Florida Atlantic linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair grew up homeless,
BOCA RATON, FLA. — Florida Atlantic star linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair is an observant Muslim, and he understands why there is fascination regarding one particular element of his offseason training regimen.
The Islamic holy month of Ramadan requires Muslims to abstain from all food and drink from sunrise to sunset. There is no exception for football players. So when AlShaair would join his FAU teammates for workouts from mid-May through mid-June, some days with the temperature exceeding 90 degrees, he endured the sessions without drinking or eating anything until nightfall.
He gets asked about those days all the time.
"I just say I've been through worse," AlShaair said.
That's an understatement, especially considering his story. He comes from poverty, was a late bloomer in football, saw plenty of crime and struggle around him, and never truly valued education until a few years ago. Now he might be one of the best linebackers in the country, one who ranked third nationally in total tackles last season and is a big reason why FAU — which opens at No. 5-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday — has high hopes for 2018.
"There's so much more out there to be done," AlShaair said. "The sky's the limit for the team, but at the end of the day, it's all about how much we're willing to do."
He speaks like an optimist.
Given his background, it's amazing he has any hope left.
Al-Shaair and his family were homeless for most of his formative years. His grandmother's home where they once stayed burned to the ground when he was 15, and he soon became one of 11 people sharing a cramped motel room in Tampa. He slept on the floor. He took two-hour bus rides to and from school. He hid his shame from almost everyone, though his situation was ultimately discovered because one of his coaches — unbeknownst to Al-Shaair — worked at the motel. And money? Forget it. He's made do with little, yet teammates tell the story of how he once gave $50 to a fellow student in need. Today, he supports two younger brothers who live with him because they were going down the wrong road at home.
Head coach Lane Kiffin is the face of FAU football, and rightly so.
But ask the Owls who the leader of the team is, and Al-Shaair is the clear pick.
"I think he is one of the best leaders I have ever been around in a locker room," FAU defensive coordinator Tony Pecoraro said.
If Al-Shaair was so inclined, he could be earning an NFL paycheck and helping his family right now. But he decided to stay in school, coming to that decision toward the end of last season when the Owls went 11-3, won the Conference USA title and rolled to a 50-3 win over Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl.
"There's just some people who are very unique and mature well beyond their years," said Kiffin, who marvels at Al-Shaair's story. "He already practices and prepares like a 10-year NFL vet."