CROWN-ING ACHIEVEMENT
Avoiding pitfalls, Samuel ready to take career to new Heights
Curtis Samuel didn’t care about the long odds or how unlikely his NFL dream was as a running back from Brooklyn.
The Crown Heights native made reaching the ultimate level of football a goal when he was 12.
“He always said my plan is to make it to the NFL and take care of my family,” said Roy Armstead, Samuel’s stepfather and president of the Brooklyn Saints youth football organization, where Curtis played until high school.
Samuel matched that big talk with a relentless work ethic and focus to match. He latched on to the family and coaches who shared his vision and insulated him from the issues that could derail his rise. With their help, he became a star player and stellar student, realizing the expectations so many city standouts have failed to fulfill.
“He was protected in a way that we wouldn’t let him go down the wrong avenue,” said Danny Landberg, Samuel’s high school coach at Erasmus Hall. “He was also protected [and] he had a family that was on the right page in every way ... but he [also] had the right common sense to walk the right path.”
The Ohio State wide receiver/ running back is projected to be a late first-round or early secondround pick in this week’s NFL draft. It would make him the first skill-position player from New York City to be selected that high since the Bills took running Ronnie Harmon at No. 16 in 1986.
“As I got older,” Samuel said, “I really understood I could make football a living for myself.”
Samuel credits Landberg for steering him in the right direction, emphasizing the importance of academics as much as football. His mother, Nicole, described him as a homebody solely focused on playing big-time football and making sure nothing got in his way. Samuel graduated Erasmus a semester early to get a jump on his Ohio State career.
Landberg still has Samuel’s transcript hanging on the wall in this office as a motivator for his current players.
“He had a goal he wanted to achieve,” Armstead said. “He stuck with it. He didn’t let the outside [world] distract him. It was tunnel vision.”
Living in the dangerous Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, Samuel could have been pulled in other directions, but the people in his community wanted to see him succeed. They saw his dedication and his talent.
“In our neighborhood, they don’t mess with the athletes who have a future,” said Shamorie Ponds, his friend and St. John’s freshman star who grew up in the s a me housing projects.
“They didn’t want to see nothing happen to the people who could do something.” All Samuel did was deliver. After waiting his turn behind current Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, the 5-foot-11 Samuel had a breakout junior season at Ohio State. He ran for 771 yards and eight touchdowns and also caught 74 passes for 865 yards and seven more scores — the only player in the country last season with more than 700 yards rushing and receiving. The All-American scored the winning touchdown against rival Michigan to secure the Buckeyes a berth in the College Football Playoff.
His versatility and speed — a 4.31 40-yard dash at the combine — got the attention of NFL general managers and coaches. Samuel’s skills at his size have drawn comparisons to former Bills receiver Percy Harvin.
NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah likened his big-play ability to Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill, who had 860 yards and nine touchdowns combined rushing and receiving last season as a rookie. Bucky Brooks, also of NFL Network, sees Samuel as an “18-to-20 touch-pergame guy,” combining rushes and receptions.
“He’s what I call a broken-field runner. When the play goes off script, he can still go get you 15 yards,” said CBS analyst and former NFL safety Corey Chavous. “To be an impact player, he’s going to have to develop into a receiver. In Percy Harvin’s case, as much as he ran the ball, he became a good slot receiver. That’s what he will have to develop into.”
It is one of the reasons those around Samuel believe he the chance to be a household name across the country. Landberg said he believes Samuel will make a Pro Bowl during his career.
The last first-round pick from New York City was defensive lineman Dominique Easley of Staten Island, who the Patriots took 29th in the 2014 draft and is now with the Rams. Former Jets offensive lineman Willie Colon of The Bronx won a Super Bowl ring with the Steelers and arguably had the best career by someone from the Big Apple in a long time. Samuel has as a chance to shine brighter because of his position and highlight-reel potential.
“He can be that guy that can be the hero much easier in a game than a lineman,” Landberg said.
Samuel said he plans on using his visibility to help others. He attended the Brooklyn Saints ban-
“He was protected in a way that we wouldn’t let him go down the wrong avenue. He was also protected [and] he had a family that was on the right page in every way ... but he [also] had the right common sense to walk the right path.” — Danny Landberg, Erasmus Hall coach
quet in early April and spoke to the organization’s players about what got him to this level. Armstead said many of his youth players are already asking to switch from running back to slot receiver because of Samuel.
Samuel hopes that can make him a pied piper of sorts, inspiring and mentoring others with his play and sharing his journey. He frequently has talked about convincing city kids it is possible to follow his path.
“For him to come out of New York and set the standard he’s setting, kids are looking up to him,” Nicole Samuel said. “It’s unbelievable. It’s a great moment in our life. It’s so crazy.”
“I’m just doing my part to help to get [other kids] out of New York,” Samuel said.
Samuel played multiple sports growing up, but football was always No. 1. It started with his older cousin Rashaun Samuel, who played at Canarsie High School. Initially, his mother was hesitant about it.
“I said, ‘Are you sure? It’s dangerous,’ ” she said. “He was like, ‘They have to catch me first.’ We put him in there and he took off.”
Samuel began playing football at the age of 6, but it wasn’t until he was ready to play at Erasmus that playing in the NFL became a realistic dream.
It will almost certainly happen either Thursday or Friday night as Samuel sits at home, joined by ESPN cameras, waiting for his name to be called. Samuel said he doesn’t care who takes him. He just wants to enjoy the moment he and everyone around him worked so long for.
“It’s going to be special,” Samuel said. “I don’t know how I will react because it will be kind of crazy, all those years watching other players get drafted and their reaction.
“It’s finally my turn.”