State
• Quick look: Selected by the Dolphins with the ninth overall pick in the draft. Was a Heisman Trophy candidate as a senior and scored on the opening kickoff in Ohio State's loss to Florida in the Bowl Championship Series title game in January. Played for his father, Ted Sr., at Cleveland's Glenville High, where he received scholarship offers in football, track and basketball. His mother, Jeanette, plans to move to Miami in the coming months. His first major purchase as a pro athlete was a Cadillac Escalade. Could join Dwyane Wade (Heat) and Dontrelle Willis (Marlins) as a 25-and-under star with a local pro franchise.
CLEVELAND -- The slogan is printed in black ink on white paper and taped to a long, red counter in Glenville High's main office.
It rests just beneath a cluttered countertop that proudly displays trophies, plaques, T-shirts and other championship memorabilia -- all evidence that Ted Ginn not only once attended this school, but he blossomed here, too.
The two-line motivational message greets every visitor who enters the heart of a school located in one of the most dilapidated areas of this town. Inside, there is an oasis of optimism:
Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
If only it were that easy. But those who know Ginn insist nothing here personifies him more than those nine words. Not the awards stacked in the office. Not the T-shirts printed for his NFL Draft party here two weeks ago. Not the brick soon to be inscribed and placed alongside those of other famous Glenville alumni, such as comedian Steve Harvey.
This is where it began. This is where Ginn celebrated the moment the Dolphins selected him with the ninth overall pick on April 28. This is where he cried after addressing 500 fans at his draft party. This is where he returned after a brief trip to Miami, with jersey in tow, to show the dreamers that it's all really real.
''Forget the other things he's done -- the great things he's accomplished on that field,'' said Glenville chief administrator Jacqueline Bell, who has known Ginn since he was 12. ``He's overcome all of the odds against him and will continue to do so. There's just something about him. You just know the special ones from the moment you see them.''
Bell has just about seen them all. In her 10 years at Glenville, thousands of students have graduated, and gone on to lead successful lives. Yet hundreds have dropped out, and dozens have ended up in jail. She has even seen a few die much too young.
And that's why the special ones stand out. The ones such as Ginn, who just might be the most positive and enthusiastic person she knows.
NOT A FAVORITE -- YET
Ginn's attitude might be his best trait next to his speed. And it could come in handy, considering many questions still surround this wide receiver from Ohio State a week after he sat out of minicamp.
Ginn was an unpopular choice among fans who gathered at the Dolphins' practice facility on draft day and vehemently booed when the team chose him instead of Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn.
Some believe the Dolphins are investing millions of dollars in a fragile phenom who has yet to heal from a foot injury he sustained Jan. 8, on the first play of the Bowl Championship Series title game against Florida.
Others believe a franchise that has missed the playoffs for five consecutive seasons had more pressing needs than a player whose impact might be limited to special teams.
But if character weighed as heavily in the Dolphins' decision as catches and toughness as much as touchdowns, those around Ginn believe Miami landed the steal of the draft.
''One beautiful thing about Teddy is he's got a calmness and confidence about him that [the doubters] aren't going to affect him,'' Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. ``What's most important to him is making sure he contributes to his veterans being successful. With all of the ability he has, it would have been easy to get caught up in what was good for him. I can't wait to see the reaction when he becomes the toast of that town. They'll soon be cheering for him.''
Few question the skills Ginn brings to a football field. He was regarded as one of the nation's best players while at Ohio State, where he set a Big Ten record with six punt returns for touchdowns. He also scored twice on kickoffs and caught 135 passes for 1,943 yards and 15 touchdowns in three seasons.
EARLY START
But beneath the speed, tucked below all of the talent and tenacity with which he played every snap, is a grounded 22-year-old who has been groomed for this moment -- this pressure -- since he was a toddler.
''When he was real young, we used to go out front and play catch with the football,'' said Ginn's father, Ted Sr., Glenville's longtime football and track coach. ``And I'd always tell him that if he dropped it, I'm going in the house and that would be it.''
Those were the only times Ginn had to worry about his father walking away from him. Ted Sr. worked his way up from Glenville's security guard to a position as one of the city's most successful high school coaches.
''Everywhere Big Ted went, Little Ted went,'' Jeannette Ginn said of her husband and son. ``And it was always about family, even through some of the tough times.''
The Ginns said they never feared they would lose their son to the distractions that claimed some of his relatives and peers. Ted Sr.'s constant presence at school helped keep his son on the right path, but several other incidents made sure he never strayed.
''He's seen a couple of his cousins, our relatives, go the wrong way,'' Ted Sr. said. ``There were a couple of guys who I coached who were shot and killed. They weren't necessarily doing the wrong thing . . . just in the wrong place.
``Any kid has the possibility to go the wrong way. But I was never worried about Ted because I was always there.''
Tameka Hughes, 23, attended Glenville with Ginn and said even when he was away from his father, he knew there were boundaries.
''He saw a lot of what other guys were getting into, but he wouldn't go there,'' Hughes said. ''A lot had to do with his daddy, but a lot had to do with him. It's no surprise he made it this far because he's been set on getting where he is for a long time.'' USED TO SPOTLIGHT
Responding to pressure was nothing to Ginn then, either. Bell, the Glenville administrator, said Ginn was classified as learning disabled in junior high school but left Glenville in the top 10 percent of his class.
''He was told, unfortunately by educators at an early age, what he was and wasn't able to do,'' Bell said. ``He never bought into it.''
Ginn left Glenville rated as the nation's top defensive back by USA Today and SuperPrep magazine. He also was a two-time national champion sprinter. He arrived at Ohio State with big-time hype.
''He was always No. 1 in the nation in something, and he still lived up to expectations,'' said David Lighty, who grew up around the corner from Ginn and followed him to Ohio State. ``So what he's going into now is nothing new.''
That's what made coming to South Florida so special for the Ginns. Dolphins coach Cam Cameron, who met the Ginns 10 years ago as a college football coach at Indiana, said he was drafting the ''entire family,'' not just a receiver.
Ginn also has a built-in bond with veteran Dolphins receiver Chris Chambers, a Cleveland native who played for Ginn's father at Glenville.
''I called him up and told him that little brother is coming down,'' Ginn said after he was drafted. ``He's going to take good care of me. That's all you look for. It's always good to have somebody in your corner. He is going to show me the ropes.''
FAMILY TIES
Family and faith are just as important as football in the Ginn household. And if Ginn needed another lesson to keep in all in proper perspective, it came just before the draft.
Ted Sr. had a recurring health problem that forced him into emergency surgery March 22, about a month before the draft. His second surgery in 14 months came at a time when his son was concerned about how his foot would hold up in workouts for NFL scouts.
Suddenly, there were more important issues than workout numbers and draft status. Family trumped football, and the focus was on faith.
''Fortunately, this happened when it did and he was able to get to a doctor, have surgery and be back up on his feet,'' said Larry Howard, pastor at Greater Friendship Baptist Church, where the Ginns attend. ``I was there when Ted Sr. woke up in recovery.
``You could tell that it meant so much to him that he was able to come through and be there for his son at the highest point of his life.''
In the days leading up to the draft, Ted Sr. challenged his son again, just like he did when they used to toss the ball around in the front yard. Along the living room floor, he spread out a collection of about 50 photos of his son at various stages of his life.
Ted Sr. pointed farthest to his left at the photo of his son as a 1-year-old, wearing a Louisville Slugger cap and clutching a baseball in his tiny hand.
'I asked, `What was I told you then?' '' Ted Sr. said. 'Ted Jr. looked at me and said, `You were my dad.' ''
The father pointed to another picture taken later in his son's life and repeated the question. Ginn replied with the same answer.
The routine continued until they got to a photo taken at the BCS title game in January. Same question from dad, same answer from son.
''Sometimes you have to challenge your kids,'' Ginn said as he recounted the exchange, with the photos still lining the floor. 'I tried to show Ted that I was the same person. I didn't change. I was the same person with the same values all of his life. Then I asked him, `Now that you're at this point, what are you going to do? Will you change?' ''
The folks back home insist he won't.
''I have no doubt,'' Bell said. ``And I pray he never gets to the point where his head is so large when he comes back here that he has to turn sideways to walk through that door.''
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